Uncle Joe’s History

It so happened that William Santus’ wife Ellen and her family had some great friends known as the Attys. They were a family of established confectioners and it was most likely they who taught Ellen Seddon the skilful art of making toffee. The sweets started off as a sideline on the corner of his fruit stall, but Ellen must have shown a natural aptitude, because within a few years they were to become William’s exclusive trade. They were married in 1898 at Greenough Street Methodist church (incidentally, the only place in Wigan to be bombed in World War II) and went to live in a little house at 6 Acton Street, Wigan.

By the year 1908 William owned market stalls, not only in Wigan but also at Bolton and St. Helens. The sweets were immensely popular and with business thriving the tiny kitchen in Acton Street was overloaded. Being a shrewd businessman William realised it was time to expand and so the “Swinley Confectionery Company” was born. William and Ellen went into partnership with William’s brother-in-law; a well-known Wiganer charismatically titled J.J. Fortune. He owned some property at 62 Kenyon Road and so, in the shadow of the huge Rylands Cotton Mill, a small domestic factory was built where this new company would produce their mint balls and treacle toffee amongst others. William sold his market stalls in Bolton and St. Helens and all the sweets were destined to be eaten by Wiganers. The toffee was transported from Gidlow to the Market by means of a small truck and a small boy, Eric.

The high demand for William Santus’ toffee forced another move, one that was to last until the present day. Construction commenced on a new factory. at Dorning Street, off Wallgate. “The firm are to be congratulated” stated the Wigan Observer that year “on their enterprise in embarking on their new development as it will find employment for a considerable number of people.” The new factory was soon completed at a cost of £2,400 and “Swinley Confectionery Company” underwent another change. Mr Fortune retired from business to become a Justice of the Peace and so the name of the firm was altered to “William Santus and Company”. Obviously, production increased and new workers were hired. Mr Santus began an informal policy of only employing staff if they met two criteria. Firstly, they had to know someone who already worked at the factory – and they had to be Methodists. This assured that the working atmosphere was always friendly and happy. He was a good boss; firm but fair and the workers had a healthy respect for his temper!

The 1930′s were possibly the most significant years in the history of the company. Wiganers were first introduced to Uncle Joe through the campaign of adverts that appeared in the Wigan Observer in October 1932. The sweets had been in production prior to that, but his celebrity status was only just beginning. 1933 saw the official patenting of the Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls and in 1937 the company became fully registered. Mr Santus must have decided that they were in a position to advertise their services. He had great faith in his product, and in a letter to his advertising agency, dated 1937 wrote, “Most people would like Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls if only they could try them once – this seems to be a proven fact.”

Men, women and children were each targeted separately. Free samples were distributed to men queuing in the cold outside football and rugby grounds. Once inside there were more packets for sale and these often enclosed another sample packet containing one mint balls printed with the slogan “Take this one home for the kiddie”. Most men would comply with this suggestion and the mint ball would be taken home and presented as a gift.

Limited production staff meant fewer sweets, William Santus seen here counting ration coupons was left with no sugar boilers during world war 2 and so wrote a letter to the government requesting to get his best sugar boiler back Tommy. This proved successful. “In fact, although Bennett is so young he is at the present time the most vital person I have and his retention in his present position is essential for the continuance of our business”. He was allowed to remain until one of the women had been fully trained in his skilled job and after six months he was able to leave and join the RAF.

“One week I was boiling toffee and the very next I was bombing the enemy in a Lancaster” Tommy Bennett.

“Death of Wigan’s Uncle Joe”

Mr Santus was in his 80th year when his death was recorded in 1953. The passing of Mr Santus was regrettable by all employees at William Santus & Co. Ltd as he was actively engaged until a few days before his death. He loved the factory and his work and was never happier than when planning the firm’s future and prosperity. Known by most as “Uncle Joe” Mr Santus left a wife and a daughter.

On the 27th July 1956, which would have been Mr Santus’ birthday, his only daughter Nellie also passed away. This was just three years after the loss of Mr William Santus. It is said that Nellie was extremely close to her father and that she never really got over his death.

Until the 1960′s all product was unwrapped and sold directly out of large glass weigh-out jars. The sweets would often become sticky and have a much lower shelf life. The 22b rose Forgrove double twist wrappers (above) solved this issue and allowed the product to keep its condition for longer.

These wrapping machines were updated to the current four 5ist’s that can wrap up to 500 sweets per minute per machine in 1991.

Cheap imported sweets saw the increase of much lesser quality products at rock bottom prices. William Santus & Co did not compromise on quality and therefore saw an initial decline in sales. This made the company re-visit its structure and pushed the opportunity to become a much more efficient manufacturer to keep in business. Once Customers realised that the low cost of these imported sweets meant inferior quality they soon came back to a stronger company that then long term profited.

To help develop sales and appeal to the impulse market the pre-pack was developed and new machinery was installed. Despite the fact that Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls are made only in Wigan the pre pack bags meant that the product had more travel opportunities and their fame spread far and wide. Uncle Joe’s have been sighted at the top of mountains in India, villages in Kenya, Vancouver, Canada and even in the ‘Big Apple’ New York City, USA! The pure goodness of Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls is celebrated worldwide. William Santus’ father was a miner. Uncle Joe’s were appreciated by miners not only because they couldn’t smoke but also because the combined action of sucking and the peppermint flavour would help keep their lungs free of dust.

The 400g centenary tin was first introduced in 1998 to celebrate 100 years of Uncle Joes Mint Balls. It proved so successful that it is still in production now. Keep an eye on this product as a new 400g share tin is the next evolutionary step.

It was the 2000′s that saw the continued increase in the supermarkets and the constant decline in traditional independent shops. We bucked this trend and increased through the supermarkets, but still keeping all our independent corner shops fully stocked on all ranges including over 150 variants of the large weigh out jars.

• Upgrades to our factory’s floors, roofs, electrics, lighting and gas.
• Redevelopment of all in house systems and procedures to continually achieve SALSA accreditation ensures consistent high produce and service quality.
• New high speed wrapping machine which individually flow wraps each Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls which has been nicknamed Stormzy – because it is (w)rapping so fast!
• We are always creating new products to create a brand sense of warmth & comfort whilst ensuring our Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls are developed in the correct packaging at target weights and prices to hit existing consumer trends.
• A new range of lever lid tins now available including flavours such as Wildberry Gin, Dark Rum, Apple Cider and many more
• We have products that cover Gluten-Free, Vegan, Sugar Free and Traditional. All aimed at impulse buying, gift and seasonal markets.
• Most products are traditional ‘Hand Cooked on Open Fires’
• Fourth generation Joint Managing Director awarded MBE for services to the confectionery industry.
• HRH Prince of Wales visited the factory on 3rd April 2019 to commemorate 100 years of manufacturing at The Toffee Works.

We extended our sugar free collection with a range of Mint with a Hint. This range of sweets was created by accident earlier this year after a member of staff making a batch of sugar-free mint balls at the Toffee Works, added liquorice extract by mistake. Colleagues tasted the end result and we liked them so much that we put them into production and started working on other flavours.
After the success of our Halloween and Christmas bag designs, our lever lid tins range has been expanded to include seasonal tins and we are so pleased with the results! It is certainly looking like they will be just as successful as the seasonal bags.

Because we have always had such loyal support from our customers, we decided to appeal for volunteers who love Uncle Joe’s to join our new tasting panel. After sifting through a vast number of requests, we appointed a chief taster and five other volunteers of all ages to help taste prototype sweets and put forward their own ideas as well as give feedback on existing varieties.

Our Chief Taster: Ethan Rowbotham a Year 6 Pupil from Standish

Our Sweet Panel: Ella Roberts, a Year 6 pupil from Ashton in Makerfield; Kate Smith, from Great Barford, Bedfordshire; Keith Tither from Astley; Leigh Barton from Thornton Cleveleys; and Paul Gledhill from Wakefield.

2023 marked the 125th anniversary of Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls and it proved to be a remarkable year at The Toffee Works. The celebrations were kicked off with an auspicious visit from the Mayor of Wigan in January, along with special recognition from Wigan Council who marked the celebrations with some special signage. We were very proud to be on the seven signs welcoming people to our town.
The Toffee Works gained more attention with an exciting visit from the BBC, which spotlighted the rich heritage and craftsmanship behind Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls. The televised feature brought the story of our iconic Mint Balls to a broader audience, showcasing the dedication and passion that has defined our brand for over a century.

We were then elated to be announced as winners of a North West Family Business Award which added to our 125 year celebrations: The NWFBA are organised and run by The Family Business Community and provide a fantastic opportunity to celebrate family businesses of all shapes and sizes, from across all sectors and industries. The 2023 awards were held at the Concorde Conference Centre, Manchester airport and were presented by food writer, broadcaster and proud northerner Nigel Bardenon. We were honoured to be presented with the award as winners of the Large Food & Drink Producers category.

As the year unfolded; with various collaborations, charity events, Willy Wonka style Golden Tickets and a museum exhibition to boot, The Toffee Works stood as a beacon of tradition, innovation, and community spirit. The 125th anniversary of Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls became not just a milestone but a testament to the legacy of a much loved confectionery that has sweetened the lives of generations.