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Published on February 2, 2008

Managing director Taras Sudhikam said yesterday that prices of main ingredients such as butterfat had shot up by 30 per cent while cocoa kept fluctuating.

Yet the company can maintain its own prices, as it produces at high volume for domestic and export markets, he said. It ships to 15 countries, with Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Australia as the main markets.

It also focuses on creating products that keep impressing customers yet save costs.

In the export market currency fluctuations make for difficulties in planning, while in the domestic market the economic doldrums clearly weigh on consumers' purchasing decisions.

The company has had to resort to marketing promotion as a tool.

Yet shoppers will not be deflated during festivals such as the upcoming Valentine's Day, he said.

The new collection launched yesterday uses the "Treasured Memory" concept, which features classic Western stationery in its packages such as diaries and postcards on which customers can write their love messages and in which they can put their photos. The highlight is a Bt350 box containing chocolates with champagne inside.

The company expects to see more walk-ins during the lovers' festival, some of whom will become regular customers.

Valentine's Day is second to New Year's Day in generating sales but is the best occasion to expand customer base, he said.

Nitida Asawanipont,

 The Nation