Brand : Douwe Egbert's

Our Heritage Our story began in a small village in Joure – Frieseland (now the Netherlands) in the year 1753, around the same time that coffee houses were becoming popular places to meet to discuss the important topics of the day. Egberts Douwes opened a grocery store in Joure called the White Ox (De Witte Os) selling mostly coffee, tea and tobacco. He decided, like other merchants at the time, that Joure's easy access to the waterways would allow trade to flourish, and he was right. When the original Egberts Douwe died he passed on his shop to his son Douwe Egberts, (as was the tradition at that time people reversed their names for their sons) who named his business Douwe Egberts as his trade in tea and coffee expanded. As the business developed, its headquarters were moved to Utrecht and the iconic Douwe Egberts seal was incorporated into the company’s logo. Douwe Egberts 1753 In 1978, Douwe Egberts was acquired by Sara Lee, and as part of this global food and beverage organisation, the company moved into new markets. Innovation drove the business forward, and in 1998 the organisation expanded into Brazil. The Out of Home business also expanded rapidly during the 1990s, with the Cafitesse liquid coffee system becoming widely popular in offices, health care organisations, hotels and other public buildings. It was a pioneering partnership with Philips that led to the launch of the revolutionary single-serve coffee system, Senseo, in 2001, and in 2010 the company moved into the portioned espresso market with the launch of L’OR EspressO capsules. In 2011, it was decided to separate the international coffee and tea business from the Sara Lee organisation, and in June 2012, the new company, with a name that links our past to our future, was listed on NYSE Euronext - D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753.