The two South Africans who founded a toffee company out of an antique store

Today, the brand is quickly becoming a South African staple, sold by some of the country’s biggest retailers, including Mr Price, Yuppiechef and Takealot.

The Darling Sweet story starts in 2004, when Van Ryneveld moved to Darling, a rural Swartland working village in the Western Cape.

Soon, he learned that although many tourists passed through the town and it had a great gift offering, there were no real options for sweet gifts.

“The idea for a toffee shop started then, but had to wait a few years to materialise,” Van Ryneveld told Daily Investor.

In September 2013, he met Van der Merwe through a mutual friend. They had an immediate connection, which was likely because they shared a common interest in the arts.

Van Ryneveld had a bachelor’s in drama, and Van der Merwe was a lecturer at Stellenbosch University’s department of fine arts.

Van der Merwe studied fine arts at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and attended the Higher Institute for Fine Arts (HISK) in Antwerp, Belgium.

He also went to the prestigious Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine, in the United States and has won numerous awards for his art.

“I mentioned to Hentie that I want to sell toffees in my antique store,” Van Ryneveld recalled. “He, with his background in training as a chef, soon decided to design our toffee recipes.”

So, Van der Merwe set about trying to craft their toffee recipe, wading through old books and performing countless late-night experiments.

“Hentie, coming from academia, did a huge amount of research working through forgotten recipe books and recipes until we decided on the perfect recipe,” Van Ryneveld said.

“Hentie has very high standards when it comes to food, and he was insistent that the best ingredients – all natural – are pivotal in attaining success.”

Starting the business

On 14 July 2014, Darling Sweet officially opened its doors. Van Ryneveld and Van der Merwe funded the business themselves and had to sell everything to make their dream a reality.

“I sold my car, we sold the antiques and used all our savings to develop a brand and look, and converted 24 m² of my shop space into a small toffee production kitchen with two staff members and one toffee pot,” Van Ryneveld said. “We literally grew the company pot by pot.”

Initially, they launched with three flavours. Two of these, the Classic Toffee and Honey & Salt Toffee, are still part of their flagship flavours today.

“We started selling in our new tasting room in Darling, as well as at markets – first local, then Cape Town and later countrywide,” he said.

“The expansion process was organic, as we had to use the money we made to reinvest into the business, continuously.”

Van Ryneveld explained that being a bootstrap company was one of the most challenging parts of founding the business, since they had to work carefully with money and grow organically.

“Also, Hentie and I aren’t hard business people, and didn’t have all the business skills needed to grow a business. A lot of it was done on gut,” he said.

However, despite their lack of experience, their efforts soon paid off, and retailers started to notice their products and stock them in stores.

“We had just started, and Parker Kriel from Darling Meat Market came in one day and insisted that they sell our products in their butchery,” he said.

“Soon thereafter, other businesses in Darling and Cape Town made contact. We had to jump and draw up a wholesale price list for stockists.”

Eventually, they started participating in Kamers Makers shows and grew their footprint. Darling Sweet also joined SARCDA, a wholesale retail expo, which assisted them in growing across South Africa.

Early on, they realised that they could have an impact on the unemployment rate in their community, and decided to focus on making a truly handcrafted product.

“We had to very carefully grow a production team who could cope with the demand as we grew the business,” he explained.

According to Van Ryneveld, working with and growing as a team has been the most rewarding part of founding Darling Sweet.

“We have learned a lot, but it is wonderful to see a new team member develop and grow and empower him/herself into becoming a career-focused person,” he said.

Evita se Perron

Shortly after Darling Sweet launched, they renamed their Classic Toffee to Tannie Evita’s Classic Toffee. In return, they donated money to the Darling Trust, which Pieter-Dirk Uys founded to uplift the Darling community through education.

“During Covid, we learned that Darling’s famous Evita se Perron would be closing its doors permanently,” Van Ryneveld said.

Realising the importance of this institution for Darling, South African history, and Pieter-Dirk Uys’ legacy, they reached out to Uys and negotiated a purchase of the property and museum.

“For five years, we had to work out how this whole operation should be integrated. In October 2024, the whole Darling Sweet operation moved to Evita se Perron as well as our sister brand, Swartland Kitchen,” Van Ryneveld said.

Today, tourists can visit the Evita se Perron museum. The Perron building offers a world-first Swartland Kitchen rusk tasting, and the Darling Sweet tasting room allows visitors to try their range and view the production facility.

“Darling Sweet and Swartland Kitchen has finally settled at Evita se Perron, and growing this tourist offering is something we focus on,” he said.

Expanding the business

Throughout the years, Van der Merwe has worked tirelessly to grow Darling Sweet’s toffee range and expand their catalogue.

For example, toffees are traditionally chewy and on the harder side, but they received numerous requests for a softer option. So, in 2018, they launched a soft caramel range. A few years later, in 2024, they launched fudge.

Darling Sweet also sells toffee spreads and fudge. In addition, their flavour range has expanded, and the team currently offers 10 toffee flavours and eight soft caramel flavours. Efforts to expand the business didn’t stop there.

“In 2023, we joined a business accelerator, Aurik, which was a huge learning curve and opportunity for us to learn to think differently about our business and how we should work,” Van Ryneveld said.

Recently, Darling Sweet also launched its new website, which features Darling Sweet, Swartland Kitchen, and Evita se Perron. It allows customers to browse their product range and purchase directly from the business.

“The launch of Darling Sweet’s new website is more than just a digital facelift; it’s a reflection of the brand’s commitment to quality and customer experience,” he said.

“Darling Sweet’s new website is a testament to its evolution from a local confectionery maker to a nationally recognised brand.”

Van Ryneveld said that, going forward, they are also looking at the continued growth of Darling Sweet and some limited mechanising plans to reach an international market while keeping the products produced locally.

Darling Sweet

Issued on Daily Investor by Kirsten Minnaar | https://dailyinvestor.com/business/94032/the-two-south-africans-who-founded-a-toffee-company-out-of-an-antique-store/