KUALA LUMPUR: Mondelēz International is upbeat on growing its chocolate business in Southeast Asia (SEA), particularly in Malaysia.
Mondelēz International’s chocolate division associate director for SEA, Vikram Karwal said the growth would be driven by the company’s continuous product innovation in retaining strong product association with consumers.
He said Mondelez International’s chocolate division was also expected to record a double-digit growth this year.
Malaysia currently contributes 35 per cent for the chocolate category to the company’s Southeast Asian business fuelled by brands such as Cadbury Dairy Milk and Toblerone.
He said it was important for Mondelez International to continue innovating its product portfolio in many areas including ingredients, packaging and value-add in line with consumers’ preferences.
“We are focused on building repertoire with variety of chocolate flavours and format. This innovation helps us in driving new occasion of consumption where consumers can see the relevance of our products portfolio,” he told NST Business in an interview recently.
Vikram said Mondelez International’s chocolate products have not only gained its traction as popular treats to be enjoyed during moment of indulgence but also as snacks and occasional gifts during festivities like Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, Christmas and Valentine’s Day.
“Our objective in Malaysia is to drive more meaningful association with our consumers by bringing in innovation and looking at various occasions to further drive our brands.
“We see a lot of potential for our business growth here in Malaysia. It is a relatively young market where the median age of Malaysian consumers is 28 years old and more than 25 per cent of the population are below 15 years. The way they purchase and eat chocolates have changed,” he added.
Vikram noted that snacks are becoming more of an everyday staple as people are often pressed for time and enjoy eating small bites in between meals, chocolates being just one of the many products they might reach for.
“We try to gain more share of different occasions and drive regular consumption by bringing in new flavours and formats. This will continue to help us grow and strengthen our category leadership in the region,” he said.
Vikram said another key driver of growth in Malaysia is the factory in Shah Alam. The factory alone produces over 150 multiple products of its chocolate division in SEA largely consisting of moulded, tablet and ‘share bag’ types of chocolates.
“The current production pace is enough for Malaysia and SEA distributorship. The plant processes 25-tonne of chocolate daily with eight stock keeping units produced per day, varying from different sizes and ingredients,” he said.
Vikram pointed out the company would introduce more unique variants beginning in the first-quarter of next year, while adding value to its latest products that suits consumers’ demand.
Mondelēz International has recently introduced new products including Cadbury Dairy Milk ‘Lickables’ and Cadbury Dairy Milk ‘Kopi-C’ alongside refreshed packagings for both the moulded and tablet chocolates.
The new Cadbury Dairy Milk ‘Kopi-C’ is an exclusive flavour released to commemorate the upcoming Malaysian Independence Day.
Meanwhile, Vikram said it was important for the company to provide clear nutritional information on their products to ensure consumers are well-informed of the ingredients before consuming.
“We make sure to help consumers in making informed decisions by providing nutritional information and stating the calories for each of our products.
“We also know consumers are increasingly concerned about well-being. We provide them a choice to portion-control. Our share bag formats comprising smaller bite-size chocolates will help consumers in controlling their intake, while indulging our products,” he said.
He said the company also organises Joy Schools, a holistic programme at schools across SEA to educate children on the importance of nutritional information and physical activity.
Vikram said it was crucial for the company to grow its chocolate division in Malaysia particularly via an e-commerce platform to deliver personalised products and close engagement with consumers.
“We are partnering with relevant retailers in Malaysia to make our products stronger online to drive the growth of our business.
“We are cognisant of this trend and will continue to drive innovation in a more compelling manner while continuing to help consumers make informed choices across our products portfolio,” he said.