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| Milton Hershey |
The 19th century saw the industrialization of United States.
Manufacturing was a major sector of the economy. With additional jobs, income
was growing. By the entry of the 20th century, people began to enjoy once
luxury goods, including chocolate. One man took advantage of the hype for
chocolate. Milton Hershey’s name would later become a household name for
it.
Milton Hershey (September 13, 1857 – October 13,
1845) was an American candy tycoon gaining popularity and wealth from his
enormous confectionery empire under the name of Hershey Chocolate. From a rural
community in Pennsylvania, he repeatedly attempted to create a company that
would bring sweets and smile to the people. He also exhibited great amount of
compassion and generosity towards his employees, which made him a model
entrepreneur for many.
Hershey was born on September 13, 1857 at a small Pennsylvania
town of Derry. His parents were Henry and Veronica Hershey. His father had
difficulty in finding a job and hence had difficulty in providing for his
family. Meanwhile, his mother thought him the meaning of hard work and
perseverance to succeed in life. These traits were strengthen further
by his rural upbringing. It would eventually help him in his business
career. His family was on the moved after his 4th grade and caused Milton his
education. For eight years of moving from one town to another, he entered seven
schools. The moving from one town to another also had another effect. He had
difficulty in finding job and eventually made him poor at the age of thirty. At
the age of fourteen, he worked in a newspaper but later left because of his
lack of enthusiasm. His real passion soon appeared in making candies and sweets.
Sometime later after his newspaper job, with the help from his
mother, he entered the confectionery company of Joseph Royer and became his
apprentice. He stayed in the company for four years until 1876. At the age of
eighteen, he decided to establish his own company, the M.S. Hershey, Wholesale,
and Retail Confectioner. It was just in time for the centennial anniversary of
the Declaration of Independence. He sought to make a profit from the upcoming
significant event. His first company lasted for 6 years but eventually incurred
losses and failed by 1882.
After the failure of his first company, he sought comfort in
Denver, Colorado. He joined his father and began to work in a confectionery
factory. The job had enormous impact for Hershey. The factory was the place
where he learned how to make a caramel. A year later, he traveled far and wide
reaching Chicago then to New Orleans then to the Big Apple, New York. In New
York, he decided to try again for a candy business. His venture, however, was
again a bust.
He failed but not hopeless. In 1886, he moved back to his hometown
in Pennsylvania. At the age of twenty-eight years old, he tried once more. He
founded the Lancaster Caramel Company. Unlike other failed ventures, this
became successful. It was thanks to a British Candy Importer who sold his
products both domestically and internationally. He managed to persuade local
banks to finance and later expand his business. It was a great achievement for
Milton Hershey. After several tries, he hit the jackpot. By 1890, Lancaster
Caramel Company was one of the top caramel producers in the United States.
In 1893, Hershey discovered his destiny to become the real life
Willy Wonka. The World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago displays
different technological advances throughout the world. Milton Hershey visited
the expo. He saw and, later, intrigued by a machinery created by a German firm
Lehmann & Co. The machine of the company was capable of making chocolates
in vast quantities. Milton was so impressed that after the Expo ended, he
bought the machinery and shipped it to his factory in Lancaster. Beside his
factory, the machinery was installed and two chocolatiers were hired to operate
it. In 1894, Hershey Chocolate was founded as part of Lancaster Caramel
Company.
At first, Hershey Chocolate only meant as a compliment for the
caramel products. However, on April 17, 1895, Hershey began to produce excess
chocolate and decided to sell it to the market for extra profit. The first
batch of Hershey Chocolate had a different taste. It still had the bitter taste
that pure chocolate has. Nevertheless, as time went by, Hershey began to
experiment for the recipe of a perfect milk chocolate.
In 1900, Milton Hershey made a decision to drop his caramel
business and concentrate in the chocolate business. He sold his successful
Lancaster Caramel Company to the newly formed American Caramel Company for $1
million. Then, he introduced a new and improved milk chocolate bar. He then
pioneered the molded chocolate bar that we see today. In 1903, he bought a
1200-acre land in his hometown and constructed a chocolate factory. His
location could have not been impeccable. It was surrounded by suppliers of
dairy, which he needed for his chocolate. Soon afterwards, the beautiful and
delicious aroma of chocolate could be smelled throughout the town. Back then,
chocolate can only be purchased by the wealthy. But when Hershey adopted the
idea of mass production to chocolate, it helped dramatically to make the price
of chocolate affordable for the masses. Few years later, in 1907, he introduced
his most popular product, Hershey Kisses. It became an instant hit and
continued to be popular even to this day. In 1908, Hershey continued to
experiment on new flavors of chocolate. He introduced to the market milk
chocolate bars with almonds. It too became a crowd bringer.
Hershey helped chocolate to be in reach of the masses and, also,
made chocolate help his employees as well. In 1907, he opened the Hershey Park.
It was a community, which was complete of all basic infrastructure of a town.
The town had housing for the employees and their families. Later, it included a
hospital and schools for the children of the employees.
Milton Hershey and his wife, Catherine, were childless. To
compensate for the loss, they helped orphans to have a better life. In 1909,
Hershey Industrial School was established to teach orphaned boys skills in
various fields. It served as a preparation for the boys to find a job in the
future.
He was a philanthropist and supporter of the arts, as other
business magnates were. In 1933, he opened the Hershey Theater. In 1935, he
founded the M. S. Hershey Foundation. In 1937, he built Hershey Gardens in
memory of his deceased wife who died in 1915. Many more were constructed as part
of Hershey’s giving back.
In October 13, 1945, Milton Hershey died in a hospital that bears
his name.
Milton Hershey a new type of benevolent employer from the previous
era filled with abusive robber barons. Hershey introduced to the public a
product that was once only nobility and royalty could enjoy. He was man
that doesn't just give smiles to his customers but also smiles
to his employees who worked hard to make his dreams into reality.
See also:
Smith,
A. Fast food And Junk Food: An Encyclopedia of What We Love to Eat. California:
Greenwood, 2012.
"Milton
Hershey" Famous Entrepreneurs. Accessed May 19, 2013. http://www.famous-entrepreneurs.com.
"Our
Story: Milton S. Hershey" The Hershey Company. Accessed May 19,
2013. http://www.thehersheycompany.com
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