Dubai: Forrey and Galland, a Dubai-based chocolatier, plans to open a new outlet in the emirate later this year and enter Saudi Arabia and Qatar in the next three years.
The company expects to introduce a new concept, a lounge, in Dubai Design District by October, which will have more on offer than its store in The Dubai Mall, including coffee, tea and a wider variety of pastries, said Isabelle Jaouen, owner, by phone on Wednesday.
“The confectionary market is huge in the UAE,” she said, adding that 80 per cent of her customers in the country are from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Forrey and Galland sells chocolates, Arabic sweets, dates and macaroons. Prices stand at Dh580-Dh600 per kilogram.
Elsewhere in the region, the chocolatier plans to open in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in July, and in Qatar by 2017. Its total investment for the expansion sits at Dh15-Dh20 million.
Forrey and Galland already has kiosks selling macaroons in Dubai Festival City, Mercato Shopping Mall and Abu Dhabi Mall, as well as a presence at Harrods, a luxury department store in London.
While the company is reaping the benefits of a growing chocolate confectionary market, competition is stiff, with entrants like Patchi, Delice, Godiva, Confiserie Sprüngli, and Debauve and Gallais, among others.
The UAE chocolate confectionary market is expected to grow from $319.2 million (Dh1.2 billion) in 2015 to $469.2 million by 2019, according to data from research firm, Euromonitor International.
Success
When asked how the company differentiates itself from other brands, Jaouen said: “To always be on success, there are parameters that we look at: creativity, like creating a new flavour combination; customer service … it has to be improved; and customisation, which means adapting offerings to clients on special requests.”
The company is keen on expanding in more international markets, such as the US, France and Japan. It plans to grow steadily, rather than opening a large number of stores every year.
“We decided to do it [open a store at The Dubai Mall] by ourselves, so we definitely can’t open very fast. We want to control our standards and operations,” Jaouen said.
