Hotel Chocolat's recipe for marketing success.Visit the company's home page and you'll see how it segments the market for luxury chocolates by occasion (such as birthday or wedding), by person (such as male, female, child, business associate), by product attribute (such as milk or dark chocolate), by product (such as hampers or special packaging), and by pricing (choose your pricing level).
Customers can click to order online or order a printed catalogue or visit one of Hotel Chocolat's UK stores or buy when at an airport World Duty Free shop. One of the most distinctive points of differentiation is the Engaged Ethics programme. The company imports cocoa grown in eco-friendly conditions from its own Rabot Estate in St. Lucia and from Ghana, paying above-market prices and participating in local community improvement efforts.
Hotel Chocolat is constantly testing new chocolates. It sends samples of new treats to the 100,000 members of its Tasting Club and decides, based on their feedback, which to include in its full product range. Sweet research for a company that likes to hear directly from its customers.
