Year-on-year, we've seen a 15-20% growth since we launched: Kanchan Achpal, SMOOR
With the festive season kicking, brands across categories look to capture a share of the consumers’ wallet and there is nothing better than a chocolate to light up the celebrations and leave a sweet taste in the mouth. Looking to capture the consumers tastebuds is the couverture (having a higher percentage of cocoa butter) Kanchan Achpal, Chief Marketing Officer, Bliss Chocolates (SMOOR) says, "When we started, we spent a lot of time and energy educating the consumer why the products were premium, more expensive and why cocoa butter is better than vegetable fat. Today, the customer is aware and wants to know about the source of the chocolate, the percentage of cocoa butter, if it's 70% dark etc." As per reports, premium accounts for about 20-30% of the chocolates category in India and growing at a fast pace. Says Achpal, "Year-on-year, we've seen a 15-20% growth since we launched. We currently have about 35 stores pan India, which includes our lounges and offline stores and over 35 cloud kitchens from where we deliver our online orders. We have our own D2C website from where we cater to deliveries pan-India." SMOOR launches different products for each occasion and festivals. Speaking on the uptick seen during festivals Achpal says, "From August to December, our sales - corporate and lounge sales, go up by about 50% to 60% as compared to the rest of the year. It starts with Raksha Bandhan in August, then Ganesh Chaturthi and the other festivities right up to Diwali. Generally, there is a close finish between Diwali and Christmas. January is a little slack month and is followed by Valentine's Day in February. So, from August till February, we are packed in terms of our product range and revenue from these festive occasions." Being a luxury product, SMOOR targeted the upper middle class in its initial years. However, the brand has seen Gen Zs and customers from Tier II cities have an interest in the brand, particular for gifting. Prior to Covid-19, SMOOR chocolates’ focus was on offline stores. However, the pandemic resulted in the brand pivoting and developing its digital game by improving its performance marketing strategies and betting on social media. Currently, 40% of revenues comes from online and the balance 60% from the offline stores. However, the mix is now changing as Achpal says, “Online is getting stronger as more people order online. Quick Commerce is also growing rapidly. We are developing a product line for Quick Commerce, smaller sized products with better price point As the demand for personalized and customized offerings increase, SMOOR chocolates is developing a new website to elevate the personalized experience where customers can choose what goes in their box or hamper. Achpal says, "Over the last few years, we realized that people love Indian ingredients such as mangoes, cardamom and cinnamon, pistachios, saffron with chocolate in a fusion form.” Commenting on future plans Achpal states, “In terms of products, we want to introduce products which are low in sugar content, high in jaggery content, naturally sweet with more nuts, cranberries, raisins etc. In the next couple of years, we aim to elevate our online game, look at over 50 flagship stores, about 2,000 square foot plus lounges, all over India and have a presence in airport stores. We will expand to Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Surat etc.,”
chocolates brand, SMOOR. Launched in 2015, the luxury chocolate brand has seen consumer's preferences and taste evolve since its inception.
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