Tony’s Chocolonely sales surge despite ‘rocketing’ cocoa costs

The United States emerged as the brand’s largest market for the first time

Tony’s Chocolonely has reported a significant increase in sales and profits last year, defying a challenging economic climate marked by soaring cocoa costs, price hikes, and even product recalls.

The Dutch confectionery brand successfully navigated these headwinds, demonstrating robust growth across its key markets.

For the year ending September, the chocolatier announced revenues of €240 million (£207 million), marking a fifth higher than the previous year.

This impressive revenue surge was attributed to both increased prices and a 4 per cent rise in sales volume year-on-year, indicating that more consumers purchased their chocolate bars despite the higher cost.

The United States emerged as Tony’s Chocolonely’s largest market for the first time, with revenues there soaring by 50 per cent and surpassing its home country, the Netherlands.

In the UK and Ireland, the brand also saw strong performance, with revenues reaching €51.2 million (£44.2 million), a 14 per cent increase compared to the prior year.

This came despite “rocketing cocoa prices” and “the worst mid-crop harvest in a decade”, according to the business, which implemented price increases for customers during the year.

“In a year when industry volumes were hammered as second and third-wave price increases were passed through to consumers, we certainly felt the effects but were pleased that, overall, we successfully grew our volume by 4 per cent,” chief executive Douglas Lamont said.

Tony’s Chocolonely is focused on ethically sourcing cocoa, which means paying farmers a higher price and advocating for reducing exploitation in supply chains, including modern slavery and child labour.

The brand is known for its chunky chocolate bars in innovative flavours, such as milk chocolate rice crisp caramel and the “everything” bar, currently retailing at £4 for a 180 gram bar.

It is also focused on ethically sourcing cocoa, which means paying farmers a higher price and advocating for reducing exploitation in supply chains, including modern slavery and child labour.

The brand, which was founded in 2005, has grown rapidly to be sold around the world and across UK supermarkets and retailers.

It was forced to recall two of its products in April last year after warning that some batches of its chocolate may contain small stones and metal fragments.

The company also cautioned over pressure from higher tariffs affecting its shipments from the EU to the US.

Nevertheless, Tony’s revealed that it made an operating profit of €200,000 (£173,000), from a loss the prior year, and

Mr Lamont said: “It’s been a challenging year, but we’ve shown how resilient and effective our model is with strong growth in revenue, volume, profitability and, most importantly, impact on the ground for cocoa-farming families.

“With higher pricing now passed through on shelf to consumers, and as the market pricing for cocoa begins to fall, the industry must collectively consider how we can work together to invest in becoming more resilient to future climate shocks and yield crises.”