Caley's
By Roger Morgan
THE picture left is an advertising poster for Caley’s crackers designed by Alfred Munnings.
Munnings was born into a miller's family at Mendham, Suffolk, on October 8th, 1878. At 14 he was apprenticed to the Norwich printers of Page Bros, designing and drawing advertising posters for over six years. He worked a ten hour day but in the evenings he attended the Norwich School of Art.
He produced many award- winning posters for Caley’s and was taken by Caley’s director John SHAW HOPKINS on many trips to Europe to learn more about art. He went on to become one of England’s finest painters of horses and an outspoken critic of Modernism. He died a wealthy man in Dedham, Essex, in July 1959.
The firm of Caley’s was formed in Norwich in 1887 by Alfred Jarman CALEY. He was a chemist who opened a shop In London Street and by 1863 was making mineral waters which proved to be very profitable. The business grew as ice-cream and chocolate-making started. The company moved to Bedford Street in 1890 and then into a larger factory in Chapel Field which was to become known as the Fleur De Lys Works.
A J Caley died in 1895 and the business was taken forward by his son Edward and nephews Fredrick and Stuart. They introduced Christmas crackers to the company’s product range. These proved to be very profitable and they were exported all over the world to countries like Australia, India, Japan, China and even Iceland.
In 1904, Caley’s was employing around 700 people to make its various products including crackers. It remained in the family’s hands until 1918 when it was sold to the African and Eastern Trading Corporation. The company was over-capitalised and the new owners spent years trying to offload it. It was finally sold to Lord Mackintosh in 1932. The cracker arm traded under the Caley name until a merger with Tom Smith’s in 1953.
THE picture left is an advertising poster for Caley’s crackers designed by Alfred Munnings.
Munnings was born into a miller's family at Mendham, Suffolk, on October 8th, 1878. At 14 he was apprenticed to the Norwich printers of Page Bros, designing and drawing advertising posters for over six years. He worked a ten hour day but in the evenings he attended the Norwich School of Art.
He produced many award- winning posters for Caley’s and was taken by Caley’s director John SHAW HOPKINS on many trips to Europe to learn more about art. He went on to become one of England’s finest painters of horses and an outspoken critic of Modernism. He died a wealthy man in Dedham, Essex, in July 1959.
The firm of Caley’s was formed in Norwich in 1887 by Alfred Jarman CALEY. He was a chemist who opened a shop In London Street and by 1863 was making mineral waters which proved to be very profitable. The business grew as ice-cream and chocolate-making started. The company moved to Bedford Street in 1890 and then into a larger factory in Chapel Field which was to become known as the Fleur De Lys Works.
A J Caley died in 1895 and the business was taken forward by his son Edward and nephews Fredrick and Stuart. They introduced Christmas crackers to the company’s product range. These proved to be very profitable and they were exported all over the world to countries like Australia, India, Japan, China and even Iceland.
In 1904, Caley’s was employing around 700 people to make its various products including crackers. It remained in the family’s hands until 1918 when it was sold to the African and Eastern Trading Corporation. The company was over-capitalised and the new owners spent years trying to offload it. It was finally sold to Lord Mackintosh in 1932. The cracker arm traded under the Caley name until a merger with Tom Smith’s in 1953.