Having come up with a premium variant of its chocolate, Fabelle, which is now available in both modern trade and across grocery stores, ITC Ltd is eyeing a growth of more than 10 per cent, surpassing the industry average in this segment, over the next 2-3 years.
“The chocolate category has been growing more than 10 per cent in recent years and we expect to grow significantly faster than the category over the next few years,” Anuj Rustagi, chief operating officer of chocolates, coffee and new categories at ITC's food division, told Business Standard.
The company took a call to come up with the premium variant of Fabelle to reach out to a niche consumer base that will help improve its sales volume. The chocolates, priced between Rs 70 and 170, compete directly with Silk from the Mondelez stable and belong to a category that has been growing faster than the overall chocolate industry.
After launching the brand in 2016, ITC had decided to first come up with a luxury range for consumers at its hotels and boutiques. Thereafter, it took a call to launch bar variants at premium price points.
The premium variant of Fabelle is available in top chocolate selling outlets in six metros, namely, Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai.
“We launched the Fabelle FMCG chocolates range in Bengaluru in October 2018 and have further expanded distribution Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad this year.
The range is available in large outlets, including modern trade and premium grocery stores. We will continue to expand distribution in the near future and extend our presence to other relevant consumer touch points,” Rustagi told Business Standard.
The chocolate range consists of two product formats – soft centres, which is a range of centre-filled chocolate bars and the chocolate deck which is a range of multi-layered chocolate bars.
Rustagi said these chocolates bring alive a unique dessert-like experience in the form of chocolate bars, giving consumers an indulgent sweet-tooth experience.
Besides, after claiming to have received positive consumer response on its luxury range that was launched in its chocolate boutiques, ITC has also started retailing luxury chocolate bars across the premium modern trade outlets in the above six metros. This range includes eight dessert-inspired chocolate bars priced between Rs 350 and Rs 495.
ITC is also strengthening its assorted chocolates, which are typically meant for gifting on special occasions like Diwali.
According to the company, chocolate gifting during the Diwali season is increasingly becoming popular and it has introduced a specially curated range of offerings suitable for the festive season.
The Fabelle Gift Bouquets, meant for festive gifting, is priced between Rs 2,450 and Rs 13,750 and will be sold exclusively from the chocolate boutiques. This bouquet is an assortment of luxury chocolates like Elements, Dessert Collection and Gianduja.
“We have also introduced special assorted gift boxes at various price points – The Bars Quartet at Rs 1,450, the Bars Trilogy at Rs 1,100 and the Bars Treasury at Rs 350,” Rustagi told Business Standard.
The quartet is an assortment of four luxury chocolate bars, while the trilogy is an assortment of three bars and the Treasury is an assortment of four bars from the FMCG range.
ITC launched Fabelle in 2016
Introduced FMCG bars to kirana stores in 2019
ITC has eight boutiques in its hotels for Fabelle luxury range
ITC has also launched a chocolate making programme - Fabelle Société de Chocolat – for budding chocolate enthusiasts
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