From the first locally produced chocolate slab sold in South Africa in 1938, to the memorable gorilla advert, Cadbury has had many moments over the years.
They were all showcased at Cadbury’s 80th birthday celebration where guests were treated to a historical retelling of the brand, which contrary to popular belief, is not even South African.
Heritage packaging and gift giving
To celebrate its birthday, Cadbury is launching its signature product in eight heritage packs, which will showcase various Cadbury Dairy Milk designs throughout its history in South Africa.
The brand has also launched a campaign, Remarkable Regifts, with consumers standing a chance to win some of the presents Cadbury received for its birthday. [To put your name down against a gift, click here.)
“We look back on our history in South Africa with fond memories and it is a huge honour to commemorate this special milestone,” says Grant van Niekerk, Mondelez SA’s category lead on chocolate.
“We are committed to continuing the legacy created all those years ago and to manufacture quality products for everyone to enjoy,” he adds.
Constant reinvention and entertaining marketing
Over the years, Cadbury has had many memorable moments. New chocolate offerings have kept the brand fresh, while entertaining adverts have kept customers engaged. For many, the most iconic one is the gorilla one that flighted in 2010.
And who can forget the triplets in the womb, singing and dancing in unison, as their mother ate a Cadbury chocolate.
Social media influencers and bloggers
The brand, in keeping with popular marketing trends, utilised social media influencers, celebrities, and bloggers to promote its birthday celebration. A plethora of them were in attendance, tweeting, instagraming, facebooking, photographing and writing.
The night ended with the singing of Happy Birthday to Cadbury.
Here are some pictures from the event:
A rich history
The Cadbury brand was started by tea merchant John Cadbury back in 1824, who added drinking chocolate to his offerings. The chocolate that we know today was only formally introduced in 1897. In 1903, the products arrived in South Africa, brought to the country by brothers Richard and George Cadbury, while in 1926 construction began on a local manufacturing plant. This was completed in 1938, when its first creation was sold to the market.
Here’s a brief timeline of other historic moments in Cadbury’s history:
1920: Cadbury introduces the recognisable purple and gold colours on its packaging
1928: The ‘glass and a half’ symbol is introduced to the brand. The Flake is launched in SA
1960: Crunchie and Lunch Bar are launched in SA
1970: Chomp is launched in SA
1980: Snacker became SA’s newest cereal bar
1983: Tempo is launched in SA
1995: Astro is launched in SA
1997: PS becomes SA’s first messaging chocolate bar
2005: Tumbles is launched in SA
2012: Cadbury Dairy Milk Bubbly is launched in SA
2013: A new look for Cadbury Dairy Milk is launched
2015: Marvellous Creations is launched in SA
2016: Cadbury 5Star arrives in SA
Michael Bratt is a multimedia journalist at Wag the Dog, publishers of The Media Online and The Media. Follow him on Twitter @MichaelBratt8
