About Quality Street
Quality Street is one of Britain's most beloved chocolate and toffee assortments, first manufactured in 1936 by Mackintosh's in Halifax, West Yorkshire. Named after J.M. Barrie's play, the brand became synonymous with festive celebrations and family sharing moments. Nestlé has produced Quality Street since acquiring Mackintosh in 1988. The brand's origins trace to 1890 when John Mackintosh and his wife opened a Halifax shop, creating an innovative sweet by mixing hard toffee with runny caramel. Their success led to the world's first toffee factory in 1898. Quality Street was launched during the 1930s depression, when Mackintosh recognised people's craving for nostalgia during hard times. The iconic brightly coloured tins originally featured Miss Sweetly and Major Quality - characters from J.M. Barrie's play who appeared on packaging until 2000. Today's range includes 11 distinctive sweets, with the Purple One (hazelnut in caramel) consistently voted the UK's favourite, followed by the Green Triangle and Strawberry Delight. Quality Street is still manufactured at the original Halifax factory using techniques that preserve the traditional feel of the brand. In 2025, the brand continues its sustainability push with recyclable paper wrappers replacing traditional foil on most sweets, supporting Nestlé's commitment to make 100% of packaging recyclable or reusable. A quirky wartime legacy survives in the Purple One - originally made with Brazil nut, wartime shortages led to substitution with hazelnut, though the sweet retained its Brazil nut shape to this day.











