Bagley (company)

Bagley Argentina S.A.is an Argentine food company with its main plant located inBuenos Aires. Established by U.S.-born entrepreneurMelville Sewell Bagleyin 1864, the company (owned by French multinationalDanonesince 1994) had a wide variety of brands, having specialised in the production ofcrackersandcookies.
At the moment of being acquired by Danone, Bagley was the main cookies producer of Argentina.Nowadays, some of Bagley's brands (likeChocolinas,RumbaandCriollitas) are also marketed by Arcor,which is associated with Danone for cookies production in Argentina.
The company was established inBuenos Airesin 1864 by American entrepreneurMelville Sewell Bagley, when the company launched famousapéritifHesperidina.Bagley had been involved in the dry goods business in New Orleans before the outbreak of theAmerican Civil War. After the outbreak he emigrated to Buenos Aires where he experimented with different formulas to create adigestivebeverage using oranges as the main ingredient.Hesperidina would be born from those tests.
Nevertheless, it was not until 1875 when Bagley entered to the food market. That year, the company started producing biscuits after theGovernment of Argentinaexempted the company from the custom duties so they could import the necessary machinery to produce food. Until then, cookies and biscuits were imported from theUnited Kingdom. The first biscuit produced was namedLolaand became an immediate success. The biscuit was also used in hospitals as a food for patients.
In July 1880, Bagley died at the age of 42. His wife Mary Hamilton took over the business, while other partners were in charge of administration duties. In 1901, the company became asociedad anónimaand continued investing in machinery and opening new plants. Merchandise was delivered byhorse-drawn carts. One year later, the company launchedMitrecookies, named after former president of ArgentinaBartolomé Mitrethat became popular, then launchingVariedad,Tertulia, andSoda.
Bagley was the first Argentine company to producewafersin Argentina. They wereOperain 1908, following the reopening ofTeatro Colónon May 25,when the four-act operaAidawas performed for the occasion.Starting in 1924, Bagley added other food products such aspreserved goods,vinegarand theJelinadesserts. Moreover, their employees had benefits such as medical coverage and paid vacation before they were ruled by Law.
Launched in 1943,Criollitascrackerbecame an immediate success. That same year, Bagley started to package its products. Until then, biscuits were sold individually, being stored in tins and the stores commercialised them that way.Other products added werecanneddulce de membrilloanddulce de batata.
The company expanded its products range introducing filled biscuit such asMerengadas,Sonrisas,Mellizas,Amor,Rumba, and crackersRex, in the 1960s.Rumbasoon became leader of chocolate-flavored biscuits. In 1975, the company launchedChocolinas, another chocolate-flavored biscuit which became not only a success but a historic landmark for the brand.
During the 1980, Bagley added more varieties to its biscuits range, launchingPorteñitas(in 1980), andTentaciones(a premium product with flavoredjelly) in 1985.
In 1994, Bagley Argentina was acquired by French conglomerateDanone. Five years later, the group increased its ownership of the business to 91%.
By 2003, Arcor had incomes for US$800 million and had 13,000 employees (9,000 in Argentina). In 2004, Arcor associated with French conglomerate Danone to take over Bagley, a local producer ofcrackersand othercookies. Bagley had been acquired by Danone in 1994. With this partnership, Arcor–Danone became the largest cookies manufacturer in South America, with a turnover of US$300 million. Arcor owned 51% of Bagley, and Danone 49%. This alliance was only for the cookies market, with both companies carrying on the rest of their business separately.Both companies joined forces to sell cookies in Argentina, Brasil and Chile, with an estimated production of 385,000 tons of cookies per year.
Also in 2004, Bagley sold the rights to the Hesperidina brand to "Tres Blasones", which took over production of the apéritif until 2018, when it was acquired by another local company, "Grupo Cepas S.A.". It has been producing the beverage since then.
WhenKraft Foodsacquired most of Danone biscuits division in 2007, Danone retained its shareholding in Bagley.
In 2019, Bagley (along withGrupo Arcor) became owners of 43% ofMastellone Hermanos, the main dairy company of Argentina, after both firms acquired 2,310,000 shares to increase their part in the business.
The company is mostly known for its wide variety ofcookiesandcrackers, with some renowned brands such asCriollitas,Rumba,Opera,Sonrisas, andChocolinasamong others.
As of August 2021current line of products include:
Thechocotorta(a localchocolate cake) usesChocolinascookies as its main ingredient. It was invented in 1982 by Marité Mabragaña, an advertising creative that came up with the idea of preparing a tasty dessert for her two little sons. As she also worked for twodairycompanies, she mixeddulce de lechewithcream cheeseto use as filling, giving origin to one of the most popular cakes and an iconic dessert of Argentinepastry.
The chocotorta had a TV advertising spot (featuring two products from different companies,Mendicrim, a cream cheese brand marketed by Osvaldo Mendizábal, and Bagley'sChocolinas) and soon became a success. That success led Bagley to include the cake recipe onChocolinaspackages.
In 2020, the chocotorta was elected as "the best dessert in the world" by theTasteAtlaswebsite after a survey conducted among its followers. The site mentioned "this unbaked Argentine dessert was influenced by theItalian cuisineand is inspired ontiramisu. It is made with three basic Argentine ingredients: chocolate cookies, dulce de leche and cream cheese". In the voting results, the chocotorta ranked first aboveBelgian waffleand Hungarian zserbó.
In 1973,guerrillaorganisationMontonerosassesinated union leaderJosé Ignacio Rucci.The attack was namedOperación Traviatain reference to the popular Bagley's cracker, which was advertised as "the 23-hole cracker". The maccabre reference allded Rucci was killed with 23 gunshots by the terrorist group.