Hotel Chocolat and Mars Incorporated

caseydog said:
They will lose some of their current customers when they find out Mars owns the brand, but they should gain a lot of new customers with the marketing and advertising budget that Mars has.

Anyway you slice it, this will be bad for cocoa farmers. They barely earn enough to feed their families, thanks to the big chocolate companies like Mars. Another small competitor swallowed by a big corporation will not help them.

CD
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Hotel Chocolat sourced their cocoa from their own fair trade farm in St Lucia, that was one of their big claims to be an ethical producer. That has gone now, materials will come from the buying dept at Mars UK HQ.
 
Is it because recession in the US is over and people will spend more money again on luxurious products?
 
PabloLerntKochen said:
Is it because recession in the US is over and people will spend more money again on luxurious products?
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It's because they made some decisions that cost them a lot of money and they couldn't crack expanding abroad.
That and I'd guess they are probably of an age where selling the business at it's peak is a wise move for them personally.
 
SandwichShortOfAPicnic said:
It's because they made some decisions that cost them a lot of money and they couldn't crack expanding abroad.
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It sounds to me like the classic case of an artesan producer getting to a stage where they can't manage the company any more. To give you a (very) simplistic idea, an artesan produces great chocolate on a small kitchen, and the stuff sells like crazy. Then he/she goes on to employing half a dozen employees. Business expands, but now it's not only the product they have to worry about, it's the HR as well. They'll need a good accountant as the profits rise. Sooner or later, they call a call from a BIG client who says "I need 2 tons of your choccies", so crikey, we have to resize, expand, look for marketing expertise, redesign the packaging, move to a larger location, etc. Sooner or later, the original artesan is no longer slaving over a warm cocoa bean, but managing and directing a team of 50 people, thinking business strategies instead of 70% chocolate. It's a whole different kettle of fish!
I can think of 3 chocolatiers over here in Venezuela who started out about 20 years ago. One of them moved to New York and made their exquisite bonbons there. They've been highly successful. Another made his chocolates (deliciously good) on a strict budget, and he's still doing the same. His business has grown, but only just enough to allow him a slightly better lifestyle. Then there was yet another (a Cacao plantation I actually visited in the 90s) where the kids graduated, took over the business and now export their chocolate to Japan, Italy and across the world. Some have the vision, some don't. Those who might feel out of their depth (maybe that was the Hotel Chocolat case) might say "right - this is where I get off with a nice fat nest egg!"
 
PabloLerntKochen said:
Is it because recession in the US is over and people will spend more money again on luxurious products?
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Yes, the economy is doing great in the US, although according to Trump, we are in the worst economy since the Great Depression, because of Jews and Mexicans, and other "vermin."

But, I that is not the problem. I tend to agree with SSOAP (yes, it does happen, more than you might think), and the owners couldn't handle the kind of growth they were trying to achieve, and a big money corporation made them the right offer, at the right time.

CD
 
karadekoolaid said:
It sounds to me like the classic case of an artesan producer getting to a stage where they can't manage the company any more. To give you a (very) simplistic idea, an artesan produces great chocolate on a small kitchen, and the stuff sells like crazy. Then he/she goes on to employing half a dozen employees. Business expands, but now it's not only the product they have to worry about, it's the HR as well. They'll need a good accountant as the profits rise. Sooner or later, they call a call from a BIG client who says "I need 2 tons of your choccies", so crikey, we have to resize, expand, look for marketing expertise, redesign the packaging, move to a larger location, etc. Sooner or later, the original artesan is no longer slaving over a warm cocoa bean, but managing and directing a team of 50 people, thinking business strategies instead of 70% chocolate. It's a whole different kettle of fish!
I can think of 3 chocolatiers over here in Venezuela who started out about 20 years ago. One of them moved to New York and made their exquisite bonbons there. They've been highly successful. Another made his chocolates (deliciously good) on a strict budget, and he's still doing the same. His business has grown, but only just enough to allow him a slightly better lifestyle. Then there was yet another (a Cacao plantation I actually visited in the 90s) where the kids graduated, took over the business and now export their chocolate to Japan, Italy and across the world. Some have the vision, some don't. Those who might feel out of their depth (maybe that was the Hotel Chocolat case) might say "right - this is where I get off with a nice fat nest egg!"
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Absolutely. Theres a huge gulf between being good at something and being able to manage and expand a business.
Farming in the West Country I think cider would be a good example. Three of the cider producers I know from round here made the leap to selling nationally and one Thatchers to world wide.
The difference between being able to make good cider and manage what is now an enormous company is phenomenal. I watched my friend change from a jovial fun loving type into far more of a shark. Making it big isn't necessarily good for the soul.

I have been part of taking the farm here from a simple dairy farm to a producer and retailer of milk at a time when the Milk Marketing Board wouldn't allow independent production, you had to sell it to the milk marketing board, they were interesting and fighty times.
I can say for sure it's not just about vision and ability, you can be successful and have had enough. Spending every waking hour engaged in one pursuit can only go on for so long before a burn out or loss of love occurs. That's why I mentioned age as a possible factor.

We have recently had a similar dilemma. Our current business has steadily grown and we have up to this point responded to customer need but we are at absolute capacity so what to do? take on yet another warehouse on another site? more employees? more vehicles? more management? or turn down business?
No, no more expansion, we are now 51 and 52 years of age, our driving and striving days are behind us and the last active decades of our lives will be for us and keeping a smaller venture with a smaller customer base. We're very much not on our own in this, a lot of folk we know around our age have simply sold up completely.

As an aside you said somewhere else you have a habit of saying yes and then thinking how the heck am I going to do this?! That is one of the markers of a successful business or for me one of the differentials between someone who is successful in life full stop, just say yes and work the details out after. That is the mentality that has so far led me to have a very full life. I don't like the phrase "can do attitude" but really it's exactly what I value most. They are the people I've had the best times with, the people who aren't afraid of a bit of derring-do.. but with the risks considered of course 😆
 
So it's like a decision to give somebody else the power, so you can cool down. It's a decision everyone has to make I guess, do you want to make career or do you want to have a family? Some try both and as I've seen it, everything is possible with the right people and the right mindset. You take a goal and follow through, if you give up that's no problem usually, you can always come back when you're still young
 
PabloLerntKochen said:
Is it because recession in the US is over and people will spend more money again on luxurious products?
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The US economy is still benefitting from the end of the pandemic. During covid people spent less and saved more. That pent up demand released in 2022 and 2023. Unfortunately that demand has caused prices to rise and the dollar has declined in value at the same time because of government increases in the money supply. So we have an active economy currently that people feel is a poor economy because of the inflation and price increases. The prices will fix themselves as demand normalizes but the devaluation of the currency is permanent historically. It is interesting note that the dollar has lost more than 90% of its value over my lifetime because of money supply increases. There is my quick analysis of the current US economy.
 
SandwichShortOfAPicnic said:
As an aside you said somewhere else you have a habit of saying yes and then thinking how the heck am I going to do this?! That is one of the markers of a successful business or for me one of the differentials between someone who is successful in life full stop, just say yes and work the details out after. That is the mentality that has so far led me to have a very full life.
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What is the definition of success? The happiness you archive for yourself or happiness for humanity, or is it both connected? First you have to make yourself happy and then you can make others happy? Is success just having a big bank account or is it more like having a successful hunt like back in the stone age, where you had to share all the parts to feed also the weaker in the team?
 
PabloLerntKochen said:
What is the definition of success? The happiness you archive for yourself or happiness for humanity, or is it both connected? First you have to make yourself happy and then you can make others happy? Is success just having a big bank account or is it more like having a successful hunt like back in the stone age, where you had to share all the parts to feed also the weaker in the team?
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Well there in lies the conundrum. What is considered success and happiness differs wildly from one person to the next.
What I consider success may be seen by others as failure, only you can decide what you consider success.

Though my experience of people who view success as status and money is enough is never enough for them. Exhausting people to be around.

Happiness as a goal in itself can also make people rather miserable, it's not natural to be happy all the time, accepting that makes life much easier. Duvet days, sofa days, chicken soup days were invented for a reason and it wasn't for the permanently chirpy 😆

Happiness for humanity is not an achievable goal but offering help, spreading a little happiness is and who know's the ripple effect could even be true 🤷‍♀️

It's all a temporary state and not worth fretting over.

I review what I'm doing regularly and think am I doing what I want to do? Did I help? Was I a good mother, partner, sister, friend? What direction am I heading in and am I happy with that? So far the answers been yes because when the answers been no I make the effort to change it.

I suppose I view success as living the life you want to (without hurting others) and being content with your choices.
 
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