Sweet factory like 'Willy Wonka's' loved by Liverpool school kids

Liverpool FC stars visit Taverner sweet factory, seen here are Ian Callaghan, Phil Thompson, Terry McDermott and John Toshack watch the lollipop making process. September 3, 1976
-Credit: (Image: Trinity Mirror Copyright)


A lost Liverpool sweet factory that was like "Willy Wonka's" was loved and is still remembered by school kids. Earlier this week, the Museum of Liverpool announced its latest display focusing on life at Taverners in the city.

Employing thousands of workers across the generations, Taveners - and its forerunners - have a long history in Liverpool. Producing many of the nation’s tuck-shop favourites, the brand is famous for inventing hard-boiled fruit sweets and chocolate eclairs, as well as other family favourites like buttered brazils and treacle.

First called Tavener-Rutledge, later shortened to Taveners, its origins date back to Victorian Liverpool, when William Henry Tavener branched out from pickles and sauces into producing boiled sweets at his shop in Scotland Road in 1889, the ECHO previously reported. By 1911, there was a Taveners factory at Edge Lane and from there, the brand became well-known in the city and beyond, also going on to produce world-famous Everton Mints.

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Now, the Museum of Liverpool is taking a trip back in time this November, as a new display of photographs looks at the history of Taveners. It will capture the early beginnings of its years as one of the UK’s most successful confectionery makers and is bound to stir some memories.

As part of the Liverpool ECHO's How It Used To Be series, we've taken another brief look back at life in Taverners. We've also shared memories from ECHO readers, from childhood to working there.

Bill Tavener, managing director of Taveners, watches the production line of marshmallows at the factory in Beech Street, Liverpool. Picture taken October 28, 1991
Bill Tavener, managing director of Taveners, watches the production line of marshmallows at the factory in Beech Street, Liverpool. October 28, 1991 -Credit:Mirrorpix

It was William's son Herbert who masterminded the transformation to a confectionery empire after WW1, persuading his dad to sell him the sweet making and wholesaling side. By then, the company was in a four-storey factory in Kew Street in Vauxhall.

But in 1928, it was on the move again to the building in Beech Street, with Herbert’s younger brother Henry joining the team. Over the years, Taveners became famous in the city and beyond for inventing hard-boiled fruit sweets and chocolate eclairs in 1932 and producing other family favourites like buttered brazils, and treacle toffee.

World-famous Everton Mints later became a Taveners product, while its main factory in Beech Street became known as the "international centre of marshmallow excellence."

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Taveners' tasty treats were not just popular at home, they attracted attention from across the globe too. On December 29, 1970, the Liverpool ECHO reported how an order for 48,000 tins of boiled sweets, mostly fruit drops, was being completed by staff ready for shipment to Czechoslovakia.

The article said "few British sweet makers had achieved sales there," and that the much-loved brand's main overseas market included America, Canada and Denmark. A series of upheavals and takeovers from the 1980s onwards saw Taveners eventually taken over by a Danish company and merged into its Blackpool-based subsidiary, which in turn was bought back by its management as Tangerine.

It was bought by Toms Confectionery of Denmark in 1992 and by 2007, Blackpool-based Tangerine took the firm over. In 2007, the ECHO reported how some of Britain’s favourite sweets, the Taveners brand, had been relaunched.

Elizabeth Taylor watches eclairs pass through the wrapper., Taveners Sweets, October 28, 1991
Elizabeth Taylor watches eclairs pass through the wrapper, Taveners Sweets. October 28, 1991 -Credit:Mirrorpix

Still creating favourites like wine gums, jelly babies, fruit pastilles, real milk chocolate eclairs, humbugs, chocolate limes, dairy toffee and American hard gums, recipes were brought "up to date" to reflect "the needs of today’s health-conscious consumer." At the time, Taveners brand manager, Helen Sears, told the ECHO: "These are among the most popular sweets in the UK and have been loved by millions of adults since their childhood. Many of us still can’t resist them.

"They are old favourites you just can’t help coming back to – comforting and familiar, proper sweets just like they used to be. With the switch to natural colours and flavours, and our decision to end the use of hydrogenated fats, we hope to give people even more reason to continue enjoying them. And who knows, perhaps it will be the excuse for some people to rediscover these ever-popular sweets."

In 2008, tributes were also paid to one man who sold Liverpool’s much-loved Tavener sweets around the world. John Tavener joined the family firm as a post-boy and worked his way up to export manager, but travelled the the globe selling the Taveners taste to all five continents.

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At the time, his widow, Barbara, said: "He worked hard, played hard and was never dull. John will be well remembered in Liverpool because of Taveners." In August 2018, Valeo Foods acquired Tangerine Confectionery, with the company's name later changing to Valeo Confectionery.

In March this year, bosses called an all-staff meeting at the Valeo Confectionery factory at Edge Lane to announce their intention to close the Liverpool site within a year. At the time, a Valeo spokesperson said: "Valeo Foods Group informed employees at its confectionery production facility in Liverpool of its proposed decision to transfer production to alternative UK sites and wind down operations at the site over the next 12 months.

"The proposed decision to close the facility, where approximately 100 employees produce product lines such as caramels, mallows, gums and jellies, follows a comprehensive strategic review of Valeo Food’s confectionery business with a view to optimising structures, their category proposition and manufacturing footprint.

Taveners Sweets, Liverpool, eclairs on production line. October 28, 1991
Taveners Sweets, Liverpool, eclairs on the production line. October 28, 1991 -Credit:Mirrorpix

"In the face of significant market challenges, changing demand and consumer preferences, as well as growing cost pressures, the company is proposing to right-size its confectionery manufacturing footprint in the UK by reducing the number of sites it operates and making considered investment decisions for future stability and sustainable growth.

"Valeo Foods Group will now start the consultation process with its colleagues and given this is ongoing, no decisions have been made on this matter." At the time, many ECHO readers took to social media to share their memories of the factory.

On Facebook, Chan'nel Vestergaard said: "Was literally telling my partner about this the other day, sharing memories of going to school at St. Sebs, and the little shop they had. In the cold mornings how it would smell like treacle." Anthony Harrison wrote: "I worked there and lived over the road most of my life. It's a shame, some parts of the factory really are like Willy Wonkers."

Marie Doran said: "My mum worked there when I was a kid and made me a fancy dress costume out of marshmallow packets (must have been so uncomfortable lol). It was great and I won best costume Also, every day on the way to school, we would guess what sweets they were making by the smell coming from the factory. Very sad to see it closing."

Rob Macardle commented: "I used to deliver their newspapers in the early 1970s. It was part of my morning round from the shop opposite Silver Blades. From memory, they had the FT and The Economist!."

James Kelly commented: "Around 1960 to 1963 all the local kids would go there in the evening as at the side of the factory there was skip in which all the rejected mishaps sweets from the factory were disposed of." Tracey Jones said: "Loved the smells from that place, been there forever too, its a shame."

Museum of Liverpool will take a trip back to a sweeter time this November, as a new display of photographs looks at the history of Taveners  from its early beginnings to its years as one of the UKs most successful confectionery makers. Pictured, Staff working in Taveners jar packing room in 1976
Staff working in Taveners jar packing room in 1976 -Credit:Photo courtesy of National Museums Liverpool

Paul Bradley wrote: "Omg loved the little shop in there." Steven Thompson wrote: "The most amazing smell ...proper Charlie and the chocolate factory stuff ..so sad it's closing."

Andrea Osborne said: "Can still smell it just from this photo. Such a shame. They still sell Taverners here in NZ at Xmas and every year I see them I can get that smell and just reminds me of being at St Sebastian’s."

Jones Cally commented: "When our school St Sebastian’s was moved to by there we used to as kids all go by the factory doors which would be open but iron gates on it after school and the ladies would be throwing us loads of sweets under the gate. Great memories of the ’70s at that place." And Steven Harvey commented: "I worked their mid-70s chocolate limes chocolate éclairs buttered brazils for all the family lol."

Museum of Liverpool will take a trip back to a sweeter time this November, as a new display of photographs looks at the history of Taveners  from its early beginnings to its years as one of the UKs most successful confectionery makers. Pictured, old English tins
Old English tins from Taverners -Credit:Photo courtesy of National Museums Liverpool

Now, Sweet: The Taveners Story at the Museum of Liverpool will look at the workers behind some of the company’s famous creations, including lollipops, caramels and fruit drops. The display highlights photos that capture the day-to-day running of the factory, as well as the not-so-normal days.

Sharon Brown, curator at the Museum of Liverpool, said: "It's great to be able to share these images of life at the Taveners factory for the first time. The factory and its staff produced some of the most iconic sweets of the 1970s and 1980s, including Mojos and Traffic Light lollipops, that many of our visitors will have very fond memories of."

More images are available to view in a special online gallery on the National Museums Liverpool website. This display aims to evoke childhood memories of favourite childhood sweets and to shed light on the much-loved factory behind them.

Museum of Liverpool is also looking to hear the memories of former employees who worked at Taveners and to help identify their colleagues in the photographs. Sweet: The Taveners Story runs from November 16, 2024, to March 23, 2025, and is a display of 14 photographs in the Museum of Liverpool’s Skylight Gallery, taken from the National Museum Liverpool’s collection.

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