James Cadbury has sold his chocolate firm Love Cocoa - who is he, why has he sold company, what does this mean for future of Cadbury's chocolate?
James Cadbury has sold his chocolate company Love Cocoa, 10 years after it was first launched.
40-year-old Cadbury has sold his brand Love Cocoa and also the vegan brand Hip Chocolate for an undisclosed sum to a confectionery group called Made Uncommon.
Love Cocoa products were stocked in Anthropologie, Harrods, Fenwick, John Lewis, Liberty and Selfridges, plus independent outlets nationwide, and via lovecocoa.com. The website is still live at the time of writing, on Thursday November 13, and items for sale include Christmas advent calendars, chocolate bars and chocolate hampers.
James Cadbury is the great-great-great grandson of the original Mr Cadbury, John. On the Love Cocoa website, he says: “Inspired by my great-great-great grandfather, John Cadbury, I founded Love Cocoa to create delicious, premium chocolate made responsibly and with purpose. Today, our mission is to drive positive change within the chocolate industry, supporting the people and communities who make it all possible.”
He has not given a reason publicly for selling his company, bringing to an end his family link to the sweet treat which dates back more than 200 years. In March he told The Times the increases in cocoa prices were “terrifying”, however, and warned that “a lot of smaller chocolatiers are really on the brink”. In a post on his social media account he also said that Made Ucommon founderCalum Haggerty’s previous career as a fireman might have helped him in the last few years with “cocoa prices going through the roof”.
He added: “After nine great years of building Love Cocoa and Hip Chocolate, the company has now been sold. It has been my life for the last decade, full of highs, challenges, and huge learnings.”
As James was the only member of the Cadbury family still believed to be in the chocolate trade, that is up until his decision to sell, it is believed that this will bring to an end the family connection to the industry after just over 200 years. But, the Cadbury taste will not be lost, it seems.
Confirming the acquisition, Calum said he planned to retain the Love Cocoa identity and “bring fresh energy” to the ten-year-old B Corp-certified brand. “James built something distinctive. A design-led, ethically grounded chocolate brand with a clear mission to make delicious chocolate that does good for the people behind it,” he said.
John Cadbury, the founder of the Cadbury chocolate empire, set up his first shop selling cocoa and hot chocolate at 93 Bull Street, Birmingham, in 1824. Cadbury was sold to the American food group Kraft for £12 billion in 2010.
Moving forwards, James said he was developing several businesses, including a sustainable accessories brand called Kind Bag which has been set up by his wife María Rodríguez, and also Holte, a wellness brand.