Our Story
The Cowell's Story
“Pavlova was something everybody had on special occasions, especially family occasions. Our product made it easy.” Ron Cowell.
In 1949, Ron and Audrey Cowell left the United Kingdom and made Dunedin their home for life. “We never wanted to live elsewhere.” Fourteen years later, in 1963, they opened Cowell’s Coffee Shop at 119 Stuart Street, and one dessert captured everyone’s attention.
Their pavlova, perfected from family tradition, became the talk of Dunedin. By 1973, demand had grown so far beyond the coffee shop that Ron and Audrey opened a dedicated pavlova kitchen on Bath Street. In 1976 they moved to Vire Street, where Cowell’s is still made today.
Through the late 1970s and early 1980s, Cowell’s expanded to Christchurch, Wellington, Hamilton and Auckland with the same legendary recipe, baked under license across all of Aotearoa. Today all operations are unified under Cowell’s Limited in Dunedin, the city where it all began.
Audrey Cowell lived to over 100 years old, overseeing the business she and Ron built for decades. Her recipe lives on in every pavlova we bake with an unmistakable crisp shell, soft marshmallow centre, and holds a place at the heart of every celebration.
A Legacy in the Making
What began as a small family venture has grown into a nationwide tradition with every milestone shaped by dedication, craftsmanship, and a love for bringing people together.
1963
Ron and Audrey Cowell open the first Cowell's Coffee Shop on Stuart Street in Dunedin. The crafting of the Cowell's Pavlova recipe begins.
1973
Given the huge demand Ron and Audrey open a dedicated pavlova kitchen on Bath Street in Dunedin. Nationwide franchises follow.
1998
The Dunedin franchise purchases back the Christchurch franchise and starts supplying the entire South Island.
2014
The Dunedin franchise then purchases back the Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington franchises. Cowell's production is returned home to Dunedin, then distributed nationwide.
2026
Still crafted in Dunedin with the same recipe. Cowell's Pavlova is found in all New Zealand supermarkets and everywhere else in between.
Our Story
The Name Behind the Dessert
Anna Pavlova was rejected from the Imperial Ballet School at eight years old, too small, they said. She returned at ten, graduated at sixteen, and within a decade had become Prima Ballerina at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg.
She was unlike anything the ballet world had seen. Where the Mariinsky prized strength and technical power, Pavlova was thin, delicate and ethereal, her fans called themselves the Pavlovtzi.
She was perfect for romantic roles. Her feet were so extremely arched that she reinforced her pointe shoes with hard leather and flattened the box for support. Critics called it cheating. It became the modern pointe shoe.
Her most famous role was The Dying Swan, a solo choreographed for her by Michel Fokine, danced to Saint-Saëns. She performed it hundreds of times across the world. She founded her own company and toured relentlessly, bringing ballet to audiences who had never seen it. She died of pleurisy in The Hague, three weeks before her fiftieth birthday. It is said Anna’s last words were: “Can you prepare my swan costume?"
The show she was to have performed went ahead as scheduled. A single spotlight moved across an empty stage.
In 1926, Pavlova brought her company to New Zealand, 38 shows in 39 days, from Auckland to Dunedin. It was here, in New Zealand, that a chef created a dessert in her honour. Light, white and delicate, built to mirror the soft layers of her tutu.
Cowell's has been crafting that dessert in Dunedin since 1973.