São Paulo – Brazilian company Fábrica Di Chocolate, based in Joinville, 178 km from Florianópolis, has a fondue franchise in a shopping mall in Kuwait. The kiosk has nine square meters and is located at the Al Kout Mall, Fahaheel district. Owned by business man Mohamad Khazal, it was open near six years ago.
According to Fábrica Di Chocolate’s Marketing manager, Fabio Pantoni, the partnership has been working really well, since there aren’t, in Kuwait, any products similar to the one produced by the company. “The option of healthy products with fruits is a worldwide success, which was confirmed with this unit in Kuwait,” said the manager in an interview with ANBA via email.
The brand offers in its units products such as fresh fruits covered in chocolate in pints of many sizes and combinations, fruit sticks covered in chocolate, fruit salad with coating, smoothies, shakes and juices, desserts, plus alfajores, chocolate bars, chocolate truffles and lollipops.
To be able to open the franchise in Kuwait, entrepreneur Khazal first made contact with Fábrica Di Chocolate via website. After a long negotiation via phone and meetings via Skype, the negotiation was concluded and the new unit was opened. The firm from Santa Catarina state sent its staff team from Brazil to help set up the franchise and offer training.
“It was an amazing opportunity for us to be also operating in this great country, we are deeply honored with the interest,” said Pantoni.
Fábrica Di Chocolate is contacted frequently by foreign investors interested in opening franchises and it’s insterest in entering other Arab markets besides Kuwait. “We are available to receive new contacts of Arab business owners that are interested,” says Pantoni.
According to the ranking by Fundação Dom Cabral of Brazilian Multinational Companies 2016, the brand is the fourth Brazilian firm with the largest international presence. Currenty, the company has 79 units in seven countries. In addition to Brazil and Kuwait, it’s in operation in the Dominican Republic, Australia, Japan, Spain and Venezuela.
The brand’s internationalization started in 2010. In the majority of the cases of units that opened abroad, those interested filled a form and made contact via the company’s website. The firm has a specialized department focusing on international expansion that offer support from the beginning of negotiations until the unit’s management. Soon, Fábrica Di Chocolate will open franchises in Portugal and in the United States, according to Pantoni.
The majority of the company’s units are kiosks, located in malls, fast food courts, airports, hypermarkets and large retail chains. There are only three traditional stores. In Brazil, the company operates in the states of Alagoas, Amazonas, Amapá, Bahia, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Piauí, Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, Rondônia, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, São Paulo and Tocantins, plus the Federal District.
Fábrica Di Chocolate was founded by a mechanic engineer and a business manager. Their idea was to offer the market an innovative system to sell chocolate with fruits, the fondue express. The clients choose their favorite fruits in a conter and chocolate is added on them, fast-food style. The equipment melt the chocolate before the client.
In its website, Fábrica Di Chocolate says that the chocolate is free of hydrogenated and trans fat, gluten-free, and offered in many options, from dark to milk and white. There’s also a diet, zero sugar version.
Contact info
Fábrica Di Chocolate
Phone: +55 (47) 3028-7786
Website: www.fabricadichocolate.com.br
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
