UK chocolate maker Hotel Chocolat Group Plc is feeling the pressure from inflation and lower interest from consumers in fancy products.
(Bloomberg) — UK chocolate maker Hotel Chocolat Group Plc is feeling the pressure from inflation and lower interest from consumers in fancy products.
As shoppers become increasingly cautious on spending, the impact on premium products becomes more noticeable. Hotel Chocolat said in a Friday statement it now expects to turn a loss in the current financial year, causing its shares to slump as much as 19%.
The company said that it was undergoing “a transition year to re-shape the business in readiness for its next stage of growth” and that cost efficiencies would materialize later than planned. It also expects weaker revenues and profits in the following year due to “ongoing weakness in consumer sentiment and continuing inflationary pressures.”
In January, Chief Executive Officer Angus Thirlwell announced plans to potentially expand its number of stores and the company reported comparable store sales in the UK and Ireland up 10% from a year earlier for the nine-week period to Dec. 25.
–With assistance from Lisa Pham.
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