Maynards

Maynards is a British confectionery brand whose history is closely associated with wine gums, chewy fruit sweets, and a broad range of jelly and gummy products. Its origins trace to a family sweets business established in London in the late nineteenth century. Charles Riley Maynard and his brother Tom began making sweets in their kitchen in 1880, while Charles's wife, Sarah Ann, sold the products through a neighbouring shop serving the Stamford Hill area of Hackney. The brothers formally established the Maynards sweet company in 1896. The business expanded from domestic production into industrial confectionery manufacturing. In 1906, Maynards opened a factory on Vale Road in Harringay. The location offered access to clean spring water and convenient transport links, including the Lee Navigation and several railways, which helped the company receive raw materials such as sugar, coal, and gelatin and distribute finished products. Maynards subsequently became a major local employer, with manufacturing activities expanding beyond its principal London works. The company also operated a toffee factory in the Ouseburn area of Newcastle upon Tyne. Maynards' defining product innovation was Wine Gums, introduced in 1909. The sweets were designed to evoke the names and shapes associated with wine without containing alcohol. According to the brand's historical account, Charles Gordon, an heir to the confectionery firm, promoted the idea to his father, Charles Riley Maynard, who was a teetotal Methodist and initially resisted the association with wine. The product became the company's signature line and ultimately its most internationally recognizable confectionery. During the twentieth century, Maynards developed a substantial retail presence. At its peak, the company established a network of approximately 140 sweet shops, although those shops were sold in 1985 as the business moved further toward branded manufacturing and distribution. Cadbury acquired Maynards in 1988. In 1990, the brand was combined with Bassett's and was later operated alongside Trebor and other confectionery businesses. Manufacturing for the associated brands was consolidated in Sheffield in 1991. Maynards Wine Gums became a significant commercial product. Reported worldwide sales for the line reached £40 million annually by 2002, although the brand's ownership and manufacturing structure later changed as Cadbury became part of Kraft Foods and, subsequently, Mondelēz International. In 2016, Maynards was joined with Bassett's to form the Maynards Bassetts brand architecture, bringing two established British confectionery names together under one house identity. The brand is also manufactured in Canada and has a substantial Canadian product range, including Wine Gums, Swedish Berries, Fuzzy Peaches, Sour Cherry Blasters, Sour Patch Kids, and other gummy and sour sweets. Product availability varies by country, and some products or licensed items may be associated with other multinational food companies in selected markets. Today, Maynards functions primarily as a confectionery brand within the Mondelēz International portfolio, with positioning centered on accessible, colourful, fruit-flavoured sweets, chewy textures, recognizable formats, and nostalgic British confectionery heritage.

Maynards began as a family confectionery operation in London. In 1880, engineer Charles Riley Maynard and his brother Tom began making sweets in their kitchen. Their products were sold locally by Sarah Ann Maynard, Charles Riley Maynard's wife, through a sweet shop serving Stamford Hill in Hackney. This combination of household production and direct retail sales provided the foundation for the later company. The brothers formally created the Maynards sweet company in 1896. As demand grew, the business moved toward industrial production and opened a new factory on Vale Road in Harringay in 1906. The site was selected in part for its access to clean spring water and its transport connections. The nearby New River, Lee Navigation, and railway network facilitated the movement of sugar, gelatin, coal, and finished confectionery. The Harringay works expanded substantially and became a major employer in the surrounding area. A decisive moment came in 1909 with the introduction of Maynards Wine Gums. The concept was associated with Charles Gordon, an heir to the business, who proposed a sweet named and shaped around wine while containing no alcohol. Charles Riley Maynard was a teetotal Methodist and was initially reluctant to approve the idea, but eventually accepted the product after being assured that it was alcohol-free. Wine Gums became the company's signature confectionery and remained central to Maynards' identity. Maynards expanded its manufacturing footprint as the business developed. In addition to the Harringay operation, it established facilities including a toffee factory in the Ouseburn area of Newcastle upon Tyne. The company also built a large retail network, reported to have reached around 140 sweet shops. Those shops were sold in 1985, reflecting a shift away from direct retailing and toward branded confectionery manufacturing and distribution. Cadbury acquired Maynards in 1988. In 1990, Maynards was merged with Bassett's, the established Tottenham liquorice business. Maynards, Bassett's, and Trebor confectionery manufacturing was subsequently moved to Sheffield in 1991. These changes integrated the historic brands within a larger confectionery organization while preserving their individual product identities. The commercial importance of Wine Gums continued into the early twenty-first century. Worldwide annual sales for the product were reported at £40 million in 2002. Cadbury later became part of Kraft Foods, which was subsequently reorganized as Mondelēz International. In 2016, Maynards and Bassett's were brought together under the Maynards Bassetts identity. Maynards is manufactured and sold in more than one national market, including Canada. Its regional ranges include traditional Wine Gums as well as Swedish Berries, Fuzzy Peaches, Sports Mixture, Midget Gems, sour candies, gummy bears, fruit chews, and Sour Patch Kids products. Some product names, recipes, licensing arrangements, and availability differ by country. The modern brand therefore combines a long British confectionery heritage with a broad, market-specific portfolio of chewy, gummy, fruit-flavoured, and sour sweets.

• 2016

  Maynards Bassetts created

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Maynards and Bassett's were joined to create the Maynards Bassetts brand identity.

• 2002

  Wine Gums reach reported £40 million sales

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Reported worldwide annual sales of Maynards Wine Gums reached £40 million.

• 1991

  Manufacturing moved to Sheffield

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Manufacturing for Maynards, Bassett's, and Trebor was consolidated in Sheffield.

• 1990

  Combination with Bassett's

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Maynards was combined with Bassett's within the Cadbury confectionery organization.

• 1988

  Acquisition by Cadbury

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Cadbury acquired the Maynards confectionery business.

• 1985

  Sweet-shop network sold

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  The company's reported network of approximately 140 sweet shops was sold as Maynards concentrated on branded manufacturing.

• 1909

  Wine Gums launched

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Maynards introduced Wine Gums, a non-alcoholic chewy sweet that became the company's signature product.

• 1906

  Harringay factory opens

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Maynards established a factory on Vale Road in Harringay, using the area's water and transport advantages for industrial confectionery production.

• 1896

  Maynards sweet company founded

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  The Maynard brothers formally established the confectionery company in London.

• 1880

  Family sweets production begins

  [1]Maynardsen.wikipedia.org

  Charles Riley Maynard and Tom Maynard began making sweets in their kitchen, with products sold locally by Sarah Ann Maynard.

A mass-market confectionery brand built around fruit flavours, chewy and gummy textures, colourful formats, and the heritage of British sweets. Wine Gums remain the brand's signature product, while regional ranges broaden its appeal through sour candy, berry, peach, watermelon, and mixed-fruit offerings.

• Chewy fruit sweets · 1909

  Maynards Wine Gums

  Maynards Wine Gums are the brand's signature product, introduced in 1909. They are chewy, fruit-flavoured sweets whose name and traditional presentation reference wine while the confectionery itself contains no alcohol. The line established Maynards as a major British sweets name and remains the central product associated with its heritage.

• Mixed fruit sweets

  Maynards Sports Mixture

  Sports Mixture is a mixed assortment of chewy, fruit-flavoured sweets. It represents Maynards' traditional variety-sweets segment, offering multiple shapes, colours, and flavours in one bag rather than focusing on a single fruit profile.

• Jelly and chewy sweets

  Maynards Midget Gems

  Midget Gems are small, brightly coloured jelly-style sweets associated with the traditional British confectionery assortment. The product extends Maynards' portfolio beyond Wine Gums through bite-sized pieces and a varied mix of fruit flavours and textures.

• Gummy sweets

  Maynards Swedish Berries

  Swedish Berries are berry-shaped gummy sweets sold prominently in the Canadian Maynards range. Their soft texture, berry-inspired shape, and sweet fruit profile give the brand a product distinct from the firmer chew of Wine Gums.

• Gummy sweets

  Maynards Fuzzy Peaches

  Fuzzy Peaches are peach-flavoured gummy candies with a characteristic sugar-coated surface. They are part of Maynards' fruit-shaped and fruit-flavoured confectionery portfolio and are particularly associated with the Canadian market.

• Sour confectionery

  Maynards sour candy range

  The sour range includes products such as Sour Cherry Blasters, Sour Watermelons, Sour Chillers, Sour Grapes, and related formats. These products use sharp fruit flavours and sour coatings or centers to complement the brand's traditional sweet and chewy offerings.

• Sour gummy sweets

  Maynards Sour Patch Kids

  Sour Patch Kids products are sour-coated, fruit-flavoured gummy candies sold under the Maynards name in selected markets. The range includes standard and more intensely sour variants, with availability and licensing arrangements differing by country.

• Sour chewy sweets

  Maynards Wine Sours

  Wine Sours adapt the recognizable Maynards chewy-sweet heritage to a sharper sour flavour profile. They sit within the brand's broader strategy of extending familiar confectionery formats into contemporary sour-candy occasions.

• Gummy and fruit sweets

  Maynards gummy and fruit assortment

  Other listed products include Gummy Bears, Fruit Mania, Juicy Squirts Berry, Blush Berries, Blackberry Bushels, Orange Twists, Granny Smith, and related fruit-forward formats. These products broaden the portfolio through different shapes, filling concepts, colours, and flavour combinations.

• 2016

  Creation of Maynards BassettsStrategy

  Background

  Maynards and Bassett's had long been connected within the same confectionery portfolio.

  Action taken

  The two names were brought together under the Maynards Bassetts brand identity.

  Aftermath

  The combined identity linked Maynards' fruit and gummy heritage with Bassett's traditional confectionery positioning.

  Source

• 1990

  Combination with Bassett'sStrategy

  Background

  Cadbury owned several established British confectionery brands, including Maynards, Bassett's, and Trebor.

  Action taken

  Maynards was combined with Bassett's within the confectionery business, followed by the movement of the associated brands' manufacturing to Sheffield in 1991.

  Aftermath

  The brands retained recognizable product identities while sharing a more integrated manufacturing and operating structure.

  Source

• 1988

  Cadbury acquisition of MaynardsM&A

  Background

  Maynards was an established British confectionery business best known for Wine Gums.

  Action taken

  Cadbury acquired the Maynards business and incorporated the brand into its wider confectionery portfolio.

  Aftermath

  Maynards subsequently operated alongside Bassett's and Trebor, with associated manufacturing consolidated in Sheffield.

  Source

• 1985

  Exit from direct sweet-shop retailingStrategy

  Background

  Maynards had developed a substantial network of company-associated sweet shops, reportedly numbering about 140. The business later moved away from direct retail operations.

  Action taken

  The sweet-shop network was sold, allowing the company to focus more heavily on branded confectionery production and distribution.

  Aftermath

  Maynards continued as a branded confectionery manufacturer rather than as an integrated chain of specialist sweet shops.

  Source

1. 1Maynardsen.wikipedia.org