John Lewis in the St James Centre will have a new cocoa bar café courtesy of Caribbean chocolate from Hotel Chocolat in Spring 2014.
The Hotel Chocolat cocoa bar café will make small-batch chocolates on the premises using cocoa beans from Hotel Chocolat’s Saint Lucia estate. The café will feature a cocoa-inspired menu and will have a conch on site to process cocoa from bean to chocolate. The John Lewis Edinburgh branch will be the first time Hotel Chocolat has opened a catering concession with a major high street retailer.
The move is part of John Lewis’s ongoing strategy to create inspiring environments for customers in its physical shops. Last year it opened four in-shop Kuoni concessions, in 2011 it announced the creation of Beauty Retreats in four of its branches, and in June this year it opened Little Waitrose in its Watford department store.
Andrew Murphy, retail director at John Lewis, said:- ‘Food is a big part of our customers’ lives; they already come to us for the latest kitchen gadgets, cookware from some of our best chefs, and for edible treats to give as presents. These collaborations will take our offer one step further, inspiring customers with exceptional food and drink freshly prepared in our shops.
‘We want to create more compelling reasons than ever for customers to visit our shops, and partnering with two such inspiring brands will be a real draw. The concessions will sit alongside our existing Place to Eat restaurants, complementing them but offering something a little different from the everyday.’
Angus Thirlwell, co-founder and CEO at Hotel Chocolat, said: ‘We already have a strong relationship with John Lewis as our chocolate is one of the department store’s best-selling gift food lines. This new venture is exciting for both our brands and we look forward to working together to bring a new and compelling shopping experience to our customers.
‘People have adored cocoa for more than 3,000 years, but it was only in the last 500 that we started getting sweet on it. Long before anyone added a grain of sugar, cocoa beans were loved for their deep, savoury richness. They were roasted, shelled and eaten like nuts, and crushed for use as an infusion, garnish and subtle spice. As cocoa growers ourselves we are able to really draw on this exciting ingredient, and
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