About Hotel Chocolat
Hotel Chocolat is a British luxury chocolate company founded in 1993 by entrepreneurs Angus Thirlwell and Peter Harris as an online chocolate gifting service called Choc Express. The company rebranded as Hotel Chocolat in 2003 and opened its first store in London in 2004. In January 2024, American confectionery giant Mars Inc. acquired Hotel Chocolat for £534 million. The founders' journey began in 1987 with the Mint Marketing Company, supplying branded peppermints to corporate clients, before pivoting to chocolates under the "Geneva Chocolates" brand in the 1990s. The name Hotel Chocolat was chosen because a hotel represents "a refuge, somewhere people look forward to going to" - combining this with the French word for chocolate created what Thirlwell describes as "some kind of magic". Hotel Chocolat is unique in the UK as the only company to grow its own cocoa, sourced from the 250-year-old Rabot Estate in Saint Lucia, purchased by the founders in 2006. The estate sits between the Piton mountains, where they also operate the Boucan Hotel (opened 2011). This "seed to bar" approach ensures quality control from cocoa cultivation through to finished products. The product range includes chocolate truffles, selectors, slabs, sleekster gift boxes, and hampers made with ethically sourced cacao. Popular lines include Champagne Truffles, Tipsy Truffles with spirits like rum and cognac, and dark chocolate ranging from 70% to 100% cacao. The Velvetiser hot chocolate maker (RRP £149.95) is a signature product - a precision-engineered system with patented InnerPod ridges and custom whisk for barista-grade drinking chocolate. Alcohol gifts include Salted Caramel Velvetised Cream liqueur and Cacao Gin. Hotel Chocolat operates 125 stores across the UK. Compare Hotel Chocolat prices across UK retailers with Grocefully to find the best deals on luxury British chocolate.























