UK confectionery and toy brand Playin Choc, which is available on the domestic market in over 20 countries, has set its sights on the global travel retail market.
The brand’s range of products combine chocolate with puzzle toys featuring endangered animal species.
Playin Choc Managing Director Dominic Simler said the brand is negotiating with several airlines and retailers within the duty free channel. A distribution agreement for the Japanese market is also under discussion.
Playin Choc was founded in 2017 by Simler’s wife, Maya. She was looking for a healthier chocolate snack for their children and, at the same time, was concerned about the use of single-use plastic and excessive packaging in both the confectionery and toy markets.
Aiming to combine taste, creativity and sustainability, she developed a range of products, which are suitable for children over the age of three, and offer organic chocolate and environmentally-friendly, educational toys.
Kids Cubes (RRP £3.50, US$4.50) contain two 10g chocolates and a 3-D puzzle and fact card, made from recycled card and paper, with details of the animal featured. The series includes Endangered and Woodland, both featuring 18 animals, and the Rabbit Collection. Full Endangered and Woodland sets are also available, with RRP £60.00 (US$78).
Packaging is 100% recyclable and biodegradable. The ‘bean-to-bar’ chocolate has three ingredients – Peruvian cacao beans, Madagascan Bourbon vanilla and coconut – and is allergen and dairy-free.
Playin Choc also offers chocolate-only packs of five and ten bars, with RRPs of £3.5 (US$4.5o) and £6.95 (US$9o).
Simler believes Playin Choc products are well adapted for travel retail. “They are lightweight, compact and easily storable; they are also plastic-free, entertaining, educational and stimulating for creative, imaginative play,” he said. The puzzle toys offer children a “perfect break from screen time,” he added.
Simler underlined Playin Choc’s mission to highlight problems associated with single-use plastic and the plight of endangered animal species.
