Heidi to open chocolateries

Heidi Romania, one of the major players on the chocolate market, will soon open a chocolaterie in Bucharest, the first of a chain it plans to develop both inside and outside the city. “This store concept is quite developed in Switzerland, where Heidi has around 42 such locations. In Romania, too, we will mainly bring import products, various chocolate specialties, different from the products we sell in stores”, said Massimo Palumbo, marketing manager with Heidi Romania.

He did not disclose the number of chocolateries to be opened this year.

Heidi Romania is the domestic branch of Swiss producer Heidi Chocolate Suisse and sells the Heidi brand, which is positioned on the premium segment.

Heidi is the first producer of chocolate on the domestic market to announce the launch of a network of stores of its own. Excelent producer owns two chocolate shops in Bucharest, but these are assets left in the companya??s portfolio for several years and aimed at the economic segment.

In the case of Heidi, spaces will be rented. “The chocolaterie concept in Romania will be similar to that in Switzerland, but not quite identical. The surface of the first shop will be larger than we had planned,” Palumbo also said. He added that Heidi would continue to distribute its products through the usual retail outlets.

Heidia??s move comes after the company saw its sales surge 40%, to 6.5 million euros on the Romanian market in 2004, and for this year targets 20% growth.

The company has a chocolate plant in Bucharest, with 250 employees, and a milk plant in Timisoara, but the milk is used only for the companya??s own production.

Food companies opening sales points of their own is a marketing policy meant to raise brand visibility. Chocolateries, highly popular in certain European countries, are almost inexistent in Romania.

georgiana.stavarache@zf.ro