Carambar&Co 2020

Abstract

2020, as 2019, proved to be another good year for Carambar&Co, gaining new market shares, thanks to their innovations, which have been globally well-received by retailers and its consumers. Following the failures of their product launches in 2018, the company learnt from its mistakes and developed a new strategy, trying to get closer to its consumers. Yet, their objectives set by the investment fund that bought these brands to create Carambar&Co, are not met. There is still a long way ahead of them. Creating this new entity gathering 14 brands cost a lot of money, as they need to invest a lot in marketing, R&D and communication. Moreover, their strategy to reallocate all their plants in France increased their costs, diminishing their mrgins and making the business less profitable. Furthermore, the rapidly changing environment still dominated by food giants such as Mondelez or Haribo, created new challenges to overcome. The digital era has created highly connected consumers which are increasingly demanding regarding what they eat; sugar bashing and eating healthier being trends on the rise. New questions are now raised: should they keep their 14 brands or offload some of them? Should they focus on the French market? Or find new opportunities of growth abroad? This case study will start by studying the history of these brands and the firm, the decline under Mondelez and the acquisition by Eurazeo. Then, it will look at the strategy implemented on the marketing and production side) to meet their objectives. In another part, it will analyze the market, looking deeper at the chocolate and confectionery industry, the competitors and the new consumption trends that are reshaping the offer on the market. Finally, it will analyze their opportunities of growth and assess its potential abroad.

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