Minggu, 10 Juni 2012

Interview: Hotel Chocolat founder Angus Thirlwell

Interview: Hotel Chocolat founder Angus Thirlwell

By David White

PUBLISHED: 04:41 EST, 10 June 2012 | UPDATED: 04:47 EST, 10 June 2012

Millions shrugged off the gloom of austerity Britain to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee â€" with Angus Thirlwell doing his best to help them mark the occasion in style.

The co-founder and CEO of Hotel Chocolat launched a range of mouth-watering chocolates aimed at ‘reflecting a special moment in British history’.

Months of planning went into creations including the “Forever Jack” - giant 500g (1.1lbs) slabs of milk or dark chocolate cast in the shape of Union Jack flags “emblazoned with edible 24-carat gold leaf”.

Angus Thirlwell: Seldom stops thinking about all things chocolate-related

Angus Thirlwell: Seldom stops thinking about all things chocolate-related

Thirlwell warms to the Jubilee theme â€" becoming animated when describing the thinking behind what is proving a marketing success.

‘We are extremely proud to be a British chocolate-maker and wanted to be closely associated with the celebrations.

'Customers have been attracted into our shops by Jubilee-related displays â€" with many saying our chocolate will make street parties and other get-togethers all the more memorable. Sales point to a strong surge of patriotism.’

The good performance has followed ‘very pleasing’ sales over Easter - always crucial for chocolate. ‘While economic times continue to be tough, there is a flight-to-quality which is also keeping our year-round sales buoyant, he says.

Hotel Chocolat has only lost money in one year since being launched in 2003.

Pre-tax profit rose by 25 per cent to £2.6million in the year to the end of June 2011, with sales up 12 per cent at £59.9million.

New shops are opening at the rate of more than ten a year in the UK where there are now 61 - with two franchises in the Channel Islands.

Two shops have been opened in the United States and there are plans to open outlets this year in Amsterdam and Copenhagen. Sales also come from online and concessions in John Lewis stores.

There are 800 staff - including 300 at its chocolate factory at Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire.

Success has come despite the chocolate-boss remaining largely under the radar - at least for his skills as an entrepreneur.

‘I have been “recognised” in public, but not for being me,’ the fair-haired and athletic Thirlwell, 49, reveals via a story about being mistaken for a rock-star.

‘I was once confused with Sting (Gordon Sumner, former lead-singer with The Police) by waiters in a Barbados restaurant which led to exceptional service - but I’d put people right about my identity and it’s unlikely to happen again as Sting now has a much shorter hair-cut,’ he says.

Patriotic: ¿We are extremely proud to be a British chocolate-maker and wanted to be closely associated with the celebrations.'

Patriotic: ¿We are extremely proud to be a British chocolate-maker and wanted to be closely associated with the celebrations.'

Innovation has been key to rising sales - with one example quickly apparent when we meet at Hotel Chocolat’s newest outlet in London’s Covent Garden which sells and makes chocolate under one roof.

Passers-by attracted inside by tempting aromas can visit the cellar to see chocolate being made and sample hot drinks created from cocoa beans roasted and ground on-site.

Food is also available including “open salad sandwiches” made with goat cheese, walnuts, dark chocolate and cherries.

‘It’s a new concept which is proving popular in attracting new customers and underlining our creativity to existing ones,’ Thirlwell reports.      

But while clearly on a roll, would-be entrepreneurs might take comfort from Thirlwell’s uncertain start in business.

Despite the example of a father whose successes include founding the Mr Whippy ice-cream brand and Prontaprint, Thirlwell junior dropped out of a French and economics degree at Sheffield University to sell computer components in France.

While managing to keep customers happy, his ‘individualistic approach’ led to his boss telling him: “You are destined to either end up in prison - or start your own business.”

Thirlwell returned to Britain to continue in the IT industry - but with the seed planted of working for himself. ‘I was interviewed for an IT sales job by someone (Peter Harris) I later went into business with selling peppermints and who is co-founder of Hotel Chocolat,’ he recalls.

‘But knowing that having a sweet-tooth and loving chocolate would never be enough to make money from it, I visited independent chocolatiers in Switzerland and France for advice and attended courses in the science of chocolate-making and growing a business.’

The pair’s first chocolate business, ChocExpress, made money, but was re-launched in 2003 as the more up-market sounding Hotel Chocolat aimed at ‘conjuring up escapist images of enjoying a special experience’.

An early decision was to safeguard quality of raw materials by buying a 140 acre cocoa plantation on the Caribbean island of St Lucia where the company later opened an actual hotel where guests can see how cocoa is grown.

Hotel Chocolat has continued to be owned jointly by Thirlwell and Harrris - with profits re-invested to fund growth and capital raised by issuing “chocolate bonds”.

In a remarkable example of entrepreneurial imagination, members of the company’s 100,000-strong “tasting club” - customers who receive and assess samples of new chocolate products - were given the chance to invest in bonds of £2,000 or £4,000 redeemable after three years with interest paid in chocolate.

‘The initial offer raised £3.7million - enabling us to involve our customers with the business while retaining our independence from other sources of finance,’ explains Thirlwell.

‘A further £300,000 has since been raised by this means. Keeping control of the business in our hands allows for long-term planning and continuing our policy of pursuing best quality and taste through innovation and investment while maintaining high ethical standards.'

But what does his recipe for business success boil down to? ‘We knew that letting the true flavours of chocolate shine through means using less sugar and more cocoa,’ he says.

‘But widening the appeal of our chocolate and standing out from competitors also meant devising exclusive recipes which we can test via building-up a tasting club of many thousands.’

Thirlwell, who has children aged 21 and 23 and lives with wife Libby near Cambridge, has not lost his passion for the business. ‘I relax by walking and sailing,' he acknowledges, ‘but seldom stop thinking about all things chocolate-related - it’s a tremendously exciting subject.’

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