What did Richard Cadbury introduce in 1868 for Valentine's Day?

Richard Cadbury introduced a heart-shaped chocolate box for Valentine’s Day in 1868.

Cadbury’s decorated “Fancy Boxes” were designed to make chocolate suitable as a romantic gift. The heart shape connected the product with the holiday’s growing symbolism of love, while the packaging made the box worth keeping after the chocolates were eaten.

Richard Cadbury was a member of the English chocolate-making family and helped run the company with his brother George. Their business later became closely associated with Bournville, the model village built around Cadbury’s factory near Birmingham.

The box was not the first Valentine’s Day gift, and Cadbury did not invent chocolate itself. Jewelry, flowers, cards, and confectionery all became associated with the holiday at different times. Cadbury’s innovation was commercializing an attractive heart-shaped presentation that helped establish boxed chocolates as a classic romantic gift.