Put Werther’s Original on your holiday shopping list

Shopping for holiday candy? You can’t go wrong with Werther’s Original caramel treats.

 

The story begins in Werther, a charming small city located in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in western Germany, near the Teutoburg Forest.

 

In 1903, August Hermann Storck, who owned and operated farm Oberwellandhof, established a confectionary in Werther to manufacture and sell wholesale candy products. Storck was about age 44 at the time.

 

He began with three employees, and the small company produced a variety of hard candies that quickly became popular in the local region.

In 1909, master confectioner Gustav Nebel created a tasty recipe for simple butter candy, using fresh cream, real butter, refined white sugar, brown rock sugar and a pinch of salt. The candy was both “creamy and caramel-rich.”

The invention of Werther’s Original marked the beginning of a sweet legacy that would span generations.

Although Gustav Nebel is considered the “father of Werther’s Original,” not much else is known about him. Storck kept the business going and growing. Early on, August Storck changed his name to August Oberwelland, perhaps to “better connect” with his estate.

August Oberwelland retired in 1921 and was succeeded as company president by his son, Hugo Oberwelland. The company became known as August Storck KG. Go figure.

 

After a full half-century at the helm, Hugo Oberwelland handed the reins to his son, Klaus Oberwelland in 1971.

 

Klaus Oberwelland began to implement a global marketing strategy, opening sales subsidiaries in other countries, including the United States. Storck USA LP was established in Chicago in 1977.

In 1989, the company launched its famous television advertising campaign featuring a grandfather and grandson to promote Werther’s Original candies in both U.S. and British markets. The scripts were the same, but the commercials used different actors.

U.S. audiences got to see and hear Bob Rockwell in the role as the grandfather. Rockwell was probably best known for playing the handsome but awkward biology teacher Philip Boynton in the television sitcom “Our Miss Brooks,” opposite Eve Arden. The show ran from 1952-56.

 

The ad campaign sought to illustrate how grandpas love to give out Werther’s any chance they get. Werther’s gold-wrapped, individual treats were perceived to be an old-fashioned, authentic and nostalgic treat.

The grandfather reminisces about eating his first “sweet and creamy and just plain good” Werther’s Original when he was 4 years old, a treat from his own grandfather.

“Now I’m the grandfather,” Rockwell said, looking straight into the camera, “and what else would I give my grandson but Werther’s Original?”

And it worked, said Ellen Gutoskey, a senior writer with Mental Floss. “Those commercials were considered an absolute marketing triumph. The ads helped Storck position itself abroad as a heritage brand, creating a customer base founded on tradition, one that future generations would feel moved to uphold.”

 

In 2003, as Storck observed its 100th anniversary, Klaus Oberwelland, who had led the company for more than 30 years, turned over the business to his son, Axel Oberwelland.

 

Werther’s products began welcoming guests at the Germany Pavilion in the EPCOT Center theme park at Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Fla., in 2010.

Visitors at the Karamell-Küche (“Caramel Kitchen” in German) feel like they are stepping back in time, entering a retail shop that is modeled after the original 1903 Werther’s Original kitchen.

 

Travel writer Tom Bricker says the Karamell-Küche is by far “the best snacking place at Walt Disney World,” specializing in “decadent desserts and sweet treats” that change with the seasons.

 

Try Mickey’s Caramel Chocolate Cookie Sandwich with buttercream frosting and a sprinkle of sea salt.