Most boxed chocolates in the early 1930s were dressed up in ribbons and floral illustrations. Rowntree's put its new assortment in a plain black box with almost no decoration at all, and called it Black Magic — a name that described the packaging as much as the chocolate inside.
Built to challenge Cadbury's Milk Tray
Cadbury's Milk Tray, launched in 1915, had established itself as the boxed-assortment standard by the early 1930s. Rowntree's, the York confectioner built from the Quaker Rowntree family's business, launched Black Magic in 1933 as a direct rival — but rather than copying Milk Tray's format, it leaned into dark chocolate as its main point of difference, at a time when milk chocolate assortments dominated the market.
A box designed to stand out
The packaging was the real innovation. Against a market full of decorative, romantic boxes, Black Magic's plain black case with sparse gold typography looked deliberately austere. It was marketed as a sophisticated, adult gift — long-running advertising in the decades that followed leaned heavily on romantic gift-giving, positioning it as the chocolate box a man would buy a woman rather than a family sharing box.
From Rowntree's to Nestlé
Rowntree's built much of its reputation through the 20th century on a run of major launches: Fruit Pastilles in 1881, Aero and Kit Kat both in 1935, and Smarties in 1937. Black Magic sat alongside them as the company's flagship boxed assortment. In 1988, Nestlé acquired Rowntree's in a takeover, and Black Magic has been produced as a Nestlé brand ever since, still sold as a predominantly dark chocolate selection box.
- 1915 — Cadbury launches Milk Tray, the assortment Black Magic was built to rival.
- 1933 — Rowntree's launches Black Magic in York.
- 1988 — Nestlé acquires Rowntree's; Black Magic becomes a Nestlé brand.
Frequently asked questions
Who made Black Magic chocolates?
Rowntree's, the York confectioner behind Kit Kat, Aero, Fruit Pastilles and Smarties. It's been a Nestlé brand since the 1988 merger.
When was Black Magic launched?
1933, aimed directly at Cadbury's Milk Tray, which had launched in 1915.
Why was the box black?
A deliberate contrast to the decorative, floral boxes typical of the era — a stark, modern look that gave the brand its name.