Project Overview
| Location | Broc, Gruyère, Canton of Fribourg, Switzerland |
| Project Type | Cultural tourism destination, heritage factory redevelopment and hospitality-linked visitor attraction |
| Estimated Investment | CHF 400 million ($510m approximately) |
| Main Components | Chocolate park, restored factory buildings, visitor galleries, cocoa greenhouse, Chocolate Emporium, public esplanade, flying theatre, off-site underground parking, cable car link and hotel offering |
| Developer and Operator | Jogne Invest |
| Owner | Nestlé Switzerland |
| Expected Opening | Between 2030 and 2031 |
The Cailler Chocolate Park is planned in Broc, a village in Switzerland’s Gruyère region in the Canton of Fribourg, where the historic Cailler factory sits between the Pre-Alps and Lake Gruyère.
Conceived as a larger cultural tourism destination around chocolate production, industrial heritage and regional hospitality, the project will expand the existing Maison Cailler visitor attraction from 2,000m² to nearly 30,000m² in its first phase.
The CHF 400 million ($510m) development will bring together restored factory buildings, visitor galleries, a cocoa greenhouse, a Chocolate Emporium, public esplanade, flying theatre, off-site underground parking, cable car access and a hotel offering at En Liaubon. The project is designed to retain the working factory as the centre of the experience while extending the visit beyond the current museum format.
As of early 2026, the project has entered public consultation following a preliminary review involving the Municipality of Broc, the Canton of Fribourg, the Swiss Confederation and environmental and heritage stakeholders. The process covers a modification of the Local Development Plan, the creation of a Detailed Development Plan and ten building permit applications. If approvals are secured, authorisations are expected between late 2026 and early 2027, with opening targeted between 2030 and 2031.
Historic Broc factory anchors the new chocolate park
The Broc factory is among the oldest chocolate factories still in operation in the world, with more than 125 years of continuous activity. It sits within the alluvial plain of Broc, between the wooded foothills of the Pre-Alps and Lake Gruyère, in a setting shaped by the relationship between agriculture, industry and landscape.
The project aims to preserve that industrial identity, while expanding the cultural and tourism uses that have been present on the site since the 1930s. Instead of creating a separate visitor attraction around the factory, the scheme uses the working production site, historic buildings and surrounding landscape as the basis for a larger public route.
One of the first interventions will be around the current Maison Cailler entrance building, which houses the museum entrance, shop and café. The building is planned to be demolished and replaced by a smaller structure set back 10m from the historic neo-Renaissance factory façade. The historic level of the factory forecourt will also be restored, removing the current raised platform to reinstate the monumentality of the main frontage.
The new building will mark the beginning of the chocolate visitor route, with workshops led by master chocolatiers.
Restored workshops bring industrial heritage back into use
After passing through the original 1898 buildings, visitors will cross the Jogne river to reach the former mechanical workshops of the factory. These protected but currently disused buildings are planned for restoration as part of the visitor experience.
The workshops will present the history of chocolate production across different periods and cultures, from the Aztecs to the present day. The route will culminate in a rebuilt wing where visitors will be able to view a working chocolate production line dating from the 1960s.
The reuse of existing industrial buildings gives the project a stronger architectural and heritage basis than a standalone themed attraction. The visitor experience is structured around the memory of production, the continuity of the factory and the adaptation of buildings that are already part of the Broc site.
Cocoa greenhouse adds a botanical layer to the route
A new Cocoa Greenhouse is planned between the former workshops and the Broc hydroelectric plant, Electrobroc. Conceived in the form of cocoa beans, the greenhouse will introduce a botanical and educational component to the park.
The space will focus on cocoa cultivation and Gruyère milk, the two ingredients placed at the centre of the Cailler chocolate story. Its soft, organic form is intended to contrast with the rational geometry of the surrounding industrial buildings, adding a distinct architectural marker within the route.
The greenhouse also reinforces the wider reading of the site, where agriculture, production, energy and tourism are being brought together within one visitor sequence.
Factory galleries, Chocolate Emporium and public esplanade
From the greenhouse, visitors will cross the Jogne again and enter a gallery focused on industrial chocolate production. Running along the factory façades, the gallery will explain the process from cocoa bean to finished product while offering views directly into the production halls.
The route will conclude at the Chocolate Emporium, planned as the final stage of the visitor experience and focused on the Cailler chocolate range.
Outside, the Cailler Esplanade will provide a sequence of public spaces capable of hosting occasional events. Underground areas are planned to include retail spaces and a 400-place bicycle station.
Disused factory buildings facing the station will make way for the cable car arrival station, the park ticket office and a flying theatre presenting Swiss landscapes.
En Liaubon site adds parking, hotels and cable car access
The project extends beyond the factory site to En Liaubon, an existing buildable area at the edge of the Municipality of Broc. This off-site component will include a 700-space paid underground car park, a hotel offering and a cable car link to the park.
Existing visitor parking near the factory will be closed. The strategy is intended to remove visitor traffic from Broc’s municipal roads and reduce pressure on residential neighbourhoods.
The En Liaubon car park is planned to serve several groups, including park and hotel visitors, hikers in the Jogne gorges, Mobility car users, park-and-ride users and staff. The hotel component is intended to address the shortage of rooms identified by cantonal authorities and encourage tourists to extend their stay in Gruyère.
Rail access shapes the mobility strategy
Rail access is central to the project’s mobility plan. Broc-Chocolaterie station is located directly at the park entrance, allowing visitors to arrive without using local roads.
The project is targeting a 50% share of visitors arriving by train or bus. The site is served by the Chocolat Express connection from Bern, while visitors can reach Broc by train from Lausanne or Bern in around 90 minutes. Combined tickets, discounts and priority or special services are planned to make rail travel more attractive than private car use.
The municipality is also preparing parking management measures to prevent visitors from parking informally within Broc village. Residents will continue to access the plain via Rue Nestlé or Rue du Martinet, while the project will cover the cost of repairing the Martinet bridge for local traffic.
Renewable energy and reuse guide the environmental approach
The environmental strategy combines reuse, mitigation and local energy. The project aims to use local and renewable energy sources, including hydroelectric power, heat pumps and solar panels.
New buildings are planned mainly on already developed land, with the exception of the Liaubon parking site, which is already zoned for construction. The wider development also focuses on the revitalisation of protected and currently disused factory buildings, keeping much of the intervention within the existing industrial estate.
The protection of the Jogne river remains part of the approvals process, with infrastructure and landscaping near the river subject to cantonal and federal requirements.
Key players involved in the Cailler Chocolate Park development
Jogne Invest is the main development entity behind the Cailler Chocolate Park. It is responsible for the permit process and is expected to finance, build and manage the park. Its scope also includes the underground car park, tourist bus parking and cable car.
Nestlé Switzerland will sell Maison Cailler and land, make parts of the Broc factory available for the park and authorise use of the Cailler brand. Nestlé is not a shareholder in the project and is not involved in implementation or management. Production at the Cailler factory, however, remains Nestlé’s responsibility.
Urban Project is handling project management and development, supporting coordination of the scheme as it moves through planning, public consultation and future delivery stages.
Association Gruyère-Chocolat acts as the coordination platform for the project. Its members include Jogne, Association régionale la Gruyère, Union fribourgeoise du tourisme, Fédération patronale et économique and Nestlé Switzerland. The association works across the project’s economic, tourism and planning dimensions.
BRC Imagination Arts, a US-based experience design studio, and Jora Vision, a Netherlands-based themed entertainment and experience design firm, have been selected for the park’s scenography and visitor experience after an invitation-only process involving five internationally recognised agencies.
Studio Tim Fu is leading the design of the Cailler Cacao Greenhouse, which forms part of the visitor journey and is intended to immerse guests in a tropical environment where cacao trees explain the origins of chocolate. The greenhouse links cocoa cultivation, chocolate production and the role of Gruyère milk in the Cailler story.
ARCADIE is involved as local architect for the Cacao Greenhouse, while Switzerland-based Verzone Woods Architectes is associated with the landscape architecture for that component.
Cailler Chocolate Park construction
The current Maison Cailler is expected to remain open during the works. Much of the construction can be carried out while the factory remains operational, as the main extension involves existing buildings that are not currently in use. The current Maison Cailler is expected to close only once the extension is complete and open to visitors.
Investment and economic impact
Of the estimated total cost of CHF400m, about 50% is allocated to the chocolate park itself, while the remaining is estimated for the Liaubon site, covering the underground car park and hotels.
More than CHF10m has been invested in authorisation procedures, related studies and land acquisitions from third parties.
The park is planned to reach 800,000 annual visits in its first stage, with long-term potential of up to around 1.2 million visitors a year. The employment impact is estimated at around 200 jobs from the park and a further 100 jobs from the hotels.
For Broc, the project also changes the local economic relationship with the attraction. The future park will pay taxes in the municipality, and a local fund is planned to support sports and cultural activities in Broc and surrounding organisations, with annual contributions linked to the park’s performance.
