27 Jul 2018 07:00
27 July 2018
Hotel Chocolat Group plc
("Hotel Chocolat", the "Company" or the "Group")
Development agreement signed for Scandinavia
Hotel Chocolat Group plc, a premium British chocolatier and omni-channel retailer, today announces the transfer of its retail stores in Denmark to Retail Brands ApS ("Retail Brands"), and the signing of a development agreement covering Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Hotel Chocolat opened its first store in Copenhagen in 2012 and operated 3 stores in Denmark. Retail Brands is an operator of international retail franchises in the Nordic region with strong local knowledge of the Scandinavian market making it ideally placed to further grow operations in this region. The existing trade in Denmark will transfer to the franchisee who aims to grow the business in accordance with a development agreement, with Hotel Chocolat retaining an option to buy back the business after a period of 5 years, pursuant to a pre-agreed formula. Goods will be sold to the partner on wholesale terms, and a royalty levied on sales.
Angus Thirlwell, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Hotel Chocolat, said:
"Having proven the popularity of the Hotel Chocolat brand with Danish consumers we are excited to be entering our next phase of Scandinavia-wide growth. By combining the strengths of our products and brand with the operational skills of an in-country partner, our goal is to deliver sustainable growth in Denmark and the wider Nordic region."
Tobias Johan Toft, Co-founder and Chairman of Retail Brands, said:
"We are delighted to add Hotel Chocolat to our brand portfolio. We are well advanced with our plans to open new stores and expect to open at the Bruuns Galleri shopping mall in Arhus and Ro's Torv mall in Roskilde this autumn."
For further information:
Hotel Chocolat Group plc c/o Citigate | + 44 (0) 20 7638 9571 |
Angus Thirlwell, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer |
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Peter Harris, Co-founder and Development Director |
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Matt Pritchard, Chief Financial Officer |
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Citigate Dewe Rogerson - Financial PR | + 44 (0) 20 7638 9571 |
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Angharad Couch |
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Ellen Wilton |
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Elizabeth Kittle |
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Liberum Capital Limited - Nominated Advisor and Broker | + 44 (0) 20 3100 2222 |
Clayton Bush |
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Jill Li |
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Notes to Editors:
Hotel Chocolat is a premium British chocolatier with a strong and distinctive brand. The business was founded in 1993 by Angus Thirlwell and Peter Harris and has traded under the Hotel Chocolat brand since 2003. The Group sells its products online and through a network of stores in the UK and abroad. The Group has a cocoa plantation and eco-hotel in Saint Lucia, offering complete cocoa immersion thorough tree-to-bar experiences and wellness treatments. The Group also has a flagship restaurant and cocoa roastery in London's Borough Market: Rabot 1745. The Group was admitted to trading on AIM in 2016.