The confectionery kings: Robertson, Allen and Hoadley, 1875-1945

Abstract

Mainstream historiography tends to regard confectionery as trivial and irrelevant. Yet, in the early to mid-20th century, one of Australia's richest entrepreneurs and most influential personages was a maker of sweets, Macpherson Robertson (1859-1945). His two major competitors Alfred Allen (1870-1925) and Abel Hoadley (1844-1918) were also figures of significant influence and worth in Australian economic life. In composite, this triumvirate presented a benign image of kindly craftsmanship and juvenile joy. In reality, Robertson, Allen and Hoadley exemplified an extreme form of piratical capitalism that flouted commercial conventions and legal frameworks. These men, rather than servicing the established colonial imperative of the British metropolis, daringly traversed the periphery and raided American business models. Their legacy is iconic brands that endure to this day. This PhD thesis explores the associated lives of Australia's 'confectionery kings' by employing business history, food history, and critical masters of industry biography. As a collective biography, it privileges Macpherson Robertson as the central figure, illuminating his business practices as advanced and aggressive but at times understandable or even justifiable. The chronological structure follows Robertson's life trajectory, examining the stages of his progression from craftsman to capitalist and the substantial benefits he drew from preserving the notion of craftsmanship. Synthesising extensive primary sources from throughout Australia and the United States, the thesis contrasts the legitimate public face with the very different private individual. It ranges from industrial Melbourne and agrarian Queensland to small-town America and Rockefeller machinations. The analysis demonstrates how confectionery was used as camouflage for dubious and at times nefarious capitalist practices. Under the guise of humble craftsman and folk hero, Robertson was an entrepreneur - the not-so-visible hand running at least 17 integrated companies and indulging in business behaviours considered illegal in other western societies. It also critiques the regulation of anti-competitive behaviour, finding that government authorities were reluctant to interfere with the marketing of a 'luxury' good. Furthermore the state, which had traditionally prioritised the production and distribution of sugar, had a 'bread and circuses' mentality and was complicit in the confectioners' questionable activities. This thesis brings confectionery more into the spotlight of serious and central concern. It comes at a time when obesity, attributed particularly to the extensive consumption of high-fructose corn syrup, and the growth of monopoly capitalism are significant issues for Australians. It offers valuable insights into the historical factors and thereby the inherent key to possible solutions. In terms of historiographical contribution, this study applies modern American business history methodology to Australian big business, by interrogating the wider political, cultural and social contexts of confectionery enterprises. It yields a new interpretation of capitalist development in the Antipodes. Whereas American business history in the United States has recently challenged the "robber baron" thesis, "The Confectionery Kings" goes the other way. It contests the long-held progress-and-prosperity narrative in Australian history and the firm hagiography that Macpherson Robertson crafted alongside his delightful sweets. Such scrutiny of other economic sectors in Australia has perhaps the potential to overturn the dominant paradigm of 'civilising' capitalism. Show more