1819

It was during a trip to Italy in 1819 that François-Louis Cailler discovered a novel mixture of ground cocoa beans and sugar: it was chocolate! In those times the exotic product was sold in chemists as a fortifier, and at a price only the nobility could afford. François-Louis Cailler wanted to change all that, and on his return to Corsier near Vevey, he opened a small factory where he manufactured best quality chocolate at a price affordable for many people.

1875

Invention of milk chocolate by Daniel Peter.

1890

Invention of the pralines, available since 1979 under the Ambassador brand name.

1898

Thanks to refinements of the original Italian recipe with vanilla and cinnamon, the chocolate business flourished. Alexandre-Louis Cailler, the founder's uncle, then had the idea of expanding the business and it was during a bicycle ride in the Gruyère region with his brother-in-law Jules Bellet that he discovered the area around Broc. There he found all he needed for manufacturing his beloved Cailler chocolate: the especially good milk from the Gruyère cows, local labour and a railway line. 12 months later in 1898, the doors of the new and modern chocolate factory opened. Ever since, the roots of the family business run deep in its home town of Broc.

1902

Extension of the product range with FÉMINA pralines.

1904

Manufacture of Branches (included for the first time in Kohler’s recipe books, 1896).

1904/05

Milk chocolate with hazelnuts.

1911

Industry was expanding in those times, and in 1911 three entrepreneurs –the inventor of milk chocolate Daniel Peter, Kohler and Cailler - merged in order to optimise their different production processes and to still further improve the quality of their chocolate. It was then that Alexandre-Louis Cailler developed an entirely new process for manufacturing milk chocolate, one that is still used today. Cailler is the only Swiss chocolate-maker to use real fluid cows' milk from the Gruyère region, rather than powdered milk. To this very day, this special process gives CAILLER milk chocolate its distinctive smooth, melting and milky taste.

1923

Invention of FRIGOR chocolate bars filled with praline.

1929

The merger with Nestlé finally took place in 1929. Cailler continues to manufacture its chocolate classics in the Broc factory according to the traditional recipes of its founder, for the pleasure of chocolate connoisseurs around the whole world.

1937

Invention of air-technology for chocolate bars, since then known as RAYON.

2009

Cailler reinvents the chocolate carrés with SUBLIM