Tony Chocolonely

Henk Jan: "Slavery is unfortunately not something from a distant past. On the contrary, millions of people worldwide work as modern slaves. The chocolate industry is sadly no exception; around one and a half million people still work illegally in the cocoa chain." To address this, the makers of the TV program 'Keuringsdienst van Waarde' founded Tony’s Chocolonely in 2005. The goal: to bring their own slave-free chocolate to the market.

In 2011, I acquired a majority stake in the company. My ambition was to further grow Tony’s – with the same goal of 100 percent slave-free chocolate. Over the past eleven years, we have succeeded: from a turnover of 1.5 million, we have grown to a turnover of 135 million.

The first contacts with Rembrandt date back to the time when I took over Tony’s. Through Rabobank and a former colleague, I got to know Menno Stuker. He turned out to be the perfect match for me; he had clearly dealt with acquisitions before and was excellent in advising me on what to do and what not to do. Such a solid, expert partner is invaluable when all sorts of issues suddenly come your way.

On a personal level, we also clicked very well, and over the years, Menno grew into a reliable, independent sparring partner. Before I took over Tony’s, I worked at multinationals like Heineken and Vrumona, but the dynamics of entrepreneurship are very different. Menno guided me excellently in this. It was he who pointed out the importance of good cash flow to me. Advice I will never forget.

Tony’s Chocolonely has been doing business with the Belgian chocolate factory Althaea-De Laet since the very beginning. When there was unfortunately no successor available for this family business, we – as the largest customer – decided to take over the factory. Rembrandt also guided us excellently in this process, resulting in us now having our own production facility.

We wanted to pay a price that works well for both sides. You can try to go all the way in the race for the lowest price, but such a game inevitably leads to a breach of trust and a lack of respect. Ultimately, a smooth transfer where you might pay just a bit more is much more important. If you can take over a company in good harmony, that is priceless. This is the most important lesson I have learned in this acquisition process.

For me personally, this new growth phase marks the end of my daily involvement with Tony’s; I remain a shareholder, but I have handed over the daily management to Douglas Lamont. I am now diving into a new entrepreneurial adventure: a winery under the name No House Wine, where we produce sustainable wine and, together with Stichting HomePlan, build houses in South Africa from the proceeds. One thing I know for sure: the relationship with Rembrandt will continue."

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