Oracle Retail Week Awards: Hotel Chocolat reaps rewards for innovation and branding

It has been quite a 12 months for Hotel Chocolat: in January it reported that pre-tax profits surged 84% to £5.4m for the 12 months to June 30 2012, when sales rose 6% to £63.8m.

This helps to explain why the judges chose the chocolate retailer as the Speciality Retailer of the Year for 2013. They describe the retailer’s entry as “outstanding” and highlight its almost unparalleled ability to differentiate its brand in a crowded and competitive market.

One judge says of the company: “The energy and care that they’ve put into safeguarding the brand and not letting it be diluted is a testament to them. There’s such integrity at the heart of it.”

Hotel Chocolat has successfully tapped into the recessionary consumer mindset - while many retailers suffered as belts have been tightened, the cocoa grower and chocolatier exploited shoppers’ tendency to indulge in smaller treats while cutting back on more expensive purchases.

The retailer also seems allergic to the idea of standing still. Attention to detail is strong and the offer is unique - but that hasn’t stopped Hotel Chocolat innovating. In the past year, its new Roast + Conch store in Covent Garden has brought more fresh thinking to the chocolate retail sector.

The idea is to take shoppers through the processes that lead from cocoa pod to cup of hot chocolate, and the result is an innovative retail space that has resonated well with shoppers. The store and cafe is full of complex pieces of machinery and information on chocolate making, and the overall feel is inspiring and engaging.

Across the business, Hotel Chocolat focuses on authenticity, for instance by growing rare cocoa in St Lucia at its Rabot Estate plantation.

It is this sort of retail that has helped Hotel Chocolat to stand out. It’s all about the experience, the environment and the ability to draw the customer into a different world - as well as Hotel Chocolat’s proficiency at telling its own story - that has produced such success.

And instead of relying on one category, its innovative approach also extends to products: in November last year it launched a range of beauty products under the Cocoa Juvenate brand. The company is now in talks with other retailers to stock the range, and there are reports that it is considering opening a high-end restaurant in London. The menu, once a location is found, is likely to draw from the food at its plantation hotel in St Lucia.

The retailer’s story in 2013 looks set to be as positive as last year’s. The brand is gearing up for further international expansion - it already has a presence in the US and Denmark - and it is eyeing countries in Asia.

Japanese people in particular reportedly responded well to the brand on social media and in London stores.

Some of today’s most successful retailers realise that focusing on the basics is not enough, and Hotel Chocolat has led the way in this form of retailing that relies heavily on branding and story-telling.

It strives to make customers feel like they’re part of a club and aims to ensure that its stores don’t just focus on transactions. Yet while all of this is going on, it’s crucial to simultaneously keep the focus on the financials - and Hotel Chocolat hasn’t forgotten this.

While the emphasis has been firmly on store expansion for the past few years, the retailer actually started out online. This makes it well placed to deal with the multichannel evolution and ecommerce is at the heart of the business. If it can continue to hold on to its innovative, forward-thinking ethos, Hotel Chocolat looks poised to become one of the best-known UK names in international retail.