TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY JEROME RIVET (FILES) A file picture taken on December 12, 2012 shows chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. Belgium is rightly proud of its traditions in producing some of the world's finest chocolates but faced with changing tastes, it has to keep up with a discerning, fastidious clientele. In the workshop of Laurent Gerbaud, one of the new generation of chocolatiers shaking up the scene, a customer will find few traces of the Manon, the praline filled with coffee-flavoured cream and covered in white chocolate which has been the industry mainstay for decades. AFP PHOTO GEORGES GOBET
Chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. — AFP Photo

BRUSSELS: Belgium is rightly proud as producer of some of the world's finest chocolate but changing tastes and new markets in Asia and the Arab world are shaking up its somewhat predictable scene.

“Belgian traditional chocolates? Some people still do them really well, such as the major brands,” said Laurent Gerbaud, one of the new generation of chocolatiers trying to keep up with a discerning clientele. In his workshop in the centre of Brussels, a customer will find few traces of the Manon, the praline filled with coffee-flavoured cream and covered in white chocolate which has been the industry mainstay for decades.

TO GO WITH Lifestyle-Belgium-luxury-chocolate,FEATURE BY JEROME RIVET(FILES) A file picture taken on December 12, 2012 shows chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. Belgium is rightly proud of its traditions in producing some of the world's finest chocolates but faced with changing tastes, it has to keep up with a discerning, fastidious clientele. In the workshop of Laurent Gerbaud, one of the new generation of chocolatiers shaking up the scene, a customer will find few traces of the Manon, the praline filled with coffee-flavoured cream and covered in white chocolate which has been the industry mainstay for decades. AFP PHOTO GEORGES GOBET
Chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. — AFP Photo

— AFP Photo

Gerbaud instead offers small chocolates made with exotic and unusual flavourings - figs from Izmir in Turkey, the bitter berries of the barberry tree, Cape pears or yuzu, a citrus fruit from Japan.

“My priority is clear, simple flavours, using the best ingredients possible. My chocolates use less sugar and fat in response to increasing demand,” Gerbaud said.

Such chocolates with a bitter and sharp edge were first made in France in the 1990s as artisan chocolatiers came onto the scene.

In Belgium, the trend has been slower to get off the ground in an industry dominated by such illustrious names as Leonidas, Godiva, Cote d'Or or Neuhaus. But that is beginning to change, with new brands coming through, even if progress is slow and Belgium's some 400 artisan chocolatiers remain wary of getting carried away.

“It is extremely difficult to establish a brand, to build up a clientele and to be profitable. After 11 years, I still do not have profits,” says Gerbaud, one of the best in the business.

TO GO WITH Lifestyle-Belgium-luxury-chocolate,FEATURE BY JEROME RIVET(FILES) A file picture taken on December 12, 2012 shows chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud (R) working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. Belgium is rightly proud of its traditions in producing some of the world's finest chocolates but faced with changing tastes, it has to keep up with a discerning, fastidious clientele. In the workshop of Laurent Gerbaud, one of the new generation of chocolatiers shaking up the scene, a customer will find few traces of the Manon, the praline filled with coffee-flavoured cream and covered in white chocolate which has been the industry mainstay for decades. AFP PHOTO GEORGES GOBET
Chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud (R) working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. — AFP Photo

 Traditional brands fight back

For the established brands, the challenge is different, needing to find new markets if they are to expand beyond their home base. Leonidas was founded after the 1913 International Exhibition by Leonidas Kestekides, a Greek pastry maker who decided to settle in Belgium, and the company is using the 100th anniversary celebrations to update its offering.

Kestekides' descendants still run the business, with the Leonidas brand known worldwide through some 1,300 outlets in 50 countries, selling 6,000 tonnes a year or one million chocolates a day.

“It is clear that our potential for development lies more in the emerging economies rather than in the mature market here in Europe,” said Hugues Moens, commercial director for Leonidas.

China, already home to 40 Leonidas shops, and the Arab world are now the priority for the company.

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY JEROME RIVET (FILES) A file picture taken on December 12, 2012 shows chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. Belgium is rightly proud of its traditions in producing some of the world's finest chocolates but faced with changing tastes, it has to keep up with a discerning, fastidious clientele. In the workshop of Laurent Gerbaud, one of the new generation of chocolatiers shaking up the scene, a customer will find few traces of the Manon, the praline filled with coffee-flavoured cream and covered in white chocolate which has been the industry mainstay for decades. AFP PHOTO GEORGES GOBET
Chocolate maker Laurent Gerbaud working at his workshop in the center of Brussels. — AFP Photo

In Belgium as in France, with some 350 shops in each country, Leonidas has to find the right balance between tradition and innovation so as to keep its old customers and attract new ones.

“We do not forget that our success is based on the loyalty of customers who hold to traditional chocolates such as the Manon, our best-seller,” said Claude Seneque, master chocolatier at the company.

To attract new customers and to cater for changing tastes, Leonidas must also have something for those who find the brand “a little old-fashioned”, according to Pauline Vervoort, 26, from Brussels.

As part of its anniversary celebrations, Leonidas has made new pralines - smaller and even more chocolate packed - and plans to spruce up its shops. “In Belgium, to succeed in chocolate is harder and harder. You have to be tough but also creative all the time,” Gerbaud says.

Opinion

Editorial

High troop losses
Updated 24 Dec, 2024

High troop losses

Continuing terror attacks show that our counterterrorism measures need a revamp. Localised IBOs appear to be a sound and available option.
Energy conundrum
24 Dec, 2024

Energy conundrum

THE onset of cold weather in the country has brought with it a familiar woe: a severe shortage of piped gas for...
Positive cricket change
24 Dec, 2024

Positive cricket change

HEADING into their Champions Trophy title defence, Pakistan are hitting the right notes. Mohammad Rizwan’s charges...
Internet restrictions
Updated 23 Dec, 2024

Internet restrictions

Notion that Pakistan enjoys unprecedented freedom of expression difficult to reconcile with the reality of restrictions.
Bangladesh reset
23 Dec, 2024

Bangladesh reset

THE vibes were positive during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent meeting with Bangladesh interim leader Dr...
Leaving home
23 Dec, 2024

Leaving home

FROM asylum seekers to economic migrants, the continuing exodus from Pakistan shows mass disillusionment with the...