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De
Zwitsere Patisserie Ulrich NV
(The
Swiss Pastisserie Ulrich NV)
The
company's founder Christoph Ulrich, was
born in Switzerland in 1759. As a young
baker he worked in many countries before
buying a bakery and making his home in
Rotterdam in 1786. In the early years of
the twentieth century his firm established
more bakeries in the centre and west of
Rotterdam and in 1923 on the Straatweg at
Hillegersberg.
Ulrich
continued producing high quality cakes for
over 30 years. In 1956 the company became
part of the Sitos, the largest bakers and
confectioners in the Netherland's. Nine
years later (1965) the group decided to
separate its different functions and
Ulrich became specialists in the
mechanised cake market operating from
their factory in Rotterdam. In June 1969
J. Lyons acquired 51% holding of Ulrich NV
who by now had become Holland's leading
brand in the mass cake market. Lyons had
not chosen Ulrich because of its size but
because it had great potential, offering a
springboard into Europe for the Lyons
branded cakes. It also had an excellent
distribution system. Of Ulrich's 22
salesmen, 6 were based in Rotterdam.
Ulrich also had depots in Den Haag and
Amsterdam. The Company was renamed Lyons
Bakkerijen NV.
In
March 1973 a 99 per cent stake was
obtained in Hooimeijer en Zonen NV whose
factory and offices were located at
Barendrecht to the south of Rotterdam.
Founded in 1905 the small bakery had grown
through the years into a modern factory
with three plants and a capacity of a
million packets of rusks a week. At this
time, approximately 55 per cent of
production was exported with one of the
major markets being the UK. The company
was one of Holland's largest producers of
rusks. In 1959 Hooimeijer had acquired the
Royal Haust Factories (they had received
their Royal Warrant in 1924). After
acquisition Haust specialised in various
types of toast and were brand leaders in
the Dutch market. The brand Haust was
retained and used by Hooimeijer, not only
because it was easier to pronounce than
Hooimeijer, but because the brand had a
well-established reputation.
In
May 1973 Lyons acquired the very old Dutch
cake business of Jb. Bussink's Koninklijke
Deventer Koekfabrieken BV which celebrated
its 400 year history in 1993. Bussink was
world famous for its Deventer honey cake.
The company was founded in 1593 in the
city of Deventer from which the cake takes
its name. Johan Schutte and his brother
Gerrit had been admitted to the Dutch
baking guild at this time and set up their
bakery in 1593. The business prospered
during the next 300 years and continued to
be owned and operated by succeeding
generations of the family. In 1886 the
Schutte bakery was bought by another
Deventer baking business which had been
founded in 1820 by Jacob Bussink. At the
time it was owned by Lyons, it was the
only company making the famous Deventer
cake and one of the few companies in
Holland which could justifiably lay claim
to a 400-year history.
In
June 1973 Hooimeijer bought the entire
issued share capital of Koek-en
Banketfabrieken A. H. O. BV and so another
Dutch bakery came into the Group. A. H.
O., Haust and Bussink were the major
brands of the Dutch baking companies.
'See
European
Companies
also'.
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