Butlers Chocolates
Butlers Chocolates is an Irish luxury confectionery brand founded in Dublin in 1932.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Butlers Chocolates is an Irish manufacturer and retail brand specializing in luxury chocolate and related confectionery. Its origins date to 1932, when Marion Bailey-Butler developed handmade chocolates in Dublin. The business initially operated from Lad Lane and built its identity around small-batch, gift-oriented confectionery associated with Irish chocolate-making. The founder's surname remained central to the brand even after ownership changed. In 1959, the company was acquired by Seamus Sorensen. A major identity milestone followed in 1984, when the Butlers Irish Chocolates brand was established under a name chosen to commemorate Marion Bailey-Butler. This transition helped formalize the modern brand while retaining its historical association with the founder. In 1989, Butlers opened its first retail outlet on Grafton Street in Dublin city centre, moving the company beyond manufacturing into branded direct-to-consumer retail. Additional outlets subsequently opened in Ireland, and the company also established a presence in New Zealand through a group of stores and café operations. Butlers broadened its hospitality and experiential retail model in 1998 with the opening of its first Butlers Chocolate Café on Wicklow Street in Dublin. The café concept combined chocolate retail with prepared drinks, desserts and an in-store consumption experience. Further cafés were opened in Irish locations including Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Naas, Kildare and Bray, while international cafés were associated with Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The brand also expanded into Great Britain, including a café at Westfield London, and its packaged chocolates became available through major UK airports and Waitrose stores. Manufacturing operations relocated to Clonshaugh, Dublin 17, in 2003. The company’s product range includes chocolate bars, truffles, fudge, toffee, chocolate eggs and seasonal novelty products. This assortment supports several routes to market: branded retail shops, cafés, grocery and department-store distribution, travel retail and international franchising. Butlers has described international expansion outside Ireland and Great Britain as being based on a franchise model, allowing the brand to extend its café and retail format without relying solely on company-operated locations. The international network has not been uniformly stable. In July 2025, Chocolate Cafes (New Zealand), the parent company of the New Zealand Butlers café stores, entered liquidation. The event led to the closure of the New Zealand stores after approximately 18 years of operation across Auckland and Wellington. The reported pressures included higher raw-material costs and declining sales. This development affected the New Zealand café presence but does not by itself indicate that the Irish Butlers Chocolates business had ceased trading. Butlers remains identified with Irish luxury chocolate, branded cafés, gifting and seasonal confectionery, while its international footprint has evolved through a mix of retail distribution, cafés and franchised operations.
History
Butlers Chocolates traces its history to Dublin in 1932, when Marion Bailey-Butler established a handmade chocolate business. The early operation was based on Lad Lane and focused on crafted chocolate products rather than mass-market food manufacturing. The founder's name became the basis of the long-term brand identity, although the enterprise later passed to new ownership. Seamus Sorensen purchased the company in 1959. Under the subsequent development of the business, the Butlers Irish Chocolates brand was created in 1984. The name preserved a connection with Bailey-Butler while giving the company a clearer commercial identity for its expanding chocolate range. The brand's modern retail history began in 1989, when its first shop opened on Grafton Street in central Dublin. Retail outlets later expanded to other parts of Ireland, and the business also operated five stores in New Zealand at one stage. The company added a hospitality dimension in 1998 by opening its first Butlers Chocolate Café on Wicklow Street in Dublin. The café format enabled customers to consume chocolate products and drinks on site while also providing a branded environment for confectionery sales. The model was extended through additional locations in Dublin and elsewhere in Ireland, including Cork, Galway, Limerick, Naas, Kildare and Bray. International café locations were also developed in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The wider network was described as comprising the original Dublin café plus many subsequent cafés in Ireland and overseas. In 2003, Butlers relocated its production operation to Clonshaugh in Dublin 17. The move marked an important operational stage as the company continued to manufacture a broad portfolio of chocolate and confectionery products. The range included bars, truffles, fudge, toffee, chocolate eggs and seasonal novelty items. These products served both everyday and gifting occasions, with the luxury positioning reinforced by branded shops, seasonal collections and travel-retail distribution. Butlers also pursued growth in Great Britain. A café opened at Westfield London, and Butlers products became available through major UK airports and Waitrose stores. For markets beyond Ireland and Great Britain, the company indicated an intention to use franchising as an international expansion mechanism. This approach was consistent with the brand's combination of packaged products and hospitality venues, since franchise partners could operate cafés or retail formats while the core brand and confectionery offer remained associated with Ireland. The New Zealand operation later encountered financial difficulty. In July 2025, Chocolate Cafes (New Zealand), identified as the parent company of the New Zealand stores, entered liquidation. The liquidation resulted in the closure of all of those stores across the country. The operation had traded for roughly 18 years in Auckland and Wellington, but faced higher raw-material costs and falling sales. The New Zealand closures represent a contraction in one overseas market rather than evidence that the original Irish brand had become defunct. Butlers' documented history therefore combines long-term Irish manufacturing and retail activity with an international network that has changed over time according to local operating conditions.
- 2025
New Zealand café operation enters liquidation
[1]Chocolate Cafes (New Zealand), the parent company of the local Butlers café stores, entered liquidation, leading to the closure of the New Zealand locations.
- 2003
Manufacturing relocates to Clonshaugh
[1]Butlers moved its manufacturing operation to Clonshaugh, Dublin 17.
- 1998
First Butlers Chocolate Café opens
[1]The first Butlers Chocolate Café opened on Wicklow Street in Dublin, introducing the brand's café-led retail format.
- 1989
First branded retail shop opens
[1]Butlers opened its first retail outlet on Grafton Street in Dublin city centre.
- 1984
Butlers Irish Chocolates brand established
[1]The Butlers Irish Chocolates brand was created, retaining the founder's name as part of the company's commercial identity.
- 1959
Acquisition by Seamus Sorensen
[1]Seamus Sorensen purchased the company, beginning a new ownership phase in the development of the Butlers business.
- 1932
Business founded in Dublin
[1]Marion Bailey-Butler founded the chocolate business in Dublin and developed a range of handmade chocolates from premises on Lad Lane.
Products and positioning
Irish luxury and gift-oriented chocolate with an integrated café and retail experience.
Chocolate confectionery
Chocolate bars
Butlers produces packaged chocolate bars within its broader luxury confectionery portfolio. These products extend the brand beyond boxed gifts and cafés into individually packaged chocolate suitable for everyday consumption, grocery distribution, travel retail and impulse purchase.
Luxury chocolate gifting
Chocolate truffles and assortments
Truffles and assorted chocolates form part of Butlers' premium and gift-oriented offer. They are consistent with the company's heritage in handmade chocolates and support sales through branded shops, seasonal ranges and retail distribution.
Confectionery
Fudge and toffee
Fudge and toffee broaden the product range beyond chocolate-only formats. These confectionery lines are included among the products associated with Butlers' manufacturing and provide additional options for gifting, seasonal assortments and general retail.
Seasonal confectionery
Chocolate eggs and seasonal novelties
Chocolate eggs and other seasonal novelty products allow Butlers to address calendar-based gifting and celebration occasions. The seasonal portfolio complements the company's regular bars, truffles and confectionery while reinforcing its premium chocolate identity.
Café and hospitality · 1998
Butlers Chocolate Cafés
The Butlers Chocolate Café format combines branded chocolate retail with drinks, desserts and on-premises consumption. First launched in Dublin in 1998, the concept expanded across Irish cities and into selected overseas markets, including Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, as well as Great Britain.
Brand decisions
2025
New Zealand café network closes after liquidationOtherBackground
Chocolate Cafes (New Zealand), which operated the local Butlers stores, faced increased raw-material costs and declining sales.
Action taken
The New Zealand parent company entered liquidation in July, resulting in the closure of all stores in that market.
Aftermath
The Butlers café presence in New Zealand ended after approximately 18 years of operation in Auckland and Wellington.
2003
Manufacturing relocation to ClonshaughStrategyBackground
The company required a manufacturing base to support its expanding chocolate and confectionery operations.
Action taken
Butlers moved its production operation to Clonshaugh in Dublin 17.
Aftermath
Clonshaugh became the documented base of the company's manufacturing activities.
1998
Expansion into chocolate cafésStrategyBackground
Butlers sought to extend its chocolate identity beyond packaged confectionery and branded shops.
Action taken
The company opened its first Butlers Chocolate Café on Wicklow Street in Dublin and subsequently expanded the format across Ireland and selected overseas markets.
Aftermath
The café became a recurring part of the brand's retail and hospitality model, with locations reported in Ireland, Great Britain, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates.
Recent events
Butlers Chocolates launches pick-and-mix gondola[2]
Reported:
Butlers Chocolates launched a pick-and-mix gondola featuring 15 wrapped chocolates at its first travel retail location, Dublin Airport.
Sources2 sources
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