A REAL-life Willy Wonka will pocket £144million from selling his business to Mars.
Hotel Chocolat’s Angus Thirlwell landed the monster payday as part of a £534million deal.
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He founded the posh chocolate chain in 1993 as a corporate gifting business alongside partner Peter Harris, who will get a similar sweetener from the Mars takeover.
They have since opened 131 shops in the UK, 21 in Japan, launched a chocolate-themed hotel in Saint Lucia, a working cocoa farm and their own hot-chocolate maker.
Mr Thirlwell, likened to the fictional choc factory boss within the industry, has preached “more cocoa, less sugar”.
But US giant Mars, which is paying 375p a share, makes its namesake bars with 60 per cent sugar.
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Similar takeovers recently have drawn criticism from fans over the changing taste of their favourite treats.
Mr Thirlwell told The Sun his deal could not be more different and he had “not taken the decision lightly”.
He said Mars’ scale would help Hotel Chocolat crack the international market.
Mars insisted there were no plans to change Hotel Chocolat recipes and that it had a good track record of protecting brands.
