LONDON CHOCOLATE FORUM REVIEW 2026


HOTEL CHOCOLAT LOOKS TO BRING THE CHOCOLATE HOUSE BACK TO THE HIGH STREET


James Holah, Saint Lucia General Manager and Global Lead – Cacao Experiences and Products at Hotel Chocolat, outlined at the London Chocolate Forum 2026 how experiential retail, hospitality and cacao provenance are developing the brand’s approach to the future of chocolate shopping.


H


otel Chocolat is rethinking the role of the physical chocolate shop, moving beyond seasonal gifting towards a more immersive, hospitality-led


experience. Speaking at the London Chocolate Forum 2026, James Holah explained how the company is combining cafés, interactive retail concepts and its cocoa-growing heritage to build stronger relationships with consumers. “Is this space inviting? Is it asking me to


stay? Is it making me feel welcome? While I’m in here, can I learn something new?” James asked, outlining the considerations that shape customers’ expectations of a retail environment. The Velvetiser Café is central to Hotel Chocolat’s


strategy. By offering expertly crafted drinking chocolate, iced cacao drinks and cacao-inspired bakes, the company hopes to turn a brief shopping trip into an opportunity to relax and spend time with the brand. It is also an attempt to make chocolate a year-round proposition rather than a category dominated by Christmas and Easter. “Today’s modern coffee shop, you go back


100 years for chocolate shops, which then became tea rooms, which now, you see here today at every corner, the coffee shop, but back in the day, chocolate was the way to go,” James told delegates. “We’re hoping those days are coming back with a vengeance.” The company is also introducing more


opportunities for customers to participate in the experience. Selected stores feature pick- and-mix drinking chocolate stations, allowing shoppers to curate their own selections to enjoy at home. Meanwhile, concept stores incorporate a social table designed for gatherings, tasting masterclasses and interactive events. “The social table is not just a piece


of furniture for merchandising. It’s our declaration of hospitality,” James said. The intention is to create a space where chocolatiers can share the story of cacao, encourage discovery and turn shoppers into active participants rather than simply buyers. That storytelling is rooted in Hotel Chocolat’s connection to Saint Lucia. More than 20 years


16 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • OCTOBER 2026


sustainable agroforestry. James described how the company is bringing


that connection into its retail environments, highlighting the cacao cam in its Manchester store. The screen provides a visual link to the Saint Lucia farm, showing its landscape, trees and agricultural team. Employees are trained to explain the story behind the products, supported by the School of Chocolate, a nine-month programme covering everything from cacao’s origins and international history to flavour pairings. During the question-and-answer session,


THE FUTURE OF RETAIL, FOR US, DOESN’T BELONG TO THE


FASTEST OR MOST AUTOMATED CHANNELS, BUT IT BELONGS TO SPACES WHERE WE CAN


CONNECT IN A WARMER, MORE HUMAN WAY


ago, the company acquired the Rabot Estate to gain a deeper understanding of cocoa farming, experiences that helped shape its agricultural approach and its ‘more cacao, less sugar’ philosophy. Its activities on the island also include Project Chocolat, where visitors can experience organic farm-to-bar chocolate-making and


James said cacao grown on the company’s Saint Lucia farm, alongside beans sourced through its growers’ programme, accounts for approximately 1% of the cacao it uses, with 95% coming from Ghana. Questions from delegates also raised the importance of communicating origin clearly to consumers, with James acknowledging that the company was working to develop how it explains and celebrates the distinction between its different sources. The approach is informing Hotel Chocolat’s


international expansion. Having entered the US market in Chicago in 2024, the company is planning to expand into Utah, California and Virginia. James said the new concept stores were being well received by American consumers, particularly the opportunity to spend time in- store, ask questions and enjoy a drink, although the company is still exploring differences between US and UK consumer preferences. The wider challenge is to give customers


compelling reasons to engage with chocolate throughout the year, particularly against a backdrop of higher cocoa prices and seasonal demand. For James, the answer lies in creating experiences that go beyond the transaction. “The future of retail, for us, doesn’t belong


to the fastest or most automated channels, but it belongs to spaces where we can connect in a warmer, more human way,” he said. He concluded with a vision of stores as


gateways to the company’s wider story: “They aren’t just entering a store. They’re joining our story.”


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