Hotel Chocolat Is Checking Into the U.S.

Is that the sweet smell of premium chocolate in the Windy City air? Premium chocolate is growing faster than the broader confectionery category. Hotel Chocolat wants a bigger piece of that growth in the U.S. Backed by Mars and already established with roughly 170 stores in the UK, Hotel Chocolat is building out its American footprint with a retail strategy centered on more than what’s inside the box. The brand currently has six stores in Chicago, with locations in California, Salt Lake City and Alexandria, Virginia, next on the expansion list. And the early results are promising: its U.S. stores are exceeding expectations. Chris Ressa sits down with Kelly Goering, general manager of Hotel Chocolat U.S., to talk about how you take an established international brand, introduce it to a new consumer and build a retail model that can scale across the country. A big part of that strategy is experience. Hotel Chocolat stores are designed to bring elements of the brand’s St. Lucia cacao farm into physical retail. There’s greenery, sampling, gifting, cafés in select locations and a wall featuring 120 varieties of chocolate. The goal is to give customers a reason to discover, taste and stay awhile. But scaling that experience requires figuring out what translates. The team is testing store sizes, café formats and footprints while learning what U.S. consumers respond to. And the growth strategy goes beyond standalone stores. Hotel Chocolat is also expanding into airports and through retail partners including Wegmans and select Kroger banners. As that footprint grows, NWS is serving as Hotel Chocolat’s architect, helping bring its distinctive retail experience to more customers across the country. For retail real estate, Hotel Chocolat is an interesting case study in how a global brand enters a new market without stripping away what made the concept distinctive in the first place. The chocolate gets customers interested. The experience could be what keeps them coming back. What You’ll Hear Why premium chocolate is outpacing the broader confectionery market Why Chicago was the starting point for Hotel Chocolat’s U.S. expansion How Hotel Chocolat brings its St. Lucia cacao farm experience into stores What’s driving strong performance at the first U.S. locations How store sizes, café formats and community fit shape the expansion strategy How airports and retail partnerships are helping Hotel Chocolat grow its U.S. footprint Chapters 00:19 — From Mars to Hotel Chocolat Kelly Goering shares her 22-year career with Mars and how she became responsible for scaling Hotel Chocolat in the U.S. 05:14 — Meet Hotel Chocolat How the UK retailer grew to roughly 170 stores and why Mars acquired the premium chocolate brand. 06:41 — Building the U.S. footprint Six Chicago stores are only the beginning, with new markets already on the expansion list. 07:08 — Why premium chocolate is growing Kelly breaks down the confectionery market and why premium chocolate is outpacing the broader category. 10:56 — Bringing an international brand to America The team is taking lessons from the UK while building a scalable model specifically for U.S. consumers and communities. 13:41 — Why Chicago came first A tastemaker city, distinct neighborhoods and a strong connection to Mars made Chicago the starting point. 14:53 — What the early stores are proving Performance is exceeding expectations as Hotel Chocolat tests footprints, cafés and different store configurations. 16:30 — Inside the Hotel Chocolat experience From cacao-farm-inspired design to 120 varieties of chocolate, gifting and cafés, the store is designed around discovery. 20:19 — What Americans are buying Billionaire Shortbread, drinking chocolate and holiday penguins emerge as some of the early favorites. 22:27 — Kelly’s retail picks Kelly’s answers to Chris’ three signature retail questions.