 The McVitie's logo as updated in 2005 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Confectionery |
| Founded | 1830; 195 years ago (1830)Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Founder | Robert McVitie |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
Area served | UK, India, Italy, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the Netherlands, Israel, Egypt, Sweden, Turkey |
| Parent | Pladis |
| Website | mcvities |
McVitie's (/məkˈvɪtiz/[1]) is a British snack food brand owned byUnited Biscuits. The name is derived from the originalScottish biscuit maker,McVitie & Price,Ltd., established in 1830 onRose Street inEdinburgh, Scotland. The company moved to various sites in the city before completing the St. Andrews Biscuit Works factory on Robertson Avenue in theGorgie district in 1888.[2]
The company also established one in Glasgow and two large manufacturing plants south of the border, inHeaton Chapel,Stockport, andPark Royal,London. There are five McVitie's factories in the UK, with each producing a different types ofbiscuit; theHarlesden site in north-west London manufactures thechocolate digestives.[3] Under United Biscuits McVitie's held aRoyal Warrant from QueenElizabeth II. The best-selling biscuit manufacturer in the United Kingdom, McVitie's producesJaffa Cakes and popular biscuits such aschocolate digestives,Hobnobs, andRich tea. In 2020, sales of McVitie's biscuits in the UK were more than five times the next two competitors.[4]
Robert McVitie was born inDumfries in 1809.[6] He served an apprenticeship with a baker and in 1834 he moved toEdinburgh. He initially lived and worked at 130 Rose Street, just north ofPrinces Street in theNew Town.[7] In 1835, he moved to the adjacent building at 129 Rose Street. It was called a "provision Shop".[8] In 1843, he opened a second shop at 14 Charlotte Place (later renamed Randolph Place) just west ofCharlotte Square.[9]
McVitie's is first described as a "baker and confectioner" rather than a provision shop in 1856 at 5 Charlotte Place. He used the basement area below the shop as the bakery.[6] By 1865, the bakery had moved to 47 London Street just round the corner from his flat at 76 Broughton Street.[10] In 1870, McVitie is described as a baker at 12 Antigua Street and 2 East London Street, both also near his home in Broughton Street.[11] In 1875, the business was expanded to 23 and 24 Queensferry Street where McVitie is described as a baker and confectioner.[12] In 1881, his eldest son, also Robert (1854–1910), was in charge of the Queensferry Street business[13] while the other properties remained in his name until 1884 although he died in 1883. In the same year Robert junior also occupied 8 and 9 Merchant Street.[14] In 1887, he employedAlexander Grant fromForres, an experienced biscuit maker, to aid him. He was employed as foreman of the bakery but left to set up his own bakery inInverness, Scotland but he failed and returned to McVitie's.
In the late 19th century it was decided to split the operations of the business, with retail made a separate company. In 1898, McVitie rebranded the company as McVities, Guest and Co (usually McVities) after joining with his brother-in-law Edward Graham Guest.[15] In 1903, they built the McVities Guest Tearoom at 135/136Princes Street (on the corner of South Charlotte Street).[16]
In 1875, the company had been joined byCharles Edward Price as a salesman. His success in this role led to a partnership in 1888 to create McVitie & Price. In 1888, they built the huge St Andrews Biscuit Works on Robertson Avenue in theGorgie district of south-west Edinburgh.[17] Price left in 1910 following the death of Robert.
In 1891, the London salesman for the company George Andrews Brown persuaded the company to redesign theirRich Tea biscuit to a smaller size to accommodate the London taste. The original Gorgie factory burned down in 1894, but was rebuilt the same year to a much improved technical standard. It remained operative until 1969 when production ceased and operations were transferred to the English sites which had been established atHarlesden, north-west London in 1902 which is the largest biscuit factory in the UK, andManchester in 1914.[18][19]
Robert McVitie died married but childless in 1910 inBerkhamsted rather than at his home 12 Greenhill Gardens in south Edinburgh.[20] He is commemorated inDean Cemetery in Edinburgh. After his death, McVitie & Price Limited was incorporated as a joint–stock limited company in 1911 placing Alexander Grant as managing director and principal share-holder.[21][22] The firm acquired the Edinburgh bakery of Simon Henderson & Sons in 1922.[2]
McVitie & Price merged with another Scottish bakery company, Macfarlane, Lang & Co., Ltd, in 1948 to become United Biscuits Group.[23] McVitie's brand products are manufactured in five United Kingdom factories: the two former McVitie & Price factories inHarlesden, England andStockport, England; a former Macfarlane, Lang & Co. factory named Victoria Biscuit Works inGlasgow; a formerCarr's factory named The Biscuit Works established 1831 inCarlisle, England; and the McVitie's Cake Co. factory (formerly Riley's Toffee Works) inHalifax, England.[24]
McVitie & Price's first major biscuit was the McVitie'sdigestive, created in 1892 by a new young employee at the company namedAlexander Grant.[26] The biscuit was given its name because it was thought that its high baking soda content served as an aid to food digestion.[25][27] Grant later became managing director of the company. In 1923, he was the main benefactor in establishing theNational Library of Scotland giving an endowment of £100,000. Grant donated a further £100,000 in 1928 to assist with the building of theNational Library premises onGeorge IV Bridge in Edinburgh.[28]
In 1924,Ramsay MacDonald,prime minister of Britain's new Labour Government, admitted that Grant had given him a Daimler car and £30,000 of shares in McVitie's. Grant had been MacDonald's childhood friend, and shortly after received abaronetcy (hereditary knighthood) from the prime minister. The affair, regarded by many as corruption by the prime minister, severely shook the government.[29]
The McVitie's Chocolate Homewheat Digestive was created in 1925. Over 71 million packets of McVitie'schocolate digestives are eaten in the United Kingdom each year, equating to 52 biscuits per second.[30]Hobnobs were launched in 1985 and amilk chocolate variant followed in 1987.[31] Launched in 1927,Jaffa Cakes were ranked the best selling cake or biscuit in the UK in 2012.[32]
Some of the products in the McVitie's line were rebrandedMcV in 2002, but they were replaced in 2005 with a restyled version of theMcVitie's brand logo. In 2007, United Biscuitslicensed the McVitie's brand toMeiji Seika Kaisha Ltd for biscuit production in Japan. In 2009, McVitie's biscuits were voted as the most popular biscuits todunk intea, with McVitie'schocolate digestives, Rich tea, and Hobnobs ranked the country's top three favourite biscuits in 2009.[25]
In June 2014, McVitie's announced their intention to make 157 shop floor roles redundant at their Stockport manufacturing facility.[33] This redundancy announcement was due to the modernisation agenda of the company and involved a move from an 8-hour 5-day operation to a 12-hour 7-day operation. In November 2014, United Biscuits and hence also McVitie's were sold toYildiz, a company inIstanbul, Turkey[34] which in 2016 merged some of its subsidiaries includingUnited Biscuits asPladis.[35]
In 2020, sales of McVitie's biscuits in the United Kingdom were more than five times their closest two competitors in the biscuit category (Kit Kat andCadbury biscuits).[4] In 2022, McVitie's ended 192 years of heritage and closed their last factory in Scotland, completely cutting ties with the brand's Scottish roots.[36] The same year, McVitie's became the main sponsor ofBritain's Got Talent.[37] In 2023, McVitie's struck a deal to sponsor English championship football clubHull City.[38]
Although not their core operation, it is noteworthy that McVitie's were commissioned in 1893 to create a wedding cake for theroyal wedding of the Duke of York and Princess Mary, who became KingGeorge V and QueenMary. The cake was over 7 feet (2 metres) high and cost 140guineas. It was viewed by 14,000 people and was important publicity for the company. Afterwards, the company received many commissions for royal wedding and christening cakes.[22]
In 1947, McVitie & Price made the principalwedding cake for Princess Elizabeth (future QueenElizabeth II) andPhilip Mountbatten, which was served at the wedding breakfast.[39] McVitie's were commissioned to make achocolate biscuit cake as agroom's cake for the 2011Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton.[40]
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The factory, which covers more than 10 acres, produces 2,000 Jaffa Cakes a minute
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