Thorntons is more Motel Chocolat than Hotel Chocolat

30/03/2015
News that Hotel Chocolat is on the verge of overtaking confectioner Thorntons, at least as far as pre-tax profits are concerned, should not surprise.
Walk into a branch of Hotel Chocolat, not too difficult – there are 81 one of them, and you are presented with a well thought-through interior that does what luxury chocolate is supposed to do; it seduces.

In this instance you are persuaded, perhaps against your better financial judgment, that it really is worth paying a little more than you originally intended when you entered because, well, it’s all so well-mannered and everything seems right.
This is before you look at the packaging and salivate at the contents. And with Easter next weekend, who knows, you might even splash out and buy one of those eggs – somebody’ll be happy.
Your actions are the almost logical outcome of an outfit that has been honed and honed – when something doesn’t work, product or the appearance of the interior, it is changed and something better is put in its place. Small wonder that digging deep doesn’t feel too bad and it’s a behaviour pattern that is likely to be repeated.
Thorntons lacks luxury
Now head for Thorntons. A branch of this chain is easier to find as there are nearly 250 stores dotted around the country and they are to be found on the great majority of high streets.
On the financials, at £6.6m in the six months to January 10, the nearest comparable period to the Hotel Chocolat numbers, the pre-tax profits are just £100,000 north of those generated by its smaller rival.
On this reckoning, the question has to be why its profits are so modest? Starting with the stores therefore, they do not look or feel luxurious. This seems like the Clinton Cards of the chocolate world peering anxiously over its shoulder at the much smaller, but more frequented Paperchase.
Some of the stores possibly pass muster, but for the most part, the sense is of a chain that is about watching the chocolate coins.
Now for the product. It is certainly less expensive and quantities are bigger. But is this what is wanted? Less, but better, might seem to be the mantra on the basis of the two retailers’ contrasting fortunes.
Grand Hotel Chocolat, a place where occasional luxury is the order of the day, rather than a motel chocolate, would seem to be what shoppers are looking for. Times and tastes are changing.

Fonte:http://www.retail-week.com/stores/comment-thorntons-is-more-motel-chocolat-than-hotel-chocolat/5073459.article

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