Our History

In 19th-century Istanbul, there were famous confectioners from Cankiri city. In those years, those who came to the capital from this arid town of Anatolia tended to this profession in solidarity with their compatriots. Ismail Hakkı Bey, who came from the Orta district of Çankırı, found himself among the confectioners on Hamidiye Street in Bahçekapı, although his profession was moneychanging.

In 1864, he started making candy in the basement of a building where he took first place. With his sons helping him, he became the person who introduced the pastry to Istanbulites and made them love it, as well as the variety of sweets that became more and more addictive every year.

On the one hand, Mustafa, one of the sons of Ismail Hakkı Bey, assisted his father and was a muezzin in the Arpacılar Mosque. The brand “Hafiz” memory line comes into existence from this point. Although a centuries-old tradition of taste and trade has changed in terms of ownership in a hundred years, the location of the first candy store and the taste it left on the palates never changed.

The shop in Eminönü, one of the few centers called the heart of Istanbul’s trade, soon started to show itself in respected trade records. Annuaire Oriental, “Ismail Hakki” among confectioners, was found in Bahçekapı in 1888 and operated at No: 4. To the right and left of the shop were tailors and a watchmaker’s shop. A year later, Ismail Hakkı Bey’s name was registered among the confectioners in Bahçekapı No:4 and Alaca Hamam Street No:72.

In 1891, the candy store was replaced by its neighbor tailor, who moved to the shop with the same door number. At the beginning of 1902, there were two different confectioners named “Hacı Mustafa” and “Hacı Ismail” in Bahçekapı.

After continuing with these two shops until 1921, the brand name became more and more prominent: “Hacı Ismail Zade Hafız Mustafa.” In 1924, Hafız Mustafa appeared in Yerebatan with his börek, another product he specialized in. After the pastry shop, another candy store called “Ismail Hakkı” was opened on Dudu Odaları Street in Beyoğlu. Hafız Mustafa was not the only one who inherited the confectionery legacy from his father. His other son, Ömer Lütfi, was also devoted to the profession, like Hafız Mustafa. However, it can be noticed that the two brothers took the surnames of Hafız Mustafa as Kandman and Ömer Lütfi Bey as Cebeci.

After 1929, the shop’s reputation was firmly fixed with “Hafaız Mustafa,” and it was rarely known as “Hafız Mustafa and His Mahdumları,” as in a record dated 1930.

Although Cemil Bey emphasized that he was his successor in the advertisements he published, he never gave up on his father’s name.

Advertisements placed on feast days, the most critical periods of the year for a confectioner, announced to their customers, “Buy your feast sweets from Bahçe Kapı No:90, Hafız Mustafa, and Mahdumu.” Among the products since 1929, Tahini and halva became one of the areas where Hafız Mustafa was famous. In his advertisements, Cemil Bey used his pseudonym “Çikokat” to congratulate his customers on their feast: “Hafız Mustafa and Mahdumu Çikolat Cemil Congratulate Your Feat.”

Cemil Bey passed away in 1947, and in the following ten years, he was commemorated with the mawlids for him and his father. As of the year he passed away, the Hafız Mustafa business was in the position of a well-established company that left behind eighty years. In 1948, the company’s name and logo were registered in the Official Industrial Property Gazette as “Hafız Mustafa Son Cemil Halefi S. Kandman.”

Although the new candy store owners preferred to be known as “Hafız Mustafa Kandman” in their first years, they started using the name they registered in the following years: Hafiz Mustafa.

Mrs. Vasfiye and Mr. Sönmez knew the importance of having a well-established business. They constantly emphasized history in the advertisements they placed in these years.

Advertising slogans were “94 years of your confectioner” in 1957 and “99 years of experience” in Although the product range of the workplace has developed considerably, in the 60s, the essence of the business was sweet types such as marzipan, chocolate, cake, and candy.

When he grew up, confectioner Hafız Mustafa’s disciplined and beloved owners handed the business to Sonmez Kandman’s son Mustafa Nihat.

The “Second Mustafa” era, which started in the business, lasted until 1993 and ended due to Nihat Bey’s interest in other sectors. Mustafa Altuncu, who bought the shop, tried to grow this historical heritage without touching its roots and spirit.

The confectioner, who has been around for five generations since Hacı Ismail Hakkı, tried to branch out with its new owner, but fourteen years later, in 2007, he met with a new investor: Avni Ongurlar.

Academician Esra Dil, who examines Hafız Mustafa Confectionery as a business from a scientific point of view, determines that the company maintains its product variety, production style, brand understanding, and staff despite the change of hands within the limits of possibilities.

With these features, the company maintains its century-old brand identity despite its experienced changes.

The last owner of Hafız Mustafa, Avni Ongurlar, speaks about Hafız Mustafa and Cemil Bey as family members.

Coming from a different industry, such as textiles, Hacı Avni Bey, in emotional harmony with the historical roots of the workplace, sells the healthiest products of Hafız Mustafa at the best possible price and greets his customers with a smiling face.

The most interesting one among the works describing Hafız Mustafa is “Los Secretos de Hafız Mustafa” (Secrets of Hafız Mustafa), written by the Colombian writer Francisco Leal Quevedo. The author introduces his work: “This book was inspired by an unforgettable place whose fame transcends borders.”

Hafiz Mustafa witnessed many historical and social changes till today. From 1864 to the present, the company has experienced a cultural heritage of over a century and witnessed the first tramways with horses, the founding of the first city mail service, the opening of Darü’l- Fünun-ı Osmani (the first university of the Ottoman Empire), the proclamation of the 1 st and 2 nd Constitutionalist Periods, reigns of Sultan Abdülhamit II, Sultan Mehmet Reşat and Sultan Mehmet Vahdettin, occupation of Istanbul, the proclamation of the Republic and so on. Hafiz Mustafa also won 11 medals in Europe between 1926 and 1938.

The business was taken over by Hacı Avni Ongurlar and remained loyal to the ahi order, a tradition coming from Hadji İsmail Hakkı Bey. He has brought the company to its present level with his sons and showed that they would keep it alive for decades.

Today, Hafiz Mustafa serves its customers with 19 branches. In addition to 13 branches in Istanbul, it has branches in London, Dubai, and Antalya, taking care to be at the points where it can explain the Ottoman dessert culture well.

Expert artisans handcraft Hafiz Mustafa products. Sugar obtained from sugar beet, natural root colorants, and natural fruit extracts are used in the products. All of the raw ingredients come from their region on time and fresh. No artificial ingredients are inserted into Hafiz Mustafa’s kitchen. Hafiz Mustafa provides the best quality service to its customers by protecting its historical and cultural heritage because it took centuries to reach this taste…