Cadbury - Social Pioneers
Cadbury is known for the social pioneering of its founders as much as it is for the production of chocolate, and the fascinating history of their social ethos and the way it helped to transform the lot of the working classes in the UK is outlined alongside the success story that is the Cadbury business.
Early history
The history of Cadbury as manufacturers of chocolate products in Birmingham dates back to the early part of the 19th century, when John Cadbury opened a shop in the centre of the city, trading as a coffee and tea dealer. Soon a new sideline was introduced - cocoa and drinking chocolate, which he prepared himself using a mortar and pestle. His lifelong involvement with the Temperance Society led him to provide tea, coffee and cocoa as an alternative to alcohol, believed to be one of the causes of so much misery and deprivation amongst working people in Britain at that time.
The Quaker influence
In the 19th century the Cadbury family were members of the Society of Friends or Quakers, one of the many non-conformist groups developed in the 17th century in protest against the formalism of the Established Church. Quakers held strong beliefs and ideals which carried into 'campaigns for justice, equality and social reform, putting an end to poverty and deprivation'.
As nonconformists, Quakers weren't allowed to enter the Universities, which in the 19th century were closely linked with the Established Church. So entry into the professions was impossible, and pacifist principles precluded the military as a career. Their energies and talents were therefore directed towards business, social reform and the transformation of social and industrial society in Victorian Britain.
Many Quaker families have made their mark on the British business scene - in addition to the Cadburys, the Frys of Bristol, Rowntrees and Terrys of York developed the confectionery business; Sampson Lloyd of Birmingham founded Lloyd's Bank; the Hanburys brought tinplate to Wales; and the Darbys of Coalbrooke were the founders of the British iron industry.
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