Droste was founded in 1863 in Haarlem by Gerardus Johannes Droste, starting as a confectionery business selling sweets before it became a cocoa and chocolate maker. The company's first factory opened in Haarlem around 1890, and for most of the twentieth century Droste was a familiar name in Dutch cocoa and chocolate, especially for its round chocolate pastilles sold in rolls and tins.
The Droste effect
Around 1900 Droste's cocoa packaging began to carry an illustration of a nurse holding a tray with a cup of cocoa and a Droste box, on which the same picture appears again, smaller. The image is usually attributed to the commercial artist Jan (Johannes) Misset. The picture-within-a-picture recursion became known in Dutch as the Droste-effect; the term is credited to the Dutch poet and columnist Nico Scheepmaker, who used it in the 1970s. It is now used internationally in art, photography and mathematics.
Owners and factories
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1863 | Founded in Haarlem by G.J. Droste |
| c. 1890 | First factory in Haarlem, later on the Spaarne |
| 1975–1977 | Family ownership ends; Van Nelle, then Standard Brands |
| 1986–1988 | Production moves to Vaassen (Gelderland) |
| 1990 | Acquired by CSM |
| 1997 | Acquired by the Belgian Hosta group |
| 2024 | Vaassen factory closes |
| 2024–2025 | Brand acquired by the Polish confectioner Wawel, which announced the return of the pastilles, made in Poland |
Dates follow the English Wikipedia article on the company and Dutch trade-press reports on the Vaassen closure; sources differ slightly on when the Wawel deal was completed. The former Haarlem factory buildings on the Spaarne have since been converted to other uses.
Droste and Sinterklaas
Like most Dutch chocolate makers, Droste has produced seasonal goods such as chocoladeletters for the December feast. Its everyday identity, however, rests on cocoa powder and the pastilles. For the breakfast side of Dutch chocolate, see hagelslag.