Violet Crumble
An Australian chocolate bar built around a crisp, crumbly honeycomb-toffee centre.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Violet Crumble is an Australian confectionery brand best known for a honeycomb-toffee centre covered in compound chocolate. Its defining characteristic is the way the centre breaks into fragments when bitten, a quality reflected in the brand's long-running advertising line, "It's the way it shatters that matters." The product is associated with the development of Australia's early twentieth-century confectionery industry and has remained one of the country's best-known chocolate bars. The brand originated with Hoadley's Chocolates in Melbourne in 1913. Abel Hoadley had established a preserving and confectionery business in South Melbourne, and his operations expanded from jams and fruit preserves into cocoa, chocolate and other sweets. In 1913, Hoadley's Chocolates produced a boxed chocolate assortment packaged in purple and decorated with violets. A honeycomb piece in that assortment proved sufficiently popular to inspire a standalone bar. Honeycomb was difficult to package because its porous structure readily absorbed moisture and became sticky. Hoadley addressed the problem by coating the centre in chocolate, helping preserve its dry, brittle texture and creating the Violet Crumble format. The name was chosen after the simpler name "Crumble" could not be trademarked. Violet referred to the flower and colour associated with Hoadley's wife. Early packaging used a purple wrapper and floral imagery, establishing visual associations that have remained connected with the product. The bar is often compared with Cadbury's Crunchie, another chocolate-covered honeycomb confection, although Violet Crumble has traditionally been distinguished by a more brittle, fragmenting texture. Ownership changed several times during the brand's history. Hoadley's Chocolates was acquired by Rowntree's in the early 1970s, and the product continued to be manufactured in Australia. After Nestlé acquired Rowntree's in the late 1980s, Violet Crumble became part of Nestlé's Australian confectionery portfolio. Production was later associated with Nestlé's Campbellfield facility in Melbourne. Product changes under Nestlé included a wider, flatter bar shape and a reformulated honeycomb intended to break into smaller pieces. The separate bagged format was discontinued around 2010, although the traditional bar continued. Robern Menz acquired the Violet Crumble brand, related intellectual property, plant and equipment from Nestlé in January 2018. Manufacturing restarted in Adelaide in October of that year, returning the brand to an Australian-owned confectionery producer. Bagged Violet Crumble products returned to some independent grocery retailers in 2019. The brand's current positioning combines heritage, Australian identity and a distinctive eating texture. It is primarily sold in Australia, with availability also reported in Hong Kong and selected United States retailers, including specialist and regional grocery channels.
History
Violet Crumble emerged from the expanding Australian food and confectionery business established by Abel Hoadley in South Melbourne. Hoadley opened a jam factory in 1889 under the name A. Hoadley & Company. The operation grew into a substantial preserving and confectionery enterprise, producing jams, jellies, fruit preserves, candied peel, sauces, vinegar, cocoa, chocolate and other sweets. By the beginning of the twentieth century, the business had several preserving factories and a large confectionery works. Hoadley formed Hoadley's Chocolates in 1913 after the jam business had been sold to Henry Jones Co-operative. That same year, Hoadley's Chocolates introduced a boxed assortment packaged in purple with violet decoration. The colour and flower were associated with Hoadley's wife, and one honeycomb item in the assortment became particularly popular. Hoadley decided to develop it as an individual bar. The central technical problem was moisture: honeycomb is porous and hygroscopic, so it can absorb water from the air as it cools and become soft or sticky. Enclosing it in chocolate provided a protective layer and helped retain the brittle texture that became the product's defining feature. The simpler proposed name, "Crumble," was not available for trademarking, leading to the name Violet Crumble. Packaging and freshness control were important to the product's early commercial success. Competitors reportedly attempted to cast doubt on the freshness of Violet Crumble by compressing bars, while Hoadley's business used coding procedures to monitor shelf life. The company also searched for packaging that could protect the honeycomb from humidity. A moisture-resistant metallised cellophane developed by the French company La Cellophane was used for this purpose. These measures addressed the same structural property that made the bar distinctive: the centre had to remain dry enough to shatter rather than collapse. Hoadley's Chocolates was acquired by the British company Rowntree's in the early 1970s. The business became associated with Rowntree Hoadley, and Violet Crumble continued to be produced in Australia, including at Adelaide, until later manufacturing changes. Nestlé acquired Rowntree's in the late 1980s, initially operating the acquired brands under a Nestlé-Rowntree identity before simplifying the branding. Production was subsequently moved or concentrated at Nestlé's Campbellfield facility in northern Melbourne. During the Nestlé period, the product's physical format changed. In 2009, the bar was made wider and flatter, while the honeycomb recipe was adjusted to produce a smaller, more pronounced shatter when bitten. Nestlé later removed the bagged format from its product range around 2010. A 2012 attempt by Bryan Hoadley, a descendant of Abel Hoadley, to regain rights to the name and recipe did not result in a change of ownership at that time. A major transition occurred on 11 January 2018, when South Australian confectionery company Robern Menz acquired the Violet Crumble brand, its associated intellectual property, and relevant plant and equipment from Nestlé. Robern Menz restarted production in Adelaide on 10 October 2018, giving the brand a new Australian manufacturing base and ownership structure. Bagged Violet Crumble products returned to some independent grocery shops in March 2019. The brand remains active, with its identity built on Australian confectionery heritage, chocolate-coated honeycomb and the sensory promise expressed by its shattering texture.
- 2019
Bagged products return
[1]Bagged Violet Crumble products returned through selected independent grocery retailers.
- 2018
Robern Menz acquires the brand
[1]Robern Menz acquired the brand, intellectual property, plant and equipment, and restarted production later that year.
- 2010
Bagged format is discontinued by Nestlé
[1]Nestlé listed the bagged Violet Crumble product among its discontinued products.
- 2009
Bar format and honeycomb formulation change
[1]The bar became wider and flatter, and its honeycomb was reformulated to break into smaller pieces.
- 1988
Nestlé acquires Rowntree's
[1]Violet Crumble entered Nestlé's portfolio following Nestlé's acquisition of Rowntree's.
- 1970
Rowntree's acquires Hoadley's Chocolates
[1]The Australian chocolate business and its brands became part of Rowntree's.
- 1963
Bertie Beetle is introduced
[1]The Bertie Beetle chocolate bar was introduced using broken pieces of Violet Crumble honeycomb.
- 1913
Hoadley's Chocolates is formed
[1]Hoadley formed Hoadley's Chocolates and developed a standalone chocolate-covered honeycomb bar from an assortment product.
- 1889
Abel Hoadley establishes a South Melbourne preserving business
[1]Abel Hoadley opened a jam factory that later expanded into a large preserving and confectionery operation.
Products and positioning
A heritage Australian confectionery brand centred on a crisp, highly fragmenting honeycomb texture and chocolate coating.
Chocolate bar · 1913
Violet Crumble Bar
The core product is a bar consisting of a porous honeycomb-toffee centre enclosed in a layer of compound chocolate. Its intended eating experience is crisp and brittle: the centre fractures and scatters when bitten. The bar's packaging and recipe have changed over time, including a wider, flatter format and a formulation designed to create a more pronounced shatter. The bar remains the central expression of the Violet Crumble brand.
Bagged chocolate confectionery
Violet Crumble Bags
The bagged format contains smaller Violet Crumble pieces or bite-sized portions rather than a single bar. Nestlé discontinued this format around 2010, and Robern Menz brought it back to selected independent retailers in 2019. It extends the brand from an individual bar into a shareable or snack-sized confectionery format.
Brand decisions
2018
Robern Menz acquires Violet CrumbleM&ABackground
Nestlé no longer retained the brand after a period of ownership, while Robern Menz pursued the opportunity to restore production under an Australian confectionery company.
Action taken
Robern Menz purchased the brand, associated intellectual property, plant and equipment, and resumed manufacturing in Adelaide.
Aftermath
Production restarted in October 2018, and the brand returned to an Australian-owned operating company.
2010
Nestlé discontinues the bagged formatStrategyBackground
The bagged version was removed from Nestlé's listed product range after having been sold alongside the traditional bar.
Action taken
Nestlé discontinued the Violet Crumble bags product.
Aftermath
The format was absent for approximately nine years before returning under Robern Menz through selected independent retailers.
2009
Nestlé changes the bar shape and honeycomb recipeGeneration changeBackground
Nestlé altered the physical format and centre formulation while continuing to sell Violet Crumble as a honeycomb chocolate bar.
Action taken
The bar was made wider and flatter, and the honeycomb was changed to shatter into smaller pieces when eaten.
Aftermath
The change maintained the brand's focus on its brittle texture while modifying its appearance and eating experience.
Recent events
- 2019
Bagged Violet Crumble returns to independent grocery stores[1]
Product launch
The bagged format returned to sale through independent retailers, including IGA stores, after being absent for approximately nine years.
- 2018
Robern Menz acquires Violet Crumble brand and production assets[1]
M&A · Leadership change
Robern Menz purchased the Violet Crumble brand, associated intellectual property, plant and equipment from Nestlé for an undisclosed amount.
- 2018
Violet Crumble production restarts in Adelaide[1]
Product generation
Manufacturing of the bar resumed under Robern Menz in Adelaide, South Australia, following the change in ownership.
Sources1 sources
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