Many who have decided to engage in pastry making are quite fed up at the beginning of their journey. In most cases, they started their journey “from scratch”. This is also the case. Now we will meet you with a man known to his contemporaries as the King of Chocolate. His name is Avram Chalovski.
The future major industrialist was born in 1854 in the Macedonian village of Galichnik, which at that time was under Ottoman rule. Little is known about his childhood, except that he was a shepherd boy. The capital of the newly liberated Principality of Bulgaria, became a center of attraction for many refugees and immigrants from Macedonia. This is the choice of young Avram, and from here begins his difficult path to success. At first he apprenticed in a grocer’s shop, washed dishes in pubs late at night, and sold boza on the streets in the early mornings.
After ten years of tireless work, he began to produce lokum and boza himself. After a few more years, in 1898, Avram opened a small tahini halva workshop in Sofia, where only he and one other worker worked. And after another dozen years, the enterprise was expanded and modernized, and soon grew into a factory. Its name is fully upheld in the spirit of the era – “Industrial house for the production of sugar products, vegetable oils, tahini, cocoa, chocolate, biscuits, caramel, etc.” In 1921 Chalovski opened his second factory in Burgas, then another.
He likes to work with quality raw materials that are processed with modern technology. In order not to depend on external factors, the entrepreneur also built a packaging workshop, as well as his own printing house for labels. Its factories have their own water sources, cow farms and refineries.
Avram Chalovski introduced for the first time in Bulgaria things like milk and egg powder.
That its products are of high quality is evidenced by the medals won at prestigious exhibitions abroad. Among them are a gold medal from London, a silver medal from Milan and awards from Athens and Thessaloniki. The variety in production is great, but Chalovski became known as the King of Chocolate.
Contemporaries remembered him as a man of action, never tired. This is how he brought up his children – that “work and perseverance, honesty and nobility” are important in life. Chalovski believes that work is the only right path to success.
His family lives modestly and does not display wealth. Unlike many other industrialists, he not only does not flaunt a new car or property, but also turns part of his home into a museum. It has a room with weapons, a room with Macedonian folk costumes, a room with wooden sculptures of all Bulgarian kings, 50 bas-reliefs of revivalists, a numismatic corner…
At the same time, Chalovsky provides his workers with a free chair, in addition to their remuneration, they are given products. Probably for the first time in Bulgaria, a 13th salary is also given, and in addition to it, another half salary for Easter. The entrepreneur also regularly grants loans to his workers, especially young families, which he then, also regularly, forgives.
Avram Chalovski’s production is heavily advertised in the press
Chalovski proves that he knows how to earn, but he also knows how to donate – churches and monasteries, especially the Zografsky and Rila monasteries. He does not forget those in Macedonia either – he allocates funds to the Bigor monastery, as well as to the church in his native village. He himself does not have a particularly high education, but he is clearly aware of its value. That is why hundreds of Bulgarian schools receive funds from him, and separately he sponsors a large number of Bulgarians to study in Bulgaria and abroad.
Many of Chalowski’s donations remain unknown because he makes them anonymously.
It also remains unclear how much money he gave to the revolutionary movement in Macedonia, which he, as a Bulgarian patriot, enthusiastically supported, and his son Eustathius participated in battles and uprisings.
In his will, Avram allocated BGN 10 million to establish a foundation to help the “poor, sick, orphans, mostly from working families”. Hundreds of thousands more have been earmarked for nursing homes and churches. He also forgives the debts of all his debtors.
On November 3, 1943, Chalovsky left this world at the age of 89. After a few years, his factories were nationalized, his fortune dissipated, and his will remained unfulfilled. But he remains an example of a person who starts from scratch, succeeds with his own strengths and qualities and never forgets where and how he started…
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