How can Chocolate Makers profit from Napolitains?

Napolitan chocolates are individually wrapped square pieces of chocolate (usually weighing around 5g), often produced in various flavours (such as milk, dark, white, etc.) and sold individually or in boxes of assorted flavours.The Napolitains and small chocolate bars market is extremely competitive and filled with industrial mass produced products. To stand out from the rest, manufacturers need to find the right market segment that fits their products and customers’ desires best. 

But how can they do that? 

To be successful amongst all the industrial mass produced napolitains, there are two interesting market segments to consider: personalized gifts/boxes and high quality bean to bear napolitains for the hospitality sector. 

Personalized gifts/chocolate boxes

When we look at personalized gifts and chocolate boxes, we have some great examples amongst our clients.The first one is Chocolaterie DuPLESSIS that recreates paintings, French sites and monuments through boxes including from 8 to 36 napolitains chocolate. On top of that, they offer their customers the option to choose how to personalize their boxes and create custom gifts for every kind of occasion. Furthermore, Stelvi takes a similar approach and produces napolitains and small bars that are fully customizable by their customers. Their uniqueness lies in the fact that each concept is different and tailored to the customers’ needs and desires. Then we have Laderach wrapping each of their premium napolitains with landmarks and various scenes of Switzerland. These are then put together in a box and marketed as premium gifts. Last but not least, VINTE VINTE with their bean to bar assortment in a box.

What is so interesting about producing napolitains in chocolate boxes? The price!

When wrapped in special packaging or customized, such boxes which contain 90grams of chocolate can often be sold for around 8 - 14 euros per box. These types of products are sold for an average of 100 euros/kg of chocolate. 

To wrap their products, Stelvi, Chocolaterie DuPlessis and Laderach make use of a Lareka NP60 machine. The NP60 wraps 60 napolitains per minute and allows them to quickly switch labels and machine’s size set (in max 15 minutes!) to keep their production going. Reduced machine downtime, premium packaging and new chocolate formats are just a few of what contributed to their production’s optimization. 

High quality bean to bar napolitains for the hospitality sector

Another interesting market segment is bean to bear and high quality napolitains as small gifts for premium customers. This market focuses on single-serve, individually wrapped napolitains chocolates provided as complimentary treats. For example, a welcome chocolate on the pillow of a luxe hotel. They are used as a key touchpoint to enhance the experience of the guests in hotels, cafes and restaurants usually positioned next to a cup of coffee or served together with the bill. 

Furthermore, consumers have recently started to look more and more for premium and ethically-sourced cacao products. Due to that, many hospitality brands are partnering with bean to bar chocolatiers or artisanal single-origin brands to showcase their eco-friendly and luxury standards.

However, it is worth mentioning that what we have noticed with bean to bear chocolatiers is that napolitains are more of an add-on product rather than their main focus. In such cases, we recommend choosing a Lareka BTB25 with a napolitain size set as it allows more flexibility in producing both napolitains and larger bars. 

Do you have a unique concept for napolitains and small bars? Then the NP60 is the right choice for you!

🤫 Our tip: whatever concept you choose, make sure it stands out from standard mass produced napolitains. 

Interested in learning more about the Lareka machines? 

Get in touch with us!