irish artisan chocolates. - · pdf file19.02.2015 · barbello hand crafted irish...

Barbello hand crafted

Irish Artisan

Chocolates.

Applied Market Research Suzan Ryan

Lorcan Bree S00016452

Leona Flynn S00127965

Eóghan ó hEarcáin S00078937

Fatema Teitali S00158502

24-4-15

Barbelo handmade Irish Chocolate 1

Table of Contents

Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................ 4

Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 5

Research Objectives ................................................................................................................................ 6

Industry Analysis .................................................................................................................................... 7

Trends Taste’s and Flavours ................................................................................................................... 9

Trends ................................................................................................................................................. 9

Economy ......................................................................................................................................... 9

Occasions ...................................................................................................................................... 10

Health ............................................................................................................................................ 11

Tastes .................................................................................................................................................... 14

Health ............................................................................................................................................ 14

Lack of Cocoa ............................................................................................................................... 15

Future Flavours ................................................................................................................................. 15

Competitor Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 16

International Competitors ..................................................................................................................... 16

Butlers Chocolates ............................................................................................................................ 16

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 16

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 17

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 18

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 19

Lily o Brien’s .................................................................................................................................... 20

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 20

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 21

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 21

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 22

Lir chocolates .................................................................................................................................... 23

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 23

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 24

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 25

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 25

Nationwide Competitors ....................................................................................................................... 26

Wilde Irish chocolates ....................................................................................................................... 26


Product .......................................................................................................................................... 26

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 27

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 28

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 28

Skellig's Chocolate ............................................................................................................................ 29

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 29

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 30

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 31

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 32

Local Competitor .................................................................................................................................. 33

Roscommon chocolates .................................................................................................................... 33

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 33

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 34

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 35

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 35

Primary Research .................................................................................................................................. 36

Methodology ..................................................................................................................................... 36

The Survey ........................................................................................................................................ 37

Mission Vision ...................................................................................................................................... 39

Mission .............................................................................................................................................. 39

Vision ................................................................................................................................................ 39

Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning ............................................................................................. 40

Segmentation..................................................................................................................................... 40

Targeting ........................................................................................................................................... 41

Positioning ........................................................................................................................................ 41

Marketing Mix ...................................................................................................................................... 42

Secondary .......................................................................................................................................... 42

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 42

Price .............................................................................................................................................. 43

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 43

Place .............................................................................................................................................. 44

Primary .............................................................................................................................................. 45

Product .......................................................................................................................................... 45

Promotion ...................................................................................................................................... 45


Place .............................................................................................................................................. 45

Findings ................................................................................................................................................ 46

Respondent’s Profile ....................................................................................................................... 46

(Figure 3.1) ....................................................................................................................................... 47

(Figure 3.2)....................................................................................................................................... 47

Customer behaviour ........................................................................................................................... 51

(Figure 3.6)....................................................................................................................................... 52

(Figure 3.7)....................................................................................................................................... 53

(Figure 3.8) ....................................................................................................................................... 53

(Figure 3.9)....................................................................................................................................... 54

(Figure 3.11)..................................................................................................................................... 56

Taste’s and Flavours ........................................................................................................................... 58

(Figure 3.15)..................................................................................................................................... 60

(Figure 3.17)..................................................................................................................................... 62

(Figure 3.18)..................................................................................................................................... 62

Spend ................................................................................................................................................ 65

(Figure 3.24 ...................................................................................................................................... 68

Recommendations ................................................................................................................................. 70

Limitations ............................................................................................................................................ 72

Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 73

Bibliography ......................................................................................................................................... 75

Appendices ............................................................................................................................................ 78

Apendix1.1 Survey ........................................................................................................................... 78


Executive Summary

The report was compiled on behalf of Barbelo Irish handmade chocolates to gather and

analyse primary and secondary research in the aim of helping them to grow their company to

a medium sized enterprise. This research will give the reader a broad look of the chocolate

confectionary industry in Ireland and the fact that it is experiencing more growth than any

other market. Expected to be worth in the region of €600 million to the Irish economy and is

expected to grow another 5% in the following two years. This report will focus primarily on

the artisan chocolate sector which is in high demand at the moment. The report aims to show

clearly what Barbelo must do in order to capitalize on this growth. For the benefit of new

product development the report has a detailed analysis of the trends, tastes and flavours that

are at present popular and estimate what will be the trendy new flavours of the future.

A competitive analysis will show the reader just how large of a market the confectionary

market is and show how competitive it is with new company joining the market each week.

Primary research was carried out in the form of a in depth survey in order to establish what

people perceptions were towards artisan chocolate and what they thought of the Barbelo

brand. From conducting the report detailed recommendations are given and it is the strong

belief of the research team that if these recommendations are followed that Barbelo will be

rewarded with every success in the near and distant future.


Introduction

Barbello Handmade Irish Chocolates were set up by Theresa Mc Morow in 2013. Set up in

her home town of Manor Hamilton Theresa hand crafts her chocolate using traditional skills

and techniques from her kitchen at home. The company started life as Mc Morrow

Chocolates in 2013 and has since rebranded to Barbello handmade Irish chocolates. The

name Barbello means female angel or angel of goodness. Theresa sells her chocolates

through super value and Kate’s Kitchen a small artisan coffee shop Located in Sligo town.

Kate’s kitchen sell a wide variety of hand crafted artisan products from chocolates to sauces

and jams all handmade.

Barbelo Handmade Irish chocolates can also be found in many other smaller outlets around

the geographical area of where it’s produced. Barbello Handmade Irish Chocolates have

received credit from bodies such as the Food Academy the Leitrim county enterprise board

where they have picked up such awards such as best new enterprise a Bord Bia award. On the

verge of securing a large contract from super value Tereasa has acquired the help of market

research to help find ways of promoting her brand and to find out how the public perceive the

Barbelo brand.


Research Objectives

To carry out an industry analysis on the artisan chocolate sector.

To investigate Barbelo Handmade Irish Chocolates competitors and analyse their

strengths and weaknesses.

To determine a vision and mission statement for Barbelo Handmade Irish Chocolates.

To determine the target, segment and position of Barbelo Handmade Irish Chocolates

in the Irish confectionary market.

To identify the consumers trends tastes and flavours in the Irish market.

To develop in particular the position of Barbelo Handmade Irish Chocolates

marketing mix.

To find out what consumers perceptions are towards the brand name and packaging

of Barbello Handmade Irish Chocolates.


Industry Analysis

After the collapse in the property market and while Ireland saw its worst recession in thirty

years new markets and new opportunities started emerging. The biggest growth in any market

since the recession is the Irish food market. Ireland has always been famous for its beef

exports and its dairy produce but is now seeing a new segment of the food market emerging.

The artisan craft food industry has taken Ireland by storm in recent years with products

ranging from bread jams beers and chocolate. The chocolate confectionary market stayed

strong throughout the recession with an estimated worth of over €600 million. (Chocolate

confectionery Ireland 2013) People saw it as affordable luxury which they weren’t prepared

to give up.

The chocolate confectionary market in Ireland is worth an estimated €693 million and is

expected to grow another 5% by the year 2018. The Irish market is broken up in two parts

with 75% of the market in the republic of Ireland and 25% of the market in Northern Ireland.

This makes Ireland a unique market for selling as small companies can export their product

into Northern Ireland at very little cost. The biggest purchasers of chocolates in Ireland are

mostly female with 91% of women buying chocolates and 87% of men buying chocolates.

Irish buying habits have changed dramatically since recession with 83% of them purchasing

local products and helping support local business. More and more people are buying

multipacks which in turn are seeing a rise in volume sales outpacing value sales. Volume


growth is expected to outpace value growth by 2% in the years to come. (Chocolate

confectionery Ireland 2013)

Irish people are one of the largest consumers of chocolates in the world. In the late 20th

century when the last recession hit the Irish people when they had a few pound put together

would often turn to a pint of stout to help cheer them up and let them forget about the hard

time. Now a days people are quicker to turn to purchase their favourite chocolate bar rather

than a pint of beer to help cheer them up. This is shown in the decline in stout sales in Ireland

but the steady increase in chocolate purchases and consumption. Irish people consume 11.2kg

per head of population in a giving year. This figure is set to rise dramatically as the chocolate

industry is in a growth stage. (Chocolate oh sweet chocolate the bitter truth, The Irish

Examiner 2013)

The trends in chocolate are forever changing as the market very seasonal with the peak of

sales occurring around Christmas time and also in February and Easter. Milk chocolate is the

most popular product on the Irish market with white chocolate being the least popular.

However during Christmas white chocolate is most popular purchase amongst Irish

consumers. In the last several years with an increased understanding of healthy diets this has

shown an increase in the sale of products such as sugar free, fat free and gluten free. Dark

chocolate has also seen a rise in sales amongst the health conscious consumer. Fair trade is

another fast growing segment as consumers become more ethically aware of where their

products were produced. (Bord Bia 2010)

The reason artisan foods are becoming so popular are that many consumers wishing to return

to their roots and become reconnected with their communities again. They wish to put a face

and a name to the products that which they buy. The Irish consumer is slowly starting to turn

away from the large mass produced brands and looking at smaller brands. Small brands seem

more local and therefore people trust them more also. Irish consumers are now looking for

the story behind the product where it came from who made it and what ingredients were used.

Traceability is a huge issue for consumer of the twenty first century. The advantage of buying

from a local producer is that you know exactly where the product’s origins are from. The


trend is all about building a relationship with the product, brand and the producer. The

consumer is now becoming more health conscious and more aware of what they consume and

take into their bodies. Consumer’s now put a strong emphasis on products with organic

ingredients product that have less salt and sugar and products that hold no artificial flavours.

(Bórd Bia)

The cost of producing chocolate is becoming rather expensive mainly due to the cost of

purchasing cocoa. This has created growth in market value. With production costs on the rise

the consumer may see a rise in the price of their favourite chocolate in the near future. (The

Guardian 2014) As is the case the margin between artisan chocolate’s and mass produced

chocolate products has narrowed slightly and therefore consumers can see the value of

spending a little bit extra and purchase a more luxury hand crafted product.

Trends Taste’s and Flavours

Trends

Chocolate is popular for individual consumption gift giving and cooking. According to Euro

monitor the chocolate industry enjoyed a “6% rise in revenues in 2014, delivering record

global revenues of US$117bn” that converted into euros would be around €104bn. This

global statistic provides the knowledge of importance of chocolates trends, tastes and

flavours now and in the future, especially when it comes to Barbelo Handmade Irish

Chocolate.

Trends within the chocolate industry at the moment are driving growth and product

innovation in chocolate, Franchise Help in 2014 stated that “product innovation in 2010

brought a 16% increase in new product releases over 2009.” The repositioning of increasing

disposable incomes, public policies, regulations regarding health and our global community

is the reasons behind this growth in innovation.

Economy

Artisan and craft chocolates have shown strong growth over a long period. During the

recession, there had been a shift away from premium items due to pricing, but as Ireland’s

economy has continued to recover, sales of premium items have taken the lead again

according to franchise help. Artisan chocolate can be baked locally, come from a renowned


region and be customised. Customised chocolate requires time, serious financial investment

and complex manufacturing and delivery strategies, but the benefits are clear. Consumer’s

willingness to pay a premium price can improve margins. Seasonal chocolate is also very

important; in the UK seasonal activity has grown by 53% since 2011 according to KPMG. In

Australia and the US, luxury chocolate is becoming more popular than value, whereas Ireland

tends to focus on value. In China according to KPMG more than half the chocolate bought in

China is purchased as a gift rather than in Ireland, where most consumers tend to buy it for

personal use.

Occasions

In relation to the 2015 chocolate industry analysis published by Franchise Help in 2014 stated

that “Seasonal and boxed assorted chocolates have been experiencing the fastest growth, and

sales are expected to expand 13% between 2010 and 2015.” Barbelo already has a box of

assorted chocolates, introducing chocolates for occasions such as holidays, birthdays,

retirement parties and more, chocolate is a versatile gift for many events. Seasonal and box

assorted chocolates are not the only popular packaging option; re-sealable bags are also

becoming popular in terms of value, as they allow consumers to save money, yet still get their

quality brands. According to KPMG in the UK, sales of bite-size confectionery grew 40%

between 2009 and 2013. By doing this chocolatiers are reflecting the importance of

maintaining price, but still offering value to the consumer. Cadburys have been in the

chocolate industry since 1932, and have developed a wide range of bite-size confectionary

due to customer demand. Consumers are willing to pay a premium for these items as they feel

they are still attaining value as well as a variety of flavours.

Cadburys bite size confectionaries include 10 different varieties;

1. Cadbury Dairy Milk Caramello Nibbles

2. Cadbury Dairy Milk Buttons

3. Cadbury Flake Bites

4. Cadbury Mini Drops

5. Cadbury Crispello Vanilla Velvet Bag

6. Cadbury Crispello Double Choc Bag

7. Marvellous Creations Jelly Zingers


8. Marvellous Creations Toffee Numbers

9. Marvellous Creations Caramel Shakes

10. Freddo Faces

The Irish economy is seeing a new consumer trend as consumers change their buying habit

going from purchases of popular single bars to now, assorted box of chocolates, bite-size

chocolate in a re-sealable bag and finally price saving multipacks. Due to the value they offer

and save versus buying the same volume of chocolate in a single bar form “2014-2018,

volume sales of chocolate confectionary are estimated to increase by 7% on an all-Ireland

basis, from 6.55 million kg in 2014 to 7 million kg in 2018” stated by the Mintel group. Irish

consumers love to be in control in terms of value, yet they seek exclusive products as well,

according to Bord Bia. According to KPMG in the future (2018) value of multipack bars will

be extremely important to consumers, but by this stage (2018) chocolate production and the

cost of cocoa will have increased as well according to the guardian “Demand for cocoa is

predicted to rise by 30% by 2020 but without empowering and investing in small-scale

farmers, the industry will struggle to provide sufficient supply” therefore chocolatiers may

have to increase their price on their products including their multipacks. Irish chocolatiers

must re-assure consumers that this price increase is completely necessary and make it evident

the value that they are getting for the price.

Health

Internationally the United Nations estimates that “1.4bn adults are now obese and 350m

people now suffer from diabetes” blaming the food industry. In March 2014, KPMG stated

that an action plan from the European Union’s High Level Group on Nutrition and Physical

Activity hinted the use of taxation and subsidies to encourage consumers to make the right

choices and urged a complete ban on advertising to children. Yet, it is not only the European

Union that desire healthier options, customers want them too. The European data monitor

found that in December 2012 “87% of those surveyed in Western Europe were interested in

products that were good for their hearts although only 29% were unconvinced by such

claims” Although there has been an increase in sales of sugar free, reduced fat and reduced

calorie offerings. Dark chocolate is known to lower both blood pressure and cholesterol, and

has nearly 8 times the number of antioxidants as found in strawberries as stated by KPMG.

For future possibilities (2018) an introduction of other healthier products will potentially be

launched.

Health is a huge trend and is an aspect that may change the chocolate industry. Presently

Barbelo’s chocolates main target market includes women 27+. According to a recent

investigation from RTE in 2014 26.5% of Irish girls and 16% of Irish boys under the age of

20 are classed as overweight or obese. That 26.5% of Irish girls who in the not so distance

future could be potential customers for Barbelo chocolates in order to choose a healthier type

of chocolate. Irish health regulations and policies are constantly changing in order to

encourage this 42.5% to improve their diets and health. With obesity a global epidemic, the


industry needs to show concern with launching healthier products could transform the market

for chocolate and regulation.

Fairtrade chocolate is becoming the norm for modern day consumers as fair-trade cocoa

offers farmers an opportunity to make a real living, as the Fairtrade Standards include a

Minimum Price. A Fairtrade Premium is added to the purchase price and is used to develop

social and economic investments like education, health services, processing equipment and

loans to members. Fairtrade even helps the lack of cocoa situation as Fair-trade farmers

replace old cocoa trees to increase productivity, or invest in better facilities for crop

collection, storage, transport, or processing. More than half of Fairtrade Premium expenditure

is being invested in business or organisational development, or to support improvements in

production and processing according to CRS Fair trade. More people are beginning to realise

this and as a result more chocolate companies are assuring their customers that there

chocolate is ethical and fair-trade. Cadburys is an example of this.

Milk chocolate, white chocolate and dark chocolate all have differing levels of healthy and

unhealthy ingredients and should be eaten in moderation. But one chocolate does appear to be

superior in terms of health, and that is dark chocolate, which is chock-full of disease-fighting

antioxidants known as flavonoids. Mintel stated that dark chocolate has increased by 18.1m

in revenue in Ireland from 2008-2014. It also has a higher percentage of cocoa, which is

where all the healthy compounds come from, the higher the percentage of cocoa, the more

bitter it tastes but the more flavonoids it contains. “Dark chocolate includes varieties

containing 75 to 100 percent cocoa solids” according to Cleveland clinic. Figure 1.1 is the

estimated volume of the chocolate confectionary market, for the republic of Ireland, 2008-

2014.

Figure 1.1:

Milk Chocolate

€m

Dark Chocolate

€m

White Chocolate

€m

2008 324.8 86.6 21.6

2009 333.7 89.0 22.3

2010 339.0 90.4 22.6

2011 357.0 95.2 23.8

2012 377.3 100.6 25.1

2013(est) 384.5 102.9 25.6

2014(Fore) 393.1 104.7 26.2

2015(Proj) 399.2 106.3 26.5

Dark chocolate has even increased revenue on a global scale (see figure 2). According to

Mintel According to Mintel “more than half (51%) of all adult consumers the favourite type

of plain chocolate is milk chocolate, followed by 35% who favour dark chocolate and 8%


who prefer white chocolate. In contrast, Mintel’s 2011 report found that 57% of consumers

favoured milk chocolate and 33% of consumers preferred dark chocolate.” This shows how

customer habits are changing and beginning to lean towards dark chocolate. Below is a bar

chart showing Switzerland’s, the US and the UKs popularity between dark, white, milk and

filled from 2008-2013. Throughout the years the popularity of dark chocolates has increased

in many areas including Switzerland, US and the UK, there has still been a consistent

increase in the consumption of dark chocolate. According to KMPG the China “dark

chocolate market is thriving, with Ferrero Rocher and artisan maker Senz launching exclusive

premium dark brands in the last two years.” From both figure 1.1 and 1.2, it is clear that the

dark chocolate market is increasing on a national as well as a global scale.

Figure 1.2:

Switzerland

2008

2013

UK

2008

2013

US

2008

2013


Tastes

Future chocolatiers could take note of Apple’s success with the iPhone and learn how to “win

with cool” innovative and unique designs. Chocolatiers need to move with customer’s needs,

by designing innovative funky flavours and tastes, of course taking into account the healthy

aspect and pricing. The future taste and flavour of chocolate will change massively due to

health and lack of cocoa.

Health

In order to keep up-to-date, a health strategy could be formed to deal with the growing

popularity of healthy chocolate, hence why tastes and flavours will be changed and adapted.

Substitute unhealthy ingredients with healthy ingredients.

According to KPMG in 2013 the substitution of ingredients, such as “replacing cocoa butter

by natural oil derivatives and the replacement of sugar by the herb stevia” this is a creative

alternative instead of sugar. According to authority nutrition “stevia is perhaps unique among

food ingredients because it's most valued for what it doesn't do. It doesn't add calories. Unlike

other sugar substitutes, stevia is derived from a plant.” Stevia also featured in nearly a third of

global chocolate launches in 2012/2013, according to KPMG. Artisan chocolates with

healthier ingredients could also be seen as a great unique selling point for customers. There

has already been a shift in the market for demand of dark chocolate. Chocolate will be

different in 10 years, healthy fats, high levels of flavanols will be the norm.

Below are other possible substitutions stated by nature cures?

Fibres- reduce bad cholesterol, natural laxative, regulate blood sugar levels.

Protein- is a vital component of virtually every cell. The body needs a lot but

cannot store it.

Micronutrients- such as calcium and vitamins are needed in small doses for a

range of functions.

Fruit Flow-is a tomato concentrate that aids blood flow.

Energy-giverssuch as guarana- extracts and botanicals can act as tonics or

stimulants.

Green tea extract, green coffee extract and chia- improve brain function,

burn fat and are powerful antioxidants.


A chocolate company that has adjusted ingredients in order to be healthier will have to adjust

the marketing approach to promote products that are genuinely healthier. And allow the

consumer acknowledge this ethical decision.

Lack of Cocoa

Milk chocolate will have a lower cocoa content due to rising prices, and manufactures will be

forced to use cocoa more sparingly. According to the guardian “Around 3.5 million tonnes of

cocoa are produced each year” but due to deposable income in Ireland, rising incomes in the

Indian and Chinese markets, as well as economic recovery in the rich north, demand is

anticipated to grow to “4.5 million tonnes by 2020” stated by the Guardian. Less cocoa will

be in chocolate bars or artificial cocoa could become a viable alternative. Either way taste

will be changed.

Future Flavours

In developed markets, flavours may become increasingly unusual as palates grow more

sophisticated and brands seek a marketing boost. Chocolate bars may become common in the

future; according to KPMG in 2013 one artisan chocolate maker says he envisages smaller

shops offering people the chance to create their own bar. As consumer palates grow more

sophisticated, unusual flavours will become the norm, with chocolate-lovers choosing their

own combination. Another example is Barry Callebaut a chocolatier, who has recently

employed a wine-tasting expert to help them produce an original tasting box, believing that

chocolate could be marketed and made like wine.

According to Mintel in 2013, combinations of sweet and savoury will increase, and salt, olive

oil, herbs and flowers will all be used as flavourings. In relation to this Emmanuel Afoakwa,

a professor of food science at the University of Ghana through his book ‘chocolate science

and technology’ shared similar flavours; Peruvian Criollo, for instance, has a fruity, winey,

somewhat bitter flavor profile, whereas a Criollo from Venezuela adds a cocoa, nutty flavour

into the mix of fruity and bitter. For a bright, fruity, floral flavour, you should go with a Sri

Lankan Trinitario, whereas a Forastero from São Tomé and Príncipe will overwhelm you

with a whirlwind of fruity, bitter, spicy, cocoa and grassy flavours.


Competitor Analysis

It was found that there are seven main artisan chocolate companies that would be in direct

competition with Barbelo handmade Irish chocolates. Various factors were taken into account

when analysing the market such as geographical location, size of the company the products

that they produce and how they promote and price their product compared with the Barbelo

handmade Irish chocolate company. With an ever expanding market and new competitors

entering the market every week it is vital that Barbello handmade Irish chocolates keep a

close eye on its competitors in order to keep a competitive edge.

International Competitors

Butlers Chocolates

Butlers Chocolates was established in 1932 in Dublin by Marion Butler. The brand Butlers

chocolates however wasn’t born until 1984 after Seamus Sorenson purchased the company

some years earlier. The company was named after its founder Marion Bailey Butler and is

now a world famous chocolate brand throughout the world.

The scale of this chocolatier is very large and therefore would not be a direct competitor with

Barbelo handmade Irish chocolates. However it does give a very good picture of the Irish

chocolate market and sets a lot of precedents from which a smaller company such as Barbello

handmade Irish Chocolates could learn from.

Product

Butlers chocolates have a vast array of products all derived from their founder Marion Butlers

original recipes over eighty years ago. Butler’s chocolates range from milk chocolate truffles,

soft fudge, creamy toffee and dark chocolate. Butlers also specialise in seasonal products for

Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Easter. One of Butler’s most famous products

is their chocolate liquors range, chocolate truffles flavoured with famous liquors inside such

as Irish cream, Irish whiskey and cognac.


Butlers Chocolates also take dietary issues into account when producing their chocolates.

They have a range of specialised chocolates to suit the health conscious consumer. The

products range from vegetarian, without egg, alcohol free, gluten free and an halal range.

Price

Butler’s chocolates prices start from €2 up to €50 euro for the large gift boxes. In order to

give an accurate analysis a few key products have been chosen that closely resemble the

products that Barbelo handmade Irish Chocolates offer.

A Butler’s chocolate signature assortment with eighteen chocolates (250grams) costs

€14.50

A gift wrapped Ballotin (a small box of chocolates) with 14 chocolates (200grams)

costs €11.95

A 28 chocolate Ballotin (400grams) costs €18.95

The Rose gold matchbox 12 chocolate assortments (170grams) costs €16.00. (see

Figure2.1)

(Figure2.1) (Figure2.2)

It is also important to note that Butlers Chocolates is perceived to be a luxury chocolate

brand. It also has the facilities to keep the price of their product low as they have direct route

to market with their retail outlets and also own their production facilities.

http://www.butlerschocolates.com/


Place

The production facility is based in Dublin supplying a nationwide market and exporting to the

United Kingdom. Butlers chocolates also have a very strong online presence after launching

their online shop in 1998 they now reach a global audience. What makes the company very

unique is the fact that Butler’s chocolates also own their own retail shops. With stores all

over Ireland the United Kingdom and even two stores in New Zealand. This gives Butlers

Chocolates a unique position as they have full control over their product and also a direct

route to market. Butlers Chocolates have a variety of different retail outlets from shops, cafés

and coffee shops. They command very strong store locations including all major high streets

in Ireland and a few in England and even have store’s located in most major Airports in both

Ireland and England. However Butlers Chocolates are not confined to their own retail outlets

their products can also be bought in all major supermarkets throughout the country. Their

products can be found in over 35 countries and in 50 major Airports worldwide.

Another major revenue outlet for Butlers Chocolates is their own web site which hosts their

own online chocolate boutique which affords them the ability to sell chocolates all over the

world at minimal costs and therefor increasing profit margins for the company. Another

benefit to selling their chocolates online is the fact that it never closes. Sale left aside it is also

a great way of showing people the various different product that butlers have on offer.


Promotion

Butler chocolates have taken a new way of promoting their product. Rather than fight for

shelf space in supermarkets and try and stand out from all the other chocolate brands butlers

decided to open their own chocolate cafes and sell their own products. This gave Butlers

Chocolates a unique selling point and gave them a new route to market. Their shops are very

well branded with the Butler’s logo and brand to be seen at entry point and their colour

scheme running throughout their stores. This offered a great point of sale for Butlers and

allowed word of mouth to promote each of their retail shops which indirectly promoted their

products and their brand. Butler’s chocolates tagline “Purveyors of Happiness” can be seen

on all of their products and throughout their stores and allows the consumer to create an

emotional connection with their chocolate products “chocolates equals’ happiness”.

Butler’s loyalty card which they have dubbed the happiness card also ties in very well with

their company tagline and motto. This loyalty card helps create repeat custom and helps

extend brand loyalty. The use of loyalty cards gives customer added value and rewards them

for purchasing Butlers chocolates before a competitor’s product. Another form of revenue for

butlers is their gift cards. They have proven quite popular with their customers who are in

search for last minute gifts for loved ones on special occasions and in turn help generate

quick sales for Butlers.


The Butlers Chocolate experience invites the public into their factory to take a tour of the

facility’s and learn all about the making of chocolate. The most important feature to this is

that consumers have the opportunity to taste all the delicious chocolate treats that are being

crafted. Furthermore the public are invited to join in and make their own chocolates in special

chocolate making classes. Because this is open to all ages families find it a great day out and

in turn become brand evangelists for Butler’s chocolate.

Lily o Brien’s

Lily o Brien’s was set up in the early nineties by Mary Anne o Brien. After training under top

sue chefs from South Africa and central Europe Mary Anne decided on setting up her own

chocolatier company from her kitchen in her home in county Kildare. The company was

named after Mary Anne’s eldest daughter then a toddler Lily. Although it has started from

humble beginnings the company has received worldwide success. Lily o Brien’s used

innovation to steer through one of the worst recessions of modern times. In post-recession the

company is expanding quite rapidly with plans for a new larger production plant housed in

their existing factory in Naas Co. Kildare.

Product

Lily o Brien’s have whole host of products available to the market. Their products range from

corporate gifts, wedding favours, gift boxes, hampers, personalised gifts and their primary

products. Lilly o Brien’s have not only seen a gap in the market they have also targeted the

right segments. Lily o Brien’s cater for all occasions including the seasonal market Easter,

Christmas, and Valentine’s Day. The famous chocolatier uses very unique and different

flavours when making their chocolate anything from chilli, green tea and even pineapple,

they are not afraid to experiment with different tastes and flavours.

Lily o Brien’s unlike their competition don’t position themselves as a premium chocolate

product as it is their belief that chocolate is made for sharing. Therefore they target their


products at the affordable market. However they stress that their product are of luxury quality

for an affordable price.

Price

Because of the vast array of products on offer the prices differ from different ranges. The

product range that would be in direct completion with Barbelo would be the chocolates for

me range. Lily o Brien’s pricing strategy is to make their product affordable to the masses.

Their products are priced just below the premium products on the market and above the mass

produced chocolates from the larger more established companies.

The prices for their “chocolates for me range” are as follows;

Sticky toffee 12 chocolates 170grams €5.00

Crispy honeycomb hearts 12 chocolates 168grams €5.00

Petit indulgence collection 18 chocolates 170grams €7.00

Lily o Brien’s gift collection range prices are a follows;

Chocolate indulgence collection 22 chocolates €12.00

The ultimate chocolate collection 32 chocolates 385grams €15

Personalised photo box 30 chocolates €19.99

Place

Lily o Brien’s can be found in most major super markets and convince store throughout the

country and beyond. They have secured shelf space in over eight hundred Tesco stores in

both Ireland. The sheer volume of stores gives them a strong competitive edge amongst its


competitors. Lily o Brien’s chocolate can also be found on twenty three airlines all over

Europe and in most major airports including “the Loop” in Dublin Airport.

Demand has been increasing so much for Lily o Brien’s chocolates that the company have

had to expand production. This has afforded them the opportunity to export their product.

They are currently exporting to the USA, Far East, Australia and their biggest export the

United Kingdom.

Promotion

Lily o Brien’s offer customer discounts when customers shop online. Lilly o Briens promise

to donate 3.5% of what their customers spend to charity. They also offer a wide range of

different coupons offering the consumer 20% off purchase’s free delivery on orders over and

exceeding €35. These coupons are update every month and change on a regular basis. If a

customer signs up to the Lilly o Brien’s email list they will be entered into monthly draws to

win chocolate products.

(Figure2.3)


Lir chocolates

Lir Chocolates was established in 1987 by Connie Doddy and Senator Mary White. Starting

off in humble beginnings in Connie’s kitchen, the company is now one of the largest artisan

chocolate company’s in Ireland. The name Lir is derived from the Irish folk legend the

children of clan Lir. This name helps the company show its Irish roots and maintain its Irish

brand. Based in Navan Co Meath Lir chocolates have seen major growth not only in Ireland

but also in the lucrative export market.

Product

Lir specialise in creating hand crafted chocolate assortments and have a wide selection of

different types. Their product range falls primarily into two different categories seasonal and

all year round seasonal product feature Easter, Christmas and Valentines products. Year

round the consumer can purchase Lir cupcakes, fudge, truffles and champagne truffles.

The Lir indulgent range is a chocolate assortment ranging from 180grams to 300grams. Lir

have also teamed up with baileys and Guinness to make specialised chocolates. The baileys

collection features the Baileys bar, Baileys fudge, and Baileys mini pieces Baileys twist

wraps and Baileys truffles. The Guinness collection includes the Guinness chocolate bar and

Guinness twist wraps.

Lir’s Christmas collection are made to order and are personalised to the consumer. Lir also do

corporate gifts and party favours for weddings and large functions.


Price

Lir Chocolates claim to have a price range to suit everyone and so are targeting the luxury

high end market and the mass market.

The Lir indulgent range the chocolate assortment cost €7.27 for the 180g box and

€13.82 for 300g box.

Lir cupcakes 175g costs €7.27 per unit. (see figure2.4)

The baileys collection Lir baileys bar cost €2.85 per unit.

Baileys twist wraps cost €7.27 per unit

Baileys fudge costs €6.46 per unit.

These prices’ represent the recommended retail price set by Lir chocolates but vary

depending on where the chocolates are purchased. Prices may be cheaper or more expensive

depending on the retailer.

(Figure 2.4)


Place

Lir Chocolates are ever expanding their company and have experienced strong growth in the

last decade. The company are exporting to the United Kingdom and the USA and have

secured major contracts with all the major super market in the UK. Lir chocolates are

available in Tesco Uk, Asda and their seasonal product range are available in Sainsbury’s and

Morrison’s.

At home in Ireland Lir Chocolates are available in Tesco, Dunne’s Stores, Supervalu, Centra

and Super Quinn. This gives Lir chocolates a nationwide presence throughout the country.

Lir chocolates do not have their own online store but their chocolates are available to buy on

the “my supermarket” website and also on Amazon. In 2003 two entrepreneurs named Alan

Oliver and Hugh o Brien opened a coffee shop in Killarney and named it Lir Cafe they have

since teamed up with Lir chocolates and now sell only Lir chocolates on the premises. This

gives Lir another route to market and allows their customer the chance to try their chocolates

first hand.

Promotion

Lir Chocolates have won numerous awards for their high quality hand crafted chocolate

throughout the years. They have won several great taste awards but their most prestigious

award to date was the gold award from the academy of chocolate in the Uk. Lirs Mission and

tagline “Award winning Chocolates for All Occasions” ties in well with what they are doing

they are achieving the desired awards and are trying to emphasise to the public that chocolate

can be bought and consumed at any time or occasion. Winning these prestigious awards helps

promote the brand and reinforce the quality of the products produced at Lir chocolates.


(Figure2.5 )

Nationwide Competitors

Wilde Irish chocolates

Wilde Irish Chocolates was established in 2007 by Patricia and Con Farrell in Co. Clare

overlooking Lough Derg. The duo have taken a fresh and unique approach to their handmade

chocolates with a range of very unique chocolate flavours and have some very interesting

packaging and branding designs. The name Wilde Irish Chocolate was inspired by the wild

landscape of county Clare and the famous writer and poet Oscar Wilde. Patricia Farrell

always enjoyed everything to do with chocolate from tasting to creating her own homemade

chocolate. This has led her and her husband to open their own hand crafted artisan chocolate

factory in Tuam Graney by the shores of Lough Derg in County Clare.

Product

Wilde Irish Chocolates have over eighty different products that cover a wide variety of

different confectionary. Wilde Irish chocolate products come in many forms and different

categories. They produce artisan fudge, chocolate slices, gift boxes, chocolate drops and their

main product artisan chocolate bars. Each of these products has their own sub product range.

Artisan fudge range includes Irish porter, milk chocolate, peanut and pistachio, mint and

white chocolate and rocky road.

Wilde Irish Chocolates gift box is a 12 piece milk chocolate assortment called moments this

appears to be the only such product on offer. Their chocolate drops product comes in milk

chocolate, dark chocolate and white chocolate. The chocolate drops are little chocolate

buttons aimed at the more youthful market segment.

Their main product the artisan chocolate bar has various different types of chocolate and then

various different flavours for example the customer has a choice of a super dark chocolate

with 80% cocoa an extra super dark bar with 99% cocoa, a 70% dark cocoa, a 53% medium

dark bar and the regular milk and white chocolate bars are also available.


Their flavour range extends their products further the customer is not just getting a regular

chocolate bar the consumer gets a wide variety of different flavour sensations. Their flavours

range from berry nut, hazelnut and raisin, mint, peanut butter, triple chocolate, lavender and

rose, orange and almond, true coffee, cherry joy, chilli kiss, cranberry and strawberry.

Wilde Irish Chocolates also offer dairy free and sugar free chocolate products for the health

conscious or allergy aware consumer. Wilde Irish chocolates were the first chocolate

company in Ireland to launch a fair trade chocolate product on the market.

Price

Wilde Irish Chocolate is priced very competitively on the market. Their main target is to

appeal to the mass market whilst keeping true to their artisan culture.

The chocolate drops are priced at €2.50 per packet.

The moments 12 piece milk chocolate assortment is priced at €10.99.(See Figure 2.6)

Chocolate slices come in different flavours and come in a pack of four and is priced at

€10.99.

A slice of the artisan fudge is priced at €2.99 the customer also has the option to

purchase a pack of five for €14.00.

Wilde Irish Chocolates flagship product the artisan chocolate bars are all priced at

€3.99 200g.

(Figure2.6)


Place

Wilde Irish Chocolates have their own shop in north county Clare in the village of Doolin this

offers the company a direct route to market and affords the company to reach and maintain

maximum profit potential from their product. Wilde Irish chocolates can be found in only a

few small local shops and hotels in Co. Clare Co Galway and Limerick. Wilde Irish chocolate

have opted to produce and sell their own product therefore eliminating middle men and

distributers. They travel to all the major farmers markets throughout the country every week.

Customers are told when and where they can find a Wilde Irish chocolate stall. As well as

farmers markets they can be found in all major food festivals also. Another sales point for the

company is their online store were all their products are available this gives the company a 24

hour a day worldwide target audience.

Promotion

One of Wilde Irish Chocolates best promotions of their product is in their packaging design.

Their packaging is colourful and vibrant and uses weird and curios pictures depicting storeys

from the writer Oscar Wilde. This creates a unique selling point as it arouses the curiosity of

the customer and in turn creates an interest in the product.

Wilde Irish chocolates also use various social media sites to host and run competitions to win

hampers at peak sales times such as Easter. On one occasion the company got involve with

the local library and got children to design their own chocolate product. It is important for

Wilde Irish Chocolates to acknowledge where they come from and so integrating with the

local community is of vital importance to Wilde Irish chocolates.


Their biggest way of promoting their product is both word of mouth and the site on which the

factory is built on. The factory is built in close to the majestic Lough Derg where a lot of

tourists travel to see. Patricia an Con Farrell invite tourists that pass to take a quick tour of the

factory taste the chocolate throughout different parts of production all for no charge. This

creates a great experience for the consumer and in turn makes brand ambassadors of their

customers.

(Figure2.7)

Skellig's Chocolate

Skellig’s Chocolates was established in 1996 by Colm Healai an entrepreneur from Dublin.

Tired of traveling with his old job Colm settled in the picturesque setting of St. Finnans bay

in Co Kerry overlooking the islands of Scellig Michael. Colm having no experience in

chocolate making converted and old warehouse by the beach and turned it into a chocolate

factory. After some early success tragedy struck and his factory was lost to a fire. Colm was

faced with the task of rebuilding his company and vowed to make it bigger and better. Colm

built a new state of the art chocolate factory along with a coffee shop on the existing site.

Skellig's Chocolates began making chocolate for the locals of the area but quickly found a

vast tourism market in County Kerry and so began to tap into this market segment. Skellig's

Chocolates invite tourists to come and take a tour of their facility and to taste the freshly

made produce at no cost. Whilst there tourists can purchase chocolates or sit and enjoy some

refreshments in their coffee shop.

Product

Skellig's chocolates have always tried to make unique products and to test the boundaries of

chocolate making they have managed to create some unique style flavours whilst using

traditional chocolate making techniques. Their product range includes personalised hampers,

truffles, baby gifts, "choocy shoes", boxed chocolates, "choocy callets", "choocy bars", hot

chocolate, brittle, "choocy bites", corporate gifts and wedding favours.

Skelligs Truffles come in two different packages 120gramms or a balotin of 300gramms

flavours include hot toddy, Christmas pudding, egg nog, strawberry and champagne, mixed

truffles, hazelnut praline, vanilla ganache and whiskey crème.


Skelligs "choocy bars" range also come in a two different ranges traditional and flavoured.

The traditional range feature milk, dark, and white chocolate whilst the flavoured range

includes chilli and pink peppercorn, gin and tonic, sea salt, Irish honey bar, rose and pistachio

and lime and black pepper.

Skellig's brittle range has two flavour's orange and mint. The cluster range also has two

flavours marsh mellow and honey comb.

Skellig's boxed chocolate assortment has two different collections the formal collection and

the award winner’s collection. The formal collection has a box of ten truffles or a box of

twenty truffles. The award winner’s collection has a variety of different flavours from brandy

plums flavour, Fig and rum, and amaretto apricots flavour.

Skellig's also offer a wide range of personalised product in their hamper, corporate gifts,

"choocy shoes" and wedding favours range. Clients can request what flavours and what

chocolate they wish to have also they can choose the colour, the packaging and a personalised

message. these products give the consumer a great personalised experience and ensure that

each product is tailor made for each individual client.

Price

Skellig's Chocolates are priced very competitively and suit all budgets a hamper

depending on how many different types of truffles you would like costs from €20 up

to €100.

The popular chocolate shoes are tailor made to every order and cost €17.50 if a client

would like a name or letters each letter costs €1 and there is a delivery charge of €5.

The chocolate assortment's formal collection costs €10 for a box of ten truffles (see

Figure2.8) and €20 for a box of twenty truffles. The Award winning gold chocolate

assortment costs €12.50 per box.

Skellig's Chocolate bars cost €3.00 each for both traditional and flavoured or a box of

five chocolate bars for €7.00.

For the 120g truffles it costs €6.50 per box for the larger 300g balotin it costs €15.00

per box.

The callets cost €8.00 for 500g and €15.00 for 1kg. The hot chocolate packets cost

€6.00 for 175g.

Finally the brittle costs €6.00 for 150g.


(Figure2.8)

Place

Skelligs Chocolates are experiencing tremendous growth at the minute and can be found in

small and large retail stores nationwide. Predominantly found in county's Kerry, Cork,

Dublin, Clare, Galway, Waterford, Wicklow and Mayo. Skellig's have a large contract with

Avoca and are on sale in all of their stores. Skellig's like to keep matters local and so can be

found in nearly every small retailer in around the ring of Kerry which sees a great number of

tourist pass through every year.

As Kerry is the heart of the tourism trade in Ireland Skellig's have also targeted hotels for

recommendations even to sell some of their products. Kerry has seven five star hotels and

hundreds of four and three star hotels around the county. Skellig's depend on these hotels to

send tourists in their direction in turn creating another popular tourist attraction in county

Kerry.

Skellig’s also having a very popular online store which helps them sell their product in places

like the USA and as far away as Australia. Closer to home Skellig's also have a contract with

the online shop "Baskets galore hamper company" which sell their products in both Ireland

and the Uk.

Skellig's main outlet for their products is their manufacturing plant and open plan building

which allows potential customers to walk around and see the chocolates being made.

Customers can then relax and purchase coffee and chocolates in the small in house coffee

shop overlooking the Blasket islands.


Promotion

Skellig's Chocolates rely on hotels in the county to promote the whereabouts of their

manufacturing plant in order to attract tourists. Skellig’s ability to cater for large coach tours

to come and visit their production facility free of charge is a terrific way of attracting

customers. Although tourist get a free tour of the facility most will at least purchase a

chocolate product item before they leave. Also the word of mouth created by the tourist is

another great method of promoting the brand and in making sure it reaches international

recognition.

Lately the company were in national newspapers showing off their one kilo solid chocolate

Easter egg this sparked a lot of interest and is just one of many marketing campaigns Skellig's

has launched in recent years. Although there are no price promotions for the regular customer

Skellig's believe that their product is priced fairly and that theirs a product to suit every

budget.

(Figure2.9)


Local Competitor

Roscommon chocolates

Roscommon chocolates were established in 2008 by Karen Gordon an American lady who

took early retirement to pursue her dream. After spending some time in Paris Karen was

inspired by the master chocolatiers of the city. She then trained for some years with top chefs

around Europe and England where she learnt her trade as a master chocolatier. Karen came to

Ireland to fulfil her dream of opening her own artisan chocolate factory one of the main

reasons she chose Ireland was because of the reputation of Irish dairy. Karen envisaged using

the French techniques and recipes combined with Irish dairy to make an exceptional

chocolate product. With the help of enterprise Ireland the Roscommon chocolate company

started producing their first batch of chocolates in 2010. Karen’s goal is to make sure the

brand stays true to its Roscommon and somewhat French identity whilst maintaining artisan

traditions.

Product

Roscommon chocolate has two one main product ranges and a second that coincides with the

seasons of the year. Each product range has a choice of a large 200gram box or a small

115gram box. The main element of their product is the truffles that the use and various

different flavours.

Their signature range is available all year round and boasts six different flavours raspberry

with a wow, creamy almond caramel, caramelised milk chocolate, almond hazelnut praline,

cardamom and chilli and smoky chocolate peat.


Roscommon chocolates seasonal range varies on the season of the year they use different

ingredients for each season. Their “Samhain” range or their winter range has are made from

richer ingredient to coincide with the coldness of winter their chocolates bring warmth. The

flavours for the “Samhain” range are as follows; Moravian gingerbread, creamy almond

caramel, Jamaican rum resin, holiday fruit and nuts, origin dark chocolate, pistachio marzipan

and classic chocolate.

Roscommon chocolates are not too afraid to innovate or experiment with new flavours and

products they have a range of specialty products such as their Roscommon lamb product and

their Irish cloverleaf product. The Roscommon lamb is a chocolate replica of a lamb and

made up of 38.5% coca. While the Irish cloverleaf product is an assortment of chocolate

shaped like clover with one white chocolate with the colours of the Irish flag on top.

Roscommon chocolates also have a whole range of chocolates for occasions such as

Christmas, Valentine’s Day, mother’s day and Easter. One of their most popular Easter eggs

is an Easter egg filled with a creamy chocolate gnash inside.

Price

Roscommon’s price range is priced at the affordable point in the market. Their signature

range is available all year round and is priced very competitively.

Roscommon’s signature range comes in two sizes the 9 piece box (115grams) costs

€9.00 while the larger 16 piece box (200grams) costs €16.

Roscommon’s Samhain range or (winter range) has the exact same price point.

9 piece box (115grams) costs €9.00

16 piece box (200grams) costs €16

For the chocolate lamb figures it costs only €5.50 for a pack of four and the Irish

clover assortment costs €10.50. (see Figure2.10)

Roscommon Chocolate’s also selling their truffles individually for €3.00 each or any

six for €11.70.

(Figure2.10)


Place

Roscommon chocolates are sold through their online chocolate boutique store primarily.

However you will find them in the majority of small artisan craft shops around the

Roscommon area. Roscommon chocolate go to as many trade fairs as they can in the year

from Donegal to Dublin even Limerick. This gives the chocolatier the opportunity to sell

their produce at a better margin by excluding distribution and other hidden costs. There also a

number of farmer market in the Roscommon area that the chocolatiers regularly sell from.

Promotion

Roscommon Chocolates have featured a lot on national and local radio shows telling the story

of how Karen has left her prestigious job in Hollywood to move to Ireland to open her own

artisan chocolate factory. Karen has featured on the Sunday business show on Today FM and

quite recently had an interview on Rte Radio One. Featuring on these popular radio shows

helps create public awareness for the product and the brand. Thus creating public interest and

curiosity and will attract trial consumers to try Roscommon chocolates. Roscommon also

allow customer to avail of gift vouchers which make for a great gift on special occasions.

(Figure2.11)


Primary Research

Methodology

This primary research was quantitative research commissioned to examine and find out the

level of brand awareness of Barbelo chocolates in the Sligo area, as well as an in depth

understanding of consumer’s needs and wants when it comes to chocolate. The survey was

carried out in order to gather primary information of an estimated sample size of 120, in

which we only got 90. The questionnaires were answered by random sampling, hand-written

by local Super Value customers who were aware of Barbelo chocolates. This is great because

there’s no bias – some people aren’t more likely to be picked than others.

A questionnaire was used due to the fact there very cost effective when compared to face-to-

face interviews. Written questionnaires become even more cost effective as the number of

research questions increases, there were 24 questions on the questionnaires with some being

optional depending on question type and the consumer. Another reason for the use of a

questionnaire is the fact that most people are familiar with them. Nearly everyone has had

some experience completing questionnaires and they generally do not make people

apprehensive, hence why there was a high representativeness of 90 respondents. Because of

the high representativeness brought about by the survey method, it is often easier to find

statically significant results other data gathering methods. Multiple variables can also be

effectively analysed using surveys.

The methodology describes the specific procedures or techniques used to identify, select, and

analyse information applied to understanding the level of brand awareness of Barbelo

chocolates in Sligo in addition to consumer’s opinions on hand made chocolate, flavours and

tastes of chocolate, price expectancy of chocolate and health in relation to chocolate. This


methodology section answers two main questions: How was the data collected, generated and

analysed.

The Survey

The Survey was organised in order to gather fundamental and quantitative research. The

survey was administered outside Super Value, in Grange in county Sligo. The survey took

place on the 4th

of April 2015 and the 25th

of March, between the hours of 10:00am to

3:00am, in order to obtain a random sample. The only thing that wasn’t random was the dates

and times that were selected as they would be considered Super Values busiest time and day.

Super Value was selected as the location suited the criteria as well as the store providing

Barbelo chocolate, so the majority of respondents were either aware or familiar of Barbelo

chocolate.

In order for the survey to be sent out, the questions were previously taught up in group

meetings manually, once checked they were typed out on Microsoft word. There was a

random selection of 90 participants from the two days of surveying, who completed the

survey anonymously. The participants were made aware of the fact that they could opt out at

any time of the survey, and prior to them filling out the survey they were made aware that the

survey would take an estimated time of five minutes, depending on their speed of writing and

processing of questions. Among these participants there were woman estimated at 25-60

years old, while there was men estimated at 40-60 years old. The survey was segmented into

this age group in order to identify the key groups or segments within the general chocolate

market that share specific characteristics and consumer habits, like purchasing artisan

chocolate. This would then increase a wider range and variety of answers to conclude the

survey overall. In order to receive a broader response incentives were used, sweets and

lollies for respondents or their children.

Respondents were asked questions regarding brand awareness of Barbelo chocolates in Sligo.

Specifically they were asked about various types of questions in relation to chocolates

including; Irish handmade chocolate (influences of purchase/how often purchased), where


they bought their chocolate, their preference of chocolate, flavours that appealed to them,

their opinion on personalised chocolate, thoughts on healthier chocolate, familiarity with

other with other Irish chocolate companies as well as brands, Barbelo packaging, Barbelo

name and opinions on pricing for artisan chocolate. The respondents were asked these

questions in different formats including dichotomous, multiple-choice, semantic differential

scale and open-ended questions. Additional space was also included for respondents to make

comments on issues not covered by specific questions in the survey.

The 90 questionnaires were then all gathered and analysed. To do this we needed to manually

transfer the responses from the questionnaires into a spreadsheet, by using excel. We put each

question number as a column heading, and use one row for each person’s answers. We then

went through each respondent’s questionnaire in turn. Once the group had entered the data

from all the questionnaires into the spreadsheet, another member of the group checked some

of the data for accuracy. The spreadsheet then did the rest of the work.

The limitations for the primary research would be firstly not receiving as many answered

surveys back as expected, due to the lack of willingness by Super Value consumers. Even

with incentives a handful of people were obstinate on not answering the questionnaire. Due to

the fact, we were doing the surveys outside a supermarket. The second limitation was the fact

that there is no way of telling how much thought a respondent has put into the survey, as

many of the surveyors were rushing through the survey, as well as people may have read

differently into each question and therefore reply based on their own interpretation of the

question. Respondents may not be willing to answer the questions. They may not want to

answer certain questions. They might not want to reveal the information or they might think

that they will not benefit from responding or penalised by giving their real opinion. Due to

this, respondents were told why the information was being collected and how the results will

be beneficial. They were then asked to reply honestly and told that if their response is

negative that it is just as useful as a more positive opinion. The final limitation was analysing

the data manually, anytime errors occurred it was difficult to see where the error had taken

place and all data had to be analysed again to find this error.


Mission Vision

Mission

Barbello Handmade Irish Chocolate’s mission is to manufacture authentic hand crafted Irish

artisan chocolate at the highest quality, to give the consumer a great tasting luxury,

experience.

Vision

Barbello Handmade Irish Chocolates will endeavour to become a leading Irish artisan

chocolate producer available to the entire Nation. Barbello Handmade Irish Chocolate will

achieve this by becoming a well-known iconic Irish brand that will win the hearts and minds

of the people of Ireland and throughout the world.


Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning

Segmentation

There are different customer segment when talking about chocolate as many customers will

be looking for taste and other will be looking for the best price as they are becoming price

sensitive more and more. Other segment will be looking for local Irish products and will pay

more to support these products. Flavour and trends can also be a big factor for a one customer

segment.

Demographic segmentation will be the strategy used by Barbelo as women are the most

chocolate buyers proven by surveys conducted in the past. Barbelo chocolate will be

segmenting all Irish women who will have awareness, desire and interest for Irish handmade

chocolate. They will take the effort of time and money to buy this chocolate once they


reached the loyalty level required. This group of potential customers will need to have middle

to high income this is due to the high price that Barbelo will be offering.

Behaviour segmentation will be taken into account as women who are used to buy Irish

handmade chocolate will be easier to sell Barbelo to then those who are less interested in

handmade chocolates. Also brand loyalty can be an issue for Barbelo as customers who are

loyal to other Irish handmade chocolate are hard and sometimes impossible to reach for as

those customers will not be easily attracted to Barbelo chocolate even if it was cheaper.

Targeting

The targeting market for Barbelo will be Irish women who will prefer handmade chocolate to

any other chocolates as these women will appreciate the price difference between the two

chocolates and will realize the value of handmade chocolate and that its benefits takes over

its cost. They will notice the taste difference between different chocolates and will not be

afraid to taste new flavours and trends. Women with a loyalty to local brands could be

another target for Barbelo, women who will feel that a very well designed Irish handmade

chocolate is the perfect gift to any occasions. These women will have a real passion for Irish

handmade chocolate and they could be seen as a great opportunity of becoming loyal to

Barbelo brand.

Positioning

The marketers want to position Barbelo chocolate in customers mind as a high quality and

luxury chocolate. Also Barbelo wants to be the perfect gift for all occasions this image can be

captured by promotion planning and making sure that Barbelo is available and on shelves

when needed. Barbelo should take into account personalization which is making a product for

each individual customer and how they prefer it, as for making mass production for retailers.

Customization will indicate that Barbelo handmade chocolate is the homemade chocolate that

is made especially for you and your occasion. Also customization will help to build a

relationship with the customer and will attract more customers. This is what is called

relationship marketing.

Packaging is very helpful as it will give the first impression to wither the product is a high or

a low quality. Barbelo’s packaging is done very well but it could be improved to reach the

image wanted. Also more packaging verity needed to give customers more choices for

example selling the chocolate with a gift e.g. teddy bear.


There should be no change in price and also if needed the price could be brought up as a high

price will indicate that this chocolate is made with perfection and is worth sending the money

on. The high price will help bringing up the value of Barbelo as mentioned before it will be

chocolate for special occasions. Barbelo should not consider any price discount as this might

affect the image of the chocolate and will disturb the value of Barbelo.

Marketing Mix

Secondary

Barbelo is based in Manorhamilton, Barbelo Chocolates produce a range of luxury hand-

made Irish chocolates. It was established by Teresa Mc Morrow in 2013. The company is run

from Teresa’s home where she has one room just for chocolate. All this work has been

certified by the HSE. The company handle the packaging of the chocolate they sell. Teresa

has a chocolatier mentor who has said that people are currently not looking for Gluten free or

sugar free sweets. The company would like to hire one or two staff to assist with fulfilling

orders but that these people would need to know how to make chocolate not just pack it.

Teresa Mc morrow runs the company by herself and has her family and friends help with the

packaging of the products made by the company. The company believe that wedding fares

are a poor source of income especially with all the competition. Barbelo when translated to

English translates to female angel or Angel of goodness. This coincides with Barbelos target

market and enforces the quality of their product.

Product

Barbelo sell individual chocolate bars in three different types in which one is a white

chocolate bar that is available with chocolate drops on them or marshmallows as a topping.

The dark chocolate bar has ginger or cranberries as the toppings.


A selection pack of three bars one bar is a white chocolate with marshmallow topping, the

second is a milk chocolate bar with hazelnut through it and the third bar is a dark chocolate

bar with wall nuts on top of it. Customers can ring up and ask for a full box of particular

sweets instead of the current box that is available.

Barbelo have experienced problems with packaging an example of this was when Barbelo did

Easter eggs. The eggs were wrapped in cellophane the company noticed that if the chocolate

egg broke they could not sell the item and therefore amounted to loss of sales for Barbelo.

Price

The cost of a box of 12 box assorted sweets is €14.98 in the artisan craft shops

€12.00 in the multi- national supermarkets.

The difference in price is because the multi-national can purchase the products in bulk.

A pack of three bars of chocolate costs €6.00.

Promotion with Celtic Flame Candles consisted of a candle and a box of three

Barbelo chocolate bars for the cost of €18.00

Promotion

Barbelo did a promotion with Celtic Flame candles to develop the company brand. In this

promotion the customer could purchase a box of chocolates from Barbelo along with a candle

from Celtic Flame candles. When this was done the joint product sold out within a week. The

company feel that showcasing their products at the RDS road show would be too expensive at

present and think that staying small is safer.

Barbelo developed Santa lollies for the Christmas period and their individual bars sold out at

this time. The chocolate developed by the company is gluten free

The company wanted to develop a sugar free chocolate bar but were advised by their mentor

not to go ahead with it at present.


Barbelo Chocolate is marketed through product tastings at present and a website is currently

in development. Unlike their competitors Barbelo do not have a Facebook page. In

Supervalu they believe in pushing the person first then pushing the product.

Place

Barbelo is distributed in Kate’s Kitchen Sligo, Kate’s Kitchen is located on Castle Street in

Sligo and is a cafe/deli/shop. It provides the best of everything including top quality

chocolates of various brands. Kate’s Kitchen is a local business and relies on local

customers to purchase goods from them. Kate’s always tell their customers that the product

they sell are all made in Ireland, and as much as possible locally sourced near Sligo.

Barbelo linked with Celtic flame candles; this promotion was sold through the Celtic flame

website and at farmers markets in the area, the product which consisted of a box of Barbelo

chocolates and a candle in the shape of a heart. The joint venture sold out in the first week of

the promotion. This promotion Helped to build the brand awareness of both Barbelo and

Celtic Flame Candles.

Barbelo is sold through Supervalu in the north west of Ireland. Not all Supervalu stores in the

North West sell Barbelo, Barbelo have a contract with Supervalu to sell their goods and

Supervalu do sell their goods but only in certain stores, these are the stores Supervalu know

can sell a certain quality of the sweets.

Barbelo provide private orders to customers if they can accommodate the order. The

customer would have to order a certain number of sweets or chocolate to cover the cost to the

company and would have to pay for delivery.

The company currently have a website under development. The website should then be used

to promote and sell Barbelo’s chocolates.


Primary

Product

Fair trade chocolate should be used by the company as it is the norm in the chocolate industry

today. This means the farmer who grows the coco beans used by the company gets a fair

wage for the produce he/she sells to the company.

White chocolate bars are usually aimed at children when they are young, whereas milk

chocolate is eaten by the majority of people and dark chocolate is usually eaten by adults who

do not want to eat too much sugar this chocolate has a sour taste so as to prevent you eating

too much of it. Honeycomb and Mint are popular flavours that the company could develop

Promotion

The company could promote their brand of chocolates for use as corporate gifts by doing this

Barbelo would gain word of mouth and the brand would become better known.

The competitors all have a loyalty card and can track their customer’s usage by way of direct

marketing. The introduction of a loyalty card by Barbelo would increase customer numbers

and also develop a mailing list for the company along with increasing word of mouth.

Place

Barbelo could promote their products for use as corporate gifts, by doing this Barbelo would

gain word of mouth and the brand would become better known.

Hotels are a market that Barbelo should look into providing sweets to. The sweets could be

used in reception or placed on the pillows in the customer’s room.


Barbelo should use more promotions like they did with the Celtic Flame Candle company, an

example would be to have a Barbelo liquor chocolate linked with a drinks company and have

a hamper on sale.

Barbelo should design a box of 12 sweets but all the sweets would be honeycomb or a sweet

the company knows is a good seller. The company could exhibit their products at events like

the Só Sligo Food and Cultural Festival or at the farmers market held at IT Sligo every

Saturday. Barbelo could try and get their products into large retailers such as Tesco &

Dunnes Stores.

Findings

Respondent’s Profile

The survey was targeted at Irish consumer who purchases Irish Artisan chocolates and was

targeted at a geographical area around the Co. Sligo Region. The researcher on the day

received ninety respondents in total and got a broad demographic. The survey was carried out

in Super Value in Grange a small village within the Sligo region.

The first question asked in the survey was wither the participants eat chocolate or not. The

two percentages were not by any means similar as 97% said yes and only 3% said no. this

comes with no surprise as it has been conducted in a 2011 survey (The amount of chocolate

consumed per person in this yea, by country in kilograms) that Ireland was the second highest

chocolate consumed per person, where each citizen of Ireland consumed about 9.6 kilograms

of chocolate in that year.

The other 3% might not eat chocolate for many different reasons for example taste or health

concerns. This percentage is very low at the moment and might not be a threat for the

chocolate market in the coming few years but should not be neglected as customers are

becoming more and more health conscious and this percentage might increase and healthier

choices of chocolate should be provided to satisfy their needs.(see figure 3.1)


(Figure 3.1)

Based on the results of the questionnaire (see Apendix1.1) the following observations were

made. The base number of the sample was 90 people. People were asked to specify their

gender? Based on that nighty people the majority of respondents were female with 68% of

the overall sample. While the male percentage that took part was still higher than expected at

32% .( see Figure3.1 ) The results compared to secondary market research chocolate

confectionary Ireland 2013 proves accurate with the majority of artisan chocolate customers

being female while males are less likely to purchase artisan handmade chocolates.(see

figure3.2)

(Figure 3.2)

97%

3%

Q1) Do You Eat Chocolate?

Yes

No

Base number 90 people


The age category of people that took part in the survey differed in range with people aged

between 50 and 54 accounting for 24% of the people surveyed. Followed by respondents

aged between 25 and 35 with 21% of the people surveyed matching this age bracket. 31% of

respondents were aged between 18 and 24 and 35and 40 with 15% and 16% respectively. At

the lower end of the spectrum candidates aged between 41 and 44 and candidates aged 60

years and over both accounting for 4% of the respondents who took part. People aged

68%

32%

Q20) What Gender Are you?

Female

Males



between 45 and 49 accounted for 6% of respondents who took part. Slightly higher on the

spectrum were people aged between 55 and 59 who amounted for 7% of respondents. The

lowest percentage of an age group who took part was people aged between 60and 64 who

accounted to only 3% of the people survey in super value on Saturday the 4th

of April 2015.

The base respondent in the age category question was ninety people. (See figure3.3)

(Figure 3.3)

During the survey participants were asked to give a description of their occupation. This

question would help give the researchers a clearer image of the sample and of the

demographic of people who took part in the survey. The base number for respondent to the

occupation question in the survey was 90 people. 49% of respondents hold a junior

managerial position, a clerical, supervisory, administrative or a professional occupation. The

only other occupation that scored as high was the high managerial, professional or

15%

21%

16%

4% 6%

24%

7%

3% 4%

18-24 25-34 35-40 41-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65+Base number 90 people

Q21) What age catogory do you fall under?


administrative role accounting for 19% of the participants. The third highest result came with

9% of respondent being self-employed. Respondents that worked in as a manual worker or

skilled manual worker as well as people who were retired accounted for 4% respectively of

people that took the survey. Home makers students and the unemployed each had a

percentage of 3%. The remaining 1% of participants who took the survey was from the

farming sector. (See Figure3.4) The analysis would confirm secondary research in that

artisan chocolate are a luxury product and therefore would appeal more to the higher earning

bracket such as managerial or junior administrative.

(Figure 3.4)

To help find out if the sample was targeted to the correct target sample people were asked

where they come from. This question received a base number of ninety people. As it was

expected the majority of respondent were from Sligo or living in the county. This result

derived from the geographical location of where the survey was conducted. Over half of the

participants of the survey were from the Sligo region, 60% of respondents who answered

were from Sligo. 16% of respondents were from Co Donegal again this result would be

19%

49%

4% 4% 1% 9%

3% 3% 3% 4%


Q22) What is your occupation?


because of geographic reasons. Grange is located in close proximity to Donegal, Leitrim and

Sligo. 4% of participants who took part in the survey were from Co Leitrim. From the

analysis 3% were from co. Mayo and a further 3% were from Co. Roscommon. 7% of

respondents were from the following counties, Co. Fermanagh, Co. Galway, Co Derry, Co.

Longford, Co. Monaghan, Co. Dublin and Co. Cork. The reaming 2% of respondents who

answered were from outside of Ireland they were from Libya and England. It is important to

factor in that people answering the survey may be from a different count or country but may

be living in the region this was one limitation of the survey. This said the sample was targeted

on Sligo and surrounding region and received a satisfactory amount of respondents. (See

figure3.5) The profile based on the analysis is predominately a female target market ageing in

their early fifty’s living in Sligo and working in a middle management job.

(Figure 3.5)

Customer behaviour

51% of the participants said that they buy Irish handmade chocolate. To evaluate this

behavior the participants were given choices of factors that would influence them when

purchasing Irish handmade chocolate. The highest percentage said that taste would influence

their purchase with a figure of 18%, while 9% said that taste, availability and the fact that it is

a local product, also an equal percentage of 9 said that taste and the fact that it is a local

1% 1% 1% 1%

60%

16%

1% 3% 4% 3% 1% 1% 1% 1%


Q23) Where are you from?


product would influence them. Only 3% said that price would influence their purchase this is

a surprise as customers are becoming more and more price sensitive. (see figure 3.7)

The other 43% of participants said that they don’t buy Irish handmade chocolate; they were

also given choices to help the members of the research to know why such a large number of

customers don’t buy this product. 15% said price would influence them not to purchasing

Irish handmade chocolate this is due to the high price that Irish handmade chocolate is

offering. 9% said preference while an equal percentage said taste that will influence them to

not buy it, the other percentages were divided into small numbers between availability with

only 4%, taste & availability with 3%, price & taste with 6% and price & availability with

only 6 %.( see figure 3.8)

6% of the public asked did not have a respond to this question. (See figure 3.6)

(Figure 3.6)

51% 43%

6%

Q3) Do you Buy Irish handmade Chocolate?

Yes

No

No answer



(Figure 3.7)

(Figure 3.8)

3%

9%

18%

3%

7% 9%

Taste &

Availibility

Taste &

Price

Taste Price Taste,

availibility

and local

Taste &

local


Q3,A) What influences your purchase? (if yes)

6%

3%

15%

9%

6% 4%

9%

Price &

availability

Taste &

Availibility

Price Preference Price &

taste

Availibility Taste


Q3,B What influences your purchase? (if no)


In the survey participants were asked how often they buy Irish handmade chocolate. This

question was asked to give a clear idea on consumer behaviour when buying Irish handmade

chocolate. The results were not a surprise to researchers to find that up to 53% said that they

buy Irish handmade chocolate in special occasions only this result goes hand in hand with the

position that Barbelo has drown to itself, as its seeing itself as a luxury local handmade

chocolate which is made for special occasions and not a mass produced product.

The other percentages were divided to 9% saying they would but it weekly, while 6% said

they would buy it monthly and 3% would buy it daily while the other 29% had no response

for this question.(see figure 3.9)

(Figure 3.9)

3% 9%

6% 0%

53%

29%

Daily Weekly Monthly Fortnightly Special

Occasions

No answer


Q4) How often do you buy Irish handmade chocolate?


From the survey it is evident that customers purchase chocolate more as a gift or a special

occasion 46% of respondents agreed that they are more likely to purchase a chocolate a gift

for a love one rather than themselves. On a single event people said that buying a chocolate

for a birthday was more likely when they would purchase or consume chocolate. 3% of

respondent agreed that this was the case. 3% of respondents said Easter was the most popular

time for them individually to purchase chocolate. 38% of respondent said that they purchase

chocolate for all of the options Birthdays, gifts, Easter and Christmas. Out of a total of 90

participants a staggering 9% of people did not answer this question thus adding to the

limitation of the analysis. (See Figure 3.10)

(Figure3.10)

3%

46%

1% 3% 9%

38%

Birthday A Gift Christmas Easter No answer All choices


Q16) For which occasion would you purchase Irish

handmade chocolate?


As mentioned before the Irish customer is slowly starting to turn away from the large mass

produced brands they also seem to trust the local products more and is willing to support

them. This fact is proved in this question when asked would the fact that Irish handmade

chocolate were made locally influence the customers purchase as 54% said yes. While 46%

said no, this might be due to the fact that Ireland is not very popular for chocolate productions

not like for example Switzerland and so customers might not trust the quality of the Irish

handmade chocolate. (See figure 3.11)

(Figure 3.11)

54%

46%

Q5) Would the fact that Irish handmade chocolates were

made locally influence your purchase?

yes

No



Consumers were asked in the survey to choose which brands they purchased. Butlers

Chocolates and Lilly o Brien’s were the most popular selections with 62% of consumer

purchasing a Lilly o Brien’s chocolate and 60% of consumers purchasing a butlers product.

The other selections received quite low results with 21% of people purchasing a Lir chocolate

product. Respondents did not say that the purchased a Barbello chocolate product this

contrasted to results of a question where 97% of respondents had heard of Barbello’s

chocolate yet none of the respondents had ever purchased the product. (See figures 3.12 and

3.24)

(Figure 3.12)

60%

3%

62%

0% 1% 0% 21%

6%

40%

97%

38%

100% 99% 100% 79%

94%


Q13) From which of the following brands do you buy?

yes No


Taste’s and Flavours

Today, within the chocolate industry flavours have become more increasingly unusual as

palates become more sophisticated and flavours become more exhilarating. According to

Mintel in 2013, combinations of sweet and savoury will increase, and salt, olive oil, herbs

and flowers will all be used as flavourings, this was previously mentioned. To find out

potential flavours from the sample, the respondents were asked to choose their favourite

flavour out of a list eight; mint, strawberry, caramel, orange, honeycomb and lemon. The

respondents were also given the option of ‘other’ and additional space to write in their

preferred flavours. The most popular flavour from the responses was honeycomb, as 22.8%

chose this option. Following mint in second most popular was caramel at 17.9%. There was

15.8% of respondent that chose mint, which put it in third position. Followed by mint in

fourth position was toffee with 13.5%. Orange was the next most popular flavour as 9.2% of

respondents chose this fruity flavour. There were 5.5% of respondents that chose coffee.

There wasn’t much difference between coffee and strawberry as there were 4.9% of

respondents who chose strawberry that is only 0.6% in difference between the two. And

finally the least popular was lemon with only 3% or respondents selecting it. There were

7.4% of the respondents that selected ‘other’ and who wrote down their flavour preference in

the additional space provided, there was 4.2% respondents wrote; chilli, truffle, hazelnut,

almond, black cherry, raisons and cranberry’s, while the remaining 3.2% selected Turkish

and salt. The survey responses as well as Mintel’s (2013) future flavours make it evident that

fruit will be popular with 18.9% of respondents choosing a fruit flavoured chocolate. Mintel

also mentioned salted chocolate, as well as 1.6% of respondents in the survey. Honeycomb

was the most popular followed closely behind by caramel and mint.(see figure 3.13)

(Figure 3.13)

41%

12%

43%

22%

54%

7%

32%

13% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1%


Q8) Which of the followin flavours appeal to you?


Throughout the years the popularity of dark chocolates has increased, as you can see from

figure 1.1 as well as the conclusion of the survey responses. When questioned to select their

favoured chocolate out of milk, dark and white, there were 25% of respondents that chose

dark. Yet milk chocolate took the number one space of being favoured most, as it was

selected by 66% of the sample. And finally the least popular flavour out of the three was

white chocolate, with 9%. (see figure 3.14)

(Figure3.14)

66%

25%

9%

Q7) Do you have preference on a particular kind of

chocolate?

Milk Chocolate

Dark Chocolate

White Chocolate



From the Survey it is evident that local shops and supermarkets were the most popular place

for respondents to purchase their chocolate as 32.6% from the sample bought their chocolate

in a local shop and supermarket. Even though tech-savvy online shopping is becoming the

norm in different industries, the chocolate industry doesn’t seem to appealing to the

respondents as only 2% alleged to buy their chocolate online. And finally, there were 14% of

respondents that said they bought their chocolate from a speciality shop. (See figure 3.15)

(Figure 3.15)

18%

26%

21%

3%

32%

Local shop Supermarket Speciality shop Online Supermarket &

Local shop


Q6) Where do you buy your chocolate?


Personalised handmade chocolate is becoming more popular according to KPMG (2011)

which was briefly discussed in Trends. In order to back this up, respondents were asked

would they like to see personalised hand-made chocolate, which 70.6% of respondents said

that they would like to see hand-made chocolates while 29.4% said that they wouldn’t. This

proves that personalised hand-made chocolate is becoming more popular in the chocolate

industry. (See figure 3.16)

(Figure 3.16)

71%

29%

Q9) Would you like to see personalised hand made

chocolates?

Yes

No



The European data monitor found that in December 2012 “87% of those surveyed in Western

Europe were interested in products that were good for their hearts although only 29% were

unconvinced by such claims” Although there has been an increase in sales of sugar free,

reduced fat and reduced calorie offerings. The survey presented questions to the respondents

in order to find out whether chocolate consumers are interested in healthier options,

specifically gluten free and sugar free. Yet, out of the entire sample there were only 33.8%

that wanted gluten free options; the remaining 66.2% said that they didn’t want the option of

gluten free. (See figure 3.17).

(Figure 3.17)

Yet, when it came to sugar free chocolate 54.5% of respondents wanted sugar free chocolate,

and the remaining 45.5% opted for no sugar free options when it comes to chocolate. (See

figure 3.18

(Figure 3.18)

34%

66%

Q10) Would you be interested in Gluten Free

chocolate?

Yes

No


54% 46%

Q11) Would you be interested in sugar free chocolate?

Yes

No



Consumers were asked to rate the name Barbelo Irish artisan Chocolates as a brand name.

(see figure3.19) 24% of people surveyed marked it as a five on the scale which indicted that

respondents were not conclusive wither or not they liked the name Barbello as a brand name.

Out of the consumers surveyed 28% of people rated the brand above the number 5 rating

indicating it as a suitable name. The highest value thatcould be selected was a 10 rating only

6% of respondents really liked the name Barbello as a brand name.

At the lower end of the scale the majority of respondents selected there rateing.49% of people

rated the brand below the number 5 rating which would indicate to researchers the name

unsuitable. The lowest rating was a one rating with 18% of respondent deciding the name

Barbelo unsuitable for the chocolate brand.

The research shows that from a base number of 90 people surveyed 49% of people deemed

the name unsuitable while 24% of people rated the name in the middle of the scale. 18% of

people deemed the name suitable for as chocolate brand.

(Figure3.19)

18%

12% 9%

10%

24%

6% 4%

3%

9% 6%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10


Q15) Rate the name Barbelo Irish artisan chocolates as a

brand name from 1-10 with 1 being the leats suitable and

10 being most suitable.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10


Consumers on the day of the survey were shown an example of a Barbelo’s chocolate box

and asked in the survey what they thought of the packaging and given three possible answers

where the respondent was to choose one. The results of the survey show that the majority of

respondents fell that Barbelo’s packaging could be improved. The majority of respondent

represented in the pie chart (See figure3.20) as 37% of the overall respondents. 32% of

people asked the same question said that the packaging could be improved. The least number

of respondents represented in the pie chart as 16% thought that the packaging was effective

and there need no improvements. Out of a total of 90 respondent 15% had no comment and

could not decide wither they liked the packaging or should it be improved. The results

therefore are conclusive out of a total of 90 respondents more than half of the people that

took the survey a total of 69% all agreed that Barbelo’s packaging was in need of some

improvement.

(Figure3.20)

16%

32% 37%

15%

Q14) what do You think of Barbelo Irish artisan chocolates packaging?

Is effective and well designed

It could be improved

It is not effective and needs a

new design

No comment



Spend

The public were asked wither or not they would be willing to spend more on artisan

chocolate. This question was set to determine if people valued the quality of artisan chocolate

and if they were willing to part more of their money in exchange for a high end luxury

product. Out of a base number of ninety respondents 5% did not give an answer. 57% of the

population asked agreed that they would be willing to spend more on a luxury Artisan

chocolate product. 38% answered no and would not be willing to spend more money on

artisan chocolate products. (See Figure3.21)

(Figure3.21)

57%

38%

5%

Q18) Would you be willing to spend more on artisan

chocolate?

yes

no

no answer



If respondents answered yes to the previous question of would they are willing to spend more

they were asked to answer the following question. How much would you be willing to spend?

The question was directed to establish what people value was towards artisan chocolate and

determine how much they would be willing to spend on such a product. The question had a

base number of 65 people. The majority of the results indicated that consumers were willing

to spend more than five euro on an artisan chocolate product. 69% of people that took the

survey favoured this option. 23% of consumers were not willing to spend more than five euro

on artisan chocolates. 8% of respondents said that they were willing to spend more than ten

euro on an artisan chocolate product. (See Figure3.22)

(Figure 3.22 )

23%

69%

8%

Q19) If yes what would you be willing to spend?

Less than 5 euro

More than 5 euro

More than 10 euro



When the public were asked of their favorite brand of chocolate Cadbury’s brand had the

highest figure of 44%, while an equal percentage of 10 were given to Nestle and Lindit,

Snickers only 3%, where Fin Carre (Lidl) and Cot D’Or have only an equal 1% of the

responds. In the case of Irish handmade chocolate there were only two brands mentioned,

Lily O’Brien with only 1% and Butlers with 6%. (See figure 3.24)

The average weekly spends of consumers who took part in this survey less than five euro.

Consumers were asked how much they would spend on chocolate on a weekly basis 74% of

them answered that they would spend less than five euro on a given week. 25% of respondent

said that they would be willing to spend more than ten euro on chocolate on a weekly basis.

The remaining 1% of people survey said that they would spend between five and ten euro

throughout there week. (See figure3.23)

(Figure 3.23)

74%

1%

25%

Q17) what is your average weekly spend on chocolate?

Less than five euro

Between five and ten

euro

Ten euro or more



(Figure 3.24

44%

10%

6%

10%

3%

4%

1%

1%

1%

21%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Carburys

Lindt

Butlers

Nestle

Snickers

Galaxy

Lily O'Brians

Cot d'or

Fin Carre(Lidl)

none


B

r

a

n

d

s

Q2) What is your favourite brand?


In order to become aware of the respondents awareness of artisan chocolates brands, they

were questioned on their familiarity with chocolates brands such as; butlers, Skelligs, lily

O’Brian’s, Barbelo, Wilde Irish chocolate, Roscommon chocolates, Lir and other. All 100%

of respondents were familiar with Wilde Irish chocolate. When it came to Roscommon

chocolates 96% of respondents were aware of their chocolate and 4% were not. Barbelo was

in next with 94% of respondents were familiar with the local Leitrim brand. Butler’s

chocolate was the next brand the respondents were familiar with as 91% said they were

familiar with the brand. There were 82% of respondents that were familiar with Skelligs.

Next was Lir chocolate with only 49% of participants aware of the brand. And finally the

least known brand was Lily O’Brian’s with only 13% saying they were familiar with the

brand.(see figure 3.25)

(Figure3.25)

91% 82%

13%

97% 100% 96% 49%

88%

9% 18%

87%

3% 0% 4% 51%

12%


Q12) Are you familiar with any of these chocolates?

Yes No


Recommendations

Recommendations based on research carried out the researchers have compiled a list of

recommendations for Barbelo handmade Irish Chocolates. It is the belief of the researcher

that if these recommendations are adhered to than Barbelo has a bright future ahead and has a

strong possibility to grow and even expands to the international export market. The following

recommendations are divided over a short term medium and long term strategy.

For the short term the following list of recommendations are focused on improving Barbelo’s

marketing and help to improve people’s perceptions of the product.

Short Term

Improving packaging so that it is more attractive and more durably.

Creating and frequently using websites and social media as a form of marketing the

product.

The creation of an E Commerce site to attract new sales revenue and a wider target

market.

Introducing a loyalty card scheme or promotion.

In the short term and after compiling the results of the analysis Barbelo must look into

making their packaging more appealing to the consumer. A suggestion of changing the colour

scheme is one avenue that should be looked into. More importantly a more rigid and practical

packaging must be acquired. The packaging at the minute is very flimsy and not very sturdy

the chocolates move about inside the actual box during transit. This is affecting the overall

image of both the product and the brand. If Barbelo invest a little more time and money into

acquiring a new box for their chocolate it will in the researcher’s opinion add product value

to their chocolate in the eyes of their consumer.

At the moment little or no effort is being made at marketing the product or the Barbelo brand

on the internet. Barbelo are missing a vital piece of the jigsaw according to the research

carried out. In the age of digital media this is the best way of reaching your customer through

social media site such as Facebook and Twitter. Not only is it enough for Barbelo to create a

Facebook or twitter page but most importantly they must maintain it on a daily basis as this

offers a way for your customer to communicate with you. By listening to their customer


Barbelo will be in a far better position to brand and develop their product according to their

customers’ needs and want.

At the minute Barbelo don’t have a website this is a problem that only narrows their ability to

grow their company. Barbelo should look at outsourcing someone to develop their website

for them. Information is power without a website Barbelo have nowhere for their consumers

to find out information about them and also for suppliers to find out about the company. If

more suppliers know about the company this could result in the potential for cheaper raw

materials. But more importantly the website could be used to brand and market their product

to a wider community. With the addition of a website Barbelo can also construct an online

chocolate boutique such as Lily Alan’s or butlers chocolate’s and sell their chocolate all over

the world at minimum cost to both the consumer and the producer.

The introduction of a loyalty card such as the “Butler’s happiness Loyalty card” this in turn

would give Barbelo a chance to reward customer loyalty and also help them market their

brand through use of direct marketing. A loyalty card will also help promote word of mouth

amongst Barbelo’s customers and in turn will increase sales in the long-term.

The tourist trade in Ireland is experiencing growth in the last four years this offers another

stream of income for Barbelo to tap into. Tourists look at spending time touring around small

artisan production facilities. The majority of Barbelo’s competitors all have a free tour which

tourists can avail of and afterwards can sit in an onsite coffee shop and purchase and sample

the handmade chocolates at firsthand. This offers a very interesting business model and for a

medium term should be made a strategy and used as a five year goal for the Barbello

company. Understanding the fact that Barbelo would have to acquire a larger plant and move

from small to a medium sized enterprise.


Limitations

Whilst conducting this report the group were faced with many challenges and tasks. Certain

factors could not be avoided when compiling the research for Barbelo handmade Irish

chocolates. The report never factored into account new competitors entering into the market.

Time was a major limitation of this report as there was a lot more competitors than were not

analysed down to the simple issue of time constraints. Therefore competitors were selected

on the basis of who had the biggest potential of being a competitive threat to Barbelo. When

carrying out the survey the sample of one hundred people were needed and the sample fell

short by ten people as there were ninety respondents in total. The information given in the

surveys may not be truthful depending on the answers that people gave. People often try and

answer what they think the researcher want to hear. So a small percentage of error must be

factored for.


Conclusion

An industry analysis has been carried out by the researchers and many facts have been found,

the Irish confectionary market is expected to grow by the year 2018. The biggest purchasers

of chocolate in Ireland are females. Milk chocolate is the most popular while white chocolate

is the least popular. These days’ local products are becoming more and more desired by Irish

customer, this is due to the fact that Irish customers are looking at where their product comes

from and who makes it. With the increase of the cost of cocoa the mass produced chocolates

will be sold at a higher price, this can be an opportunity for Artisan chocolates as customers

will then be willing to pay a little bit extra on the handmade chocolate rather than the mass

produced chocolates.

There are seven artisan chocolate companies that would be a big threat to Barbelo handmade

Irish chocolate, but the two strongest ones would be Butlers chocolate and Lily O’Brien

chocolate. Both brands are popular in Ireland and have loyal customers. For example butlers

decided to open their own chocolate cafes and sell their own products they also created

loyalty card (happiness card) which helps create repeat custom and helps extend brand

loyalty. whereas Lily O’ Brien are very well managing their promotions by giving customers

discounts and offers for example They offer a wide range of coupons offering 20% off

purchase’s free delivery on orders over and exceeding €35.

When identifying the consumers trends taste and flavours in the Irish market fair-trade

chocolate seems to become the norm for today’s customers as their standards include a

minimum price. Dark chocolate appears to be superior in terms of health and for this fact

dark chocolate has increased revenue by 18.1m in the past few years.

The researchers wanted to find out what consumers perceptions are towards the brand name

and packaging therefor a question was asked to the public of whether they like Barbelo’s

packaging or not. The majority of respondents did not comment this is due to the fact that

they haven’t seen it before. While a small percentage of 16 answered it was effective and

well designed and 12% said the packaging is not effective and needs a new design. Also the

survey included a question asking customer to rate Barbelo Irish Artisan chocolate as a brand

name, majority said that they don’t like the name and rate it very low.

As said before women are the biggest buyers of chocolate therefor the segmentation for

Berbelo handmade chocolate will be women who will have awareness, desire and interest for

Irish handmade chocolate. Barbelo will target women who will be interested to support the


local handmade products as these women are willing to appreciate the price difference

between a handmade product and a normal product. Barbelo will need to position itself as a

luxury handmade chocolate made for special occasions this image will help to identify why

this chocolate is at a high price.

The mission statement that Barbelo should be to adjusting is that to make customers enjoy the

highest possible quality, to give the consumer a great tasting chocolate product. The vision

statement of Barbelo is to be the leader in the Irish Artisan chocolate market and also to have

a well-known brand throughout the country.

When determining the marketing mix for Barbelo a poor marketing management has been

found. Barbelo has different selection pack of bars; customers can rig up and ask for their

chocolate flavour preference instead of purchasing the current box available. Barbelo is

taking into account any digital marketing tools as it has no Facebook page, the only

promotion Barbelo has ever made was offering the customers a candle from Celtic Flame

candles when buying the chocolate. Barbelo distributes in Kate’s Kitchen Sligo and in

Supervalu and has a website under development.

.


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Appendices

Apendix1.1 Survey

We are Bachelor of business and marketing students from IT Sligo conducting research on

Irish Artisan chocolates.

Q1.) Do you eat chocolate? (Please tick) Yes� or No�

Q2.) What is your favourite chocolate brand?

Q3.) Do You Buy Irish handmade chocolate? (Please tick) Yes� or No�

QA.) If Yes what influences your purchase? (Tick as many as applies.)

�Price �Availability

�Taste�The fact that it’s a local product

QB.) If No why not? (Tick as many as applies)

�Price �Availability

�Taste�Preference for favourite chocolate

If answer is no please proceed to question five

Q4.) How often would you buy Irish handmade chocolate? (Please tick all that apply) .

�Daily

�Weekly

�Monthly

☐Fortnightly

�Special Occasions

Q5.) Would the fact that Irish handmade chocolates were made locally influence your

purchase? (Please tick) Yes� or No�


Q6.) Where do you buy chocolate? (Please tick all that apply.)

�Local shop

�Supermarket

�Speciality shop/delicatessen

�Online

Q7.) Do you have a preference for a particular kind of chocolate? (Please choose one .)

�Milk chocolate �Dark chocolate �White chocolate

Q8.) Would any of the following flavours appeal to you? (Please tick as many that apply.)

☐Mint ☐Honeycomb

☐Strawberry ☐Lemon

☐Caramel ☐Toffee

☐Orange ☐Coffee

☐Other:

Q9.) Would you like to see personalised Irish handmade chocolate? ( Please tick)

Yes� or No�.

Q10.) Would you be interested in a Gluten Free chocolate product? ( Please tick)

Yes� or No�.

Q11.) Would you be interested in a sugar free chocolate product? ( Please tick) Yes� or No�

Q12.) Are you familiar with any of these Irish chocolate companies? ( Please tick Yes or No.)

Yes No

Butler’ Chocolates � �

Skelligs Chocolate � �

Lily O'Brien's Chocolate � �

Barbelo Chocolates � �

Wilde Irish Chocolates � �

Roscommon Chocolates � �

Lir Chocolates � �

Other � �


Q13.) From the list which of the following brands do you buy? ( Please tick as many that

apply).

Butler’ Chocolates �

Skelligs Chocolate �

Lily O'Brien's Chocolate �

Barbelo Chocolates �

Wilde Irish Chocolates �

Roscommon Chocolates �

Lir Chocolates �

Other �

None �

Q14.) What do you think about Barbelo Irish Artisan Chocolates packaging? ( Please tick the

appropriate statement.)

☐Is effective and well designed ☐It could be improved

☐It is not effective and needs a new design

Q15.) Rate the name Barbelo Irish Artisan Chocolates as a brand name from 110,

with 1 being the least suitable and 10 being the most suitable. (Please tick the desired

number.)

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

O O O O O O O O O O

Q16.) For which occasion would you purchase Irish handmade chocolate? (please tick as

many that apply)

☐ A Gift ☐Birthday

☐Christmas ☐Easter

☐Valentine's day ☐Other:

Q17.) What is your average weekly spending on chocolate? ( Please tick one .)

☐Less than five euro ☐Between five and ten euro ☐Ten euro or more


Q18.) Would you be willing to spend more on an artisan chocolate product? ( Please tick)

Yes☐ or No☐

Q19.) If yes would you be willing to spend:

☐Less than 5 euro ☐More than 5 euro ☐More than 10 euro

Q20.) What Gender are you please tick Male☐ or Female☐

Q21.) What age category do you fall under? ( Please circle one :)

18>24 25>34 35>40 41>44 45>49 50>54 55>59 60>64 65+

Q22.) What is your occupation? ( Please tick the appropriate box.)

☐High managerial administrative or professional

☐Supervisor, clerical, junior managerial, administrative or professional

☐Skilled manual worker

☐Manual worker

☐Farmer

☐Self employed

☐Homemaker

☐Unemployed

☐Student

☐Retired

Q23.) Where are you from?

__________________________________________________________________

Q24.) If you would like to add any additional information about artisan chocolate please

comment below.