BEST BRANDS SURVEY
Chocolate & Confectionery
MEET THE WINNER “Speciality brands can still deliver premium products but without having to do it in a pompous way.”
1st - Montezuma’s 2nd - Green&Blacks Joint 3rd - Rococo/Monty Bojangles Helped by its Sea Dog bar and giant chocolate buttons, Sussex-based Montezuma’s was the clear winner in an otherwise fragmented category, with votes spread thinly among numerous brands. Dark chocolate is clearly still a winner for many shops – and for Green & Blacks – but there are few
MEET THE WINNER
“We describe ourselves as quirky and I hope that comes across in the product,” says Montezuma’s co-founder Helen Pattinson. “Chocolate is a fantastic substance but it can be taken too seriously. It should be a fun, joyful experience.” This approach may have created some unique and winning flavour combinations but it’s only part of Pattinson’s explanation for the success of the Chichester-based company. The other aspect is “Monty’s Magic”, a code every member of staff works to. Essentially it means
Julie Wild
clear preferences when it comes to flavour. Sea salt and peppermint both seem wellliked but chilli is on the wane. Votes weren’t just confined to chocolate, though, with some retailers citing liquorice, nougat and fudge as best-sellers. treating customers as they would like to be treated themselves. That includes helping even the smallest retailers with what to stock and how to price it. After all, Montezuma’s is a small retailer itself, with six shops in the South East. “We understand what it’s like to run a single store,” says Pattinson, who set up the company with husband Simon. “We understand that you’re not going to be free to pick up the phone at 2.30 in the afternoon and you want information by post or email instead.” The range may have expanded in many directions – truffle boxes, giant buttons – over the years but Pattinson says the bars are Montezuma’s flagship offering. The price point of £2.40 is “low enough that people will pick it up for themselves but it’s also a good token gift for a babysitter”. While 2016 is sure to bring some more off-the-wall ideas, courtesy of Simon in the development kitchen, Helen says the groundswell for healthier products will see Montezuma’s trying out very high cocoa content bars in the near future. www.montezumas.co.uk
“Chocolate is a fantastic substance but it can be taken too seriously. It should be fun.”
Helen Pattinson
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What’s in a name? According to those behind the Grumpy Mule brand, it is a lot more than they were giving the consumer. Hence, the comprehensive make-over of the Yorkshire roastery’s image. Still in its original, 10-year-old livery, the Grumpy Mule brand wasn’t matching up to the “imagined promise” of its name, says brand manager Julie Wild. Owned by Irish beverage firm Bewley’s since 2013, Grumpy Mule is now a different beast, with a newfound attitude that Wild says is fun and irreverent but also straighttalking.
Coffee 1st - Grumpy Mule 2nd - Taylors of Harrogate 3rd - Monmouth 4th – Miles Tea & Coffee This is another category that features a lot of smaller and regional names. A few, like Somerset’s Miles and London-based Monmouth Coffee, were mentioned enough to get on the leaderboard but, in the end, 2015 saw another tussle between two Yorkshire companies for top billing. Despite the scope of its reach beyond God’s Own Country, the ever-present
BBEST E S T BRANDS B R A N D S 2015-16 2 0 1 4 - 1 5· ·F FI NI NE E F FO OO O D DD IDGI EGSE TS T
“Coffee can be quite patronising and intimidating,” she tells FFD. “Speciality brands can still deliver premium products but without having to do it in a pompous way. Speak to the consumer as if they were a mate. Tell them where the coffee comes from and what it tastes like.” Even if the visuals are markedly different, Wild says Grumpy Mule has retained its coffee credentials. Its Guatemala Pocola typifies the retail range and demonstrates a commitment to ethical sourcing, with 20p from every bag going towards school projects local to the farmers growing the beans. Independent retailers needn’t worry that the slick re-design means the brand is eyeing the multiples. “At our price-point we couldn’t ever be in the likes of Morrisons or Tesco,” says Wild, “and it would potentially devalue the brand.” www.grumpymule.co.uk
Taylor’s couldn’t shift Grumpy Mule, which retained its title while also unveiling an entirely new brand image. Espresso blends are doing the business for a lot of our surveyed retailers, while Colombia seems a well-liked source of beans for others.