Hotel Chocolat.

From Express to Elegant

Hotel Chocolat. began life as Choc Express, and way before the high street shops that we all love, Angus and Peter were providing chocolates to hotels – the ones you would find on pillars. Choc Express was to my knowledge the first gift provider of its kind selling chocolates as a mailed gift instead of flowers. The Chocolate tasting club meant that loyal customers could not only have chocolates delivered but they could have their favourites.

I always considered Angus to be the Mr. Wonka of Choc Express and when it was announced that Choc Express would be changing its name and would need a rebrand I got it immediately. No longer was it just fast delivery of chocolates – It was a destination product that captured the imagination. Hotel Chocolat. the place where your mind wanders as you bite into the rich hand made chocolatier chocolates.

And way before Angus had shared his plans I offered my services at the Hotel when opened – I never did work their but he shared his plans to open just such a hotel in St. Lucia where I visited in the 1990s. I knew instantly that Hotel Chocolat. would capture the imagination of the chocolate buying public.

It was and remains an emotional and physical and aspirational destination and it was the first example of a client that really understood the importance of these three pillars in creating meaningful lasting connection.

To this day I will be forever grateful for the opportunity of creating the brand identity of a product that I ot only believe in but for the opportunity it gave me to work with some incredibly visionary people including colleagues Kirsty, and Bryan.