Good news for chocolate lovers! One of your favourite brands is coming back
It’s been an Aussie favourite for decades, and after a tumultuous period, Australian confectioner Darrell Lea is making a comeback.
The company was forced to shut down all its stores back in 2012 after going into administration, but now, the new owners of the classic brand will be opening up a “chocolate centre of excellence” in Melbourne’s southeast.
The opening of the chocolate factory will create 50 jobs and plans to increase production have been put in place for early next year.
Currently, Darrell Lea operates through a factory located in Ingleburn in Sydney’s southwest.
The chocolatier does not have its own standalone stores, but rather prefers to sell its items through supermarkets and other retailers.
Tim Stanford, the marketing director, spoke about Darrell Lea's relationship with Heritage, who were previously responsible for producing Easter eggs and other various chocolates for the company.
“Their [Heritage] capabilities plus the Darrell Lea brand equals a big opportunity for all of us.
“It’s great for us to be manufacturing in Melbourne and there’s new job opportunities coming from it.”
Previous employees for Heritage will now work for Darrell Lea due to the takeover but according to Mr Stanford, 50 more jobs could be added early next year.
“We will use it as our centre of excellence for chocolate and we will need more staff.”
But if you were looking forward to Darrell Lea opening up their own stores, well prepare to be disappointed as at this current moment, the company has no plans in doing that.
“It’s always a possibility but we don’t have any solid plans to become a retailer. But never say never,” said Mr Stanford.
Every year, Darrell Lea manufactures a whopping 40,000km of liquorice and 400 million chocolate-covered bullets.
“We are known for chocolate interestingly although we don’t do much chocolate now, mainly on bullets,” Mr Stanford said.
Chief executive of Darrell Lea also had a few words to say: “Until now, we have always been viewed as a Sydney company but with manufacturing expansion into Victoria we can forge stronger relationships with our retailers and consumers.”
When the brand collapsed in 2012, it was the Quinn family, who are responsible for VIP Pet Foods, who took over. This year, they sold the business to Quadrant Private Equity and received around $200 million in return.