Barry Callebaut follows India trend
office in India in September 2007, the company said today.
Barry Callebaut said the opening of a sales office in Mumbai would fit in with its strategy to expand into emerging markets.
It plans to increase the share of sales generated outside Western Europe and North America from 11 per cent to 20 per cent by 2010.
"The sheer size of the Indian population and the growing economic power of the region mean that the growth potential of the region's chocolate market is substantial," said Maurizio Decio, the company's Asia Pacific vice president.
This follows Cadbury's announcement this week to enter the developing Indian confectionery market with its gum range.
Barry Callebaut plans to supply national food manufacturers as well as hotels and bakery chains from the new sales office.
It will also open a new Chocolate Academy in the region in December 2007 in order to be the first teaching and training centre for artisans and professional confectioners in India.
The Indian chocolate market is expected to grow by 10 per cent per year between 2006 and 2011, according to Euromonitor.
In its bid to expand into new markets and become the number one chocolate manufacturer in the US, Barry Callebaut recently announced supply deals with firms such as Cadbury and Hershey worldwide.
"The new sales office in Mumbai will allow us to better serve our rapidly expanding customer base in India ," Decio said.
"We are following out large multinational customers into this promising emerging market."
At the end of June 2007, the company said sales revenue in Asia and the rest of the world rose 19.6 per cent to CHF239.7m (€145m) for the nine months to 31 May.
Overall, it said like-for-like sales had increased 6.1 per cent in this period.
In the fiscal year ended 31 August 2006, Barry Callebaut had sales of about CHF (€2.4bn), and it currently operates in 23 countries worldwide.