In the summer of 1863, Gerardus Johannes Droste opened his first confectionary shop in Haarlem. One of his first candy products was the chocolate pastille. This pastille was created with "melt in your mouth" satisfaction in mind. Using only the best Dutch chocolate, the pastille is rounded on the top and flat on the bottom. It fits perfectly between your tongue and the roof of your mouth. Since that time, Droste Pastilles has remained true to the traditions of G.J. Droste and the credo "The Real Taste of Chocolate", becoming one of the largest selling chocolate brands in the world. Droste Pastilles are sold in over 70 countries and is the most recognized Dutch Chocolate. 

Since January 1st 1997 Droste has been sold to the, Swiss based, company Hosta. Venz moved to Koninklijke De Ruijter B.V. in Baarn. Droste B.V., by now, is still situated as an independent company in Vaassen, Gelderland.

Since then sales have strongly increased and Droste has become one of the biggest users of cocoa in the Netherlands. 65% of the sales were realised in more than 20 countries.

Also as a part of the Hosta group, Droste still operates as an independent business unit. Droste nowadays has a variety of chocolate pastilles. Droste is very much concerned with inventing and launching new flavours of delicious chocolate, never losing sight of the fundamental credo, "The real taste of chocolate".