A Small Confectioner's Shop in Zurich
In 1836, the confectioners David Sprüngli-Schwarz and his son Rudolf Sprüngli-Ammann took over a small confectioner’s shop in the old centre of Zurich and founded a partnership by the name of Sprüngli & Sohn. Driven by the ambitions of young Rudolf, the company began producing high-quality chocolate in 1845. In no time, Zurich’s high society was so crazy about this exotic new delicacy that the little shop was no longer able to keep up with demand.
Expansion to Horgen
Due to the growing demand in their chocolate and confections, the step from manual to machine production was necessary immediately. In Horgen on Lake Zurich, not far from their Zurich base, the Sprünglis founded a new factory near the water source. They purchased the property with its water rights and invested in machines for the purpose of increasing production capacity. Business went so well that after just a few years it was again necessary to expand the production facilities.
The Move Back to Zurich
The company’s continuing success, which necessitated the opening of a second, very elegant confectionery in 1859 in Zurich, soon proved to be too much for the factory in Horgen. The entire operation was then moved back to Zurich, to the centrally located mill named “Werdmühle”. The new complex consisted of a main factory building with a steam-furnace chimney, cold-storage buildings, a large confectioner’s shop and a pastry kitchen, all of which was equipped with modern machinery.
However, the rapid expansion of the city of Zurich and the related changes in the surrounding landscape soon made the much needed expansion of the Werdmühle factory impossible.
Kilchberg - The Ideal Long-Term Location for the Lindt & Sprüngli Factory is Found
The perfect property was found on Lake Zurich, this time in the village of Kilchberg, and the construction of a large, modern factory began in 1898. The estimated one and one-half million Swiss francs required to finance this project was obtained by transforming the company into a stock corporation. Since then, the company has remained at its location on the western shore of Lake Zurich.
In the same year, the newly formed Chocolat Sprüngli AG purchased Rodolphe Lindt’s famous chocolate factory in Berne together with his well-guarded chocolate processing secret and brand name.
This new Lindt & Sprüngli factory in Kilchberg, named Aktiengesellschaft Vereinigte Berner und Zürcher Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli, was operating at full capacity soon after this decisive acquisition.
Today, Lindt & Sprüngli is a global leader in the premium chocolate segment. As a Swiss company, Lindt & Sprüngli maintain their strong ties with the location in Kilchberg, where the headquarter is located, despite the worldwide reach. Switzerland continues to be the most important production location for the Lindt & Sprüngli Group. The various sites in Switzerland focus on different aspects of chocolate production and distribution. The Olten factory produces cocoa mass, there is a logistics center in Altendorf, and the leading production site and factory are in Kilchberg. Nevertheless, in all the factories worldwide, local processing and refinement of Lindt & Sprüngli chocolate must meet rigorous Swiss standards. Consumers can rest assured that chocolate products woldwide satisfy Lindt & Sprüngli's high quality requirements down to the most minute detail.
