"The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a manufacturer and marketer of premium chocolate products.
Incorporated in 1852 and in continuous operation since then, Ghirardelli has the richest heritage of any American chocolate company. Ghirardelli continues to honor its heritage to this day.
Ghirardelli is one of the few companies in America that controls the entire chocolate manufacturing process, from cocoa bean to finished product. This control over the manufacturing process, combined with Ghirardelli's proprietary bean blend and unique methods of roasting and processing, ensures that you are rewarded with the highest quality and richest products. Find out what makes Ghirardelli chocolate unique.
The correct spelling and pronunciation of the Italian name "Ghirardelli" has long stumped even the most avid consumers of Ghirardelli Chocolate.
Domingo Ghirardelli, the founder of Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, must have resigned himself to the fact that only by a miracle was anybody going to get his name right: the original name of the chocolate company when it opened for business in 1852 was "Ghirardely & Girard."
The spelling of the name Ghirardelli may have been an early attempt to indicate the correct pronunciation.
Throughout its early history, the company has had to cope with all this and even incorporated it into early packaging labels and advertising campaigns.
For many years, a bright colored parrot and the words, "Say Gear-ar-delly," (a phonetic spelling of the name) were used to help solve the pronunciation problem. The strategy proved to be very successful.
During the California Gold rush in the mid-1800s, Domingo Ghirardelli shrewdly discovered that the exhausted miners in from the fields were starved for luxuries and needed something to spend their gold dust on.
To capitalize on this opportunity, he stocked chocolate delicacies to ensure that they solicited his shop.
Your child...Since that time over 150 years ago, Ghirardelli continues to manufacture and market premium "chocolate delicacies" in the spirit and heritage of its founder. In addition, Ghirardelli is one of the few original and continuously operating businesses in California.
Ghirardelli was one of the first American manufacturers to fully understand and use the power of advertising and promotion." (from (
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This mural is found on the Downtown Disney Marketplace Ghiradelli store. The mural reflects the original location and history of Ghiradelli Chocolates in San Francisco, CA, USA. The mural includes Domingo Ghiradelli, a streetcar, the Ghiradelli factory, San Francisco wharf and a phonetic pronunciation of 'Ghiradelli'. The mural is about 12' long and about 3 1/2 tall.