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The story of 100 years of chocolate

‘Enjoyed for Generations’ is a coffee-table book that offers an intimate look inside the history of one of South Australia’s oldest family-owned companies, Haigh’s Chocolates.

Nov 19, 2015, updated Nov 19, 2015
Simon, John and Alister Haigh are third- and fourth-generation owners of South Australian family business Haigh's Chocolates. Photo: supplied

Simon, John and Alister Haigh are third- and fourth-generation owners of South Australian family business Haigh's Chocolates. Photo: supplied

It is written by local culinary historian and author Barbara Santich, who received full access to the family’s private collections and business archives spanning five generations – but unfortunately not the closely guarded chocolate recipe.

Released in time for the company’s centenary celebrations this year, the book’s cover is reminiscent of Haigh’s traditional wrappings and the original store décor on “Beehive Corner”, the corner of Rundle Mall and King William Street.

Haighs-book-cover-resized

Santich’s research about the “family that grew with South Australia” covers everything from when Alfred Haigh opened the first chocolate store in 1915, through the family’s award-winning racehorse interests to the Haigh’s Mansion on the Esplanade at Glenelg.

The author explores Haigh’s ability to maintain business during strife – including during the Great Depression, when the company sought a way to maintain sales despite the decreased availability of cocoa butter and cocoa powder. Its solution was to produce chocolate frogs, as they required fewer ingredients. The Haigh’s chocolate range now includes Australian native animals such as the bilby and Murray cod.

Enjoyed for Generations captures not only the history and growth of the South Australian business, but also nostalgia from customers and employees, such as their first experiences at Beehive Corner or a memory of their first taste of Haigh’s classic scorched almonds at the Piccadilly Cinema in North Adelaide.

The Haigh’s family legacy continues today with fourth-generation owners Alister and Simon Haigh revealing in the book that: “Alf probably never envisaged the business lasting as long as this, but he set it up so that it could continue.”

‘Enjoyed for Generations’, $69, is published by Wakefield Press and available from Haigh’s stores and online.

 

 

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