Business analysis of selected artisan chocolate manufacturers in the Philippines

Date

5-2016

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness Management

College

College of Economics and Management (CEM)

Adviser/Committee Chair

Nimfa Beatris D. Montes

Abstract

Artisan chocolate manufacturing is an emerging industry in the Philippines. The emergence of Filipino artisan chocolate makers started in 2011 (Loresco, 2015). For the fast five years, Filipino artisan chocolate makers started making bean-to-bar and purely made chocolates using local cacao beans in order to strengthen the local chocolate industry. Artisan chocolate manufacturing in the Philippines is relatively small but growing (Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP), November 2014). This growing industry has a lot to offer to the local and global market. This study provides a business analysis of selected artisan chocolate manufacturers in the Philippines. The study aimed to describe and analyze the current state and development of selected artisan chocolate manufacturers in the Philippines. The study intended to: 1) describe the profile of the selected artisan chocolate manufacturers in the Philippines 2) describe the structure and performance of selected artisan chocolate manufacturers in the Philippines 3) assess the local artisan chocolate manufacturers with benchmarks enterprise 4) identify the key problems, opportunities, threats, strengths and weaknesses In artisan chocolate enterprises as well as the development entry points and 5) formulate strategic directions and recommendations for the competitiveness and sustainability for the selected artisan chocolate ,manufacturers. The study used a descriptive type of research that described, analyzed and interpreted the current condition of artisan chocolate industry in the Philippines. Questionnaires and personal interviews were used in order to identify the different production and marketing practices of the artisan chocolate manufacturers. In addition, profitability analysis was done in the study for two enterprises with available financial statements. Primary data were gathered through personal interviews, phone call and one through email. The questionnaire that was created delved into the four core business functions-production, marketing, human resource and finance. The secondary data like cacao grading classification, financial statements, statistics regarding cacao production, etc. were obtained through examination of journals and records of relevant government and non-government agencies such as BAS, DA, DTI, PDRP, CIDAMI, Euro monitor, ICCO, and World Cocoa Foundation, for developments and statistical data on cacao and chocolate industry. The study used the snowball technique for its sampling procedure and the target number of respondents is 15, however 8 were only interviewed. A total of eight entrepreneurs were interviewed and found that their age ranges from 28 to 60 years old. It was observed that all the entrepreneurs are college graduates but their courses are unrelated with their artisan chocolate business. However, all of them are chocolate and their passion for chocolate making is their primary reason for engaging in this kind of business. The first artisan chocolate manufacturers started in 2011 while the recent ones started last 2015. The core business function- production, marketing, human resource and finance of the artisan chocolate enterprises were assessed. In terms of production, it was found that cacao beans are the main raw materials used for artisan chocolates. They have developed their own quality standards for choosing raw cacao beans. Majority of the manufacturers processed the cacao beans from roasting to molding using traditional process. On the other hand, in terms of marketing, the manufacturers found a niche market. The common consumers of artisan chocolates are health conscious people which include foreigners and balikbayan. All of manufacturers offer chocolate bars as their main product. It was observed that the artisan chocolate are more expensive compared to compound chocolates. Since a niche market does not need an intensive promotion, the manufacturers advertise using their social networking sites and websites. Moreover, in terms of human resource, the artisan chocolate manufacturers number of employees ranges from 1 to 15 employees. For finance, majority of the manufacturers used their personal savings as start-up capital which range from Php 50,000 to 2M. Each enterprise was assessed according to their business functions and was compared to a benchmark enterprise- Askinosie Chocolate. It was concluded in the assessment that local artisan chocolate makers are considered laggards in terms of production, marketing and human resource but local artisan chocolate manufacturers have the advantage of easy access for cacao beans here in the Philippines. After the local manufacturers were assessed in relation to Askinosie Chocolate, the gaps between their businesses functions were analyzes. An individual recommendation was made for each enterprise. It was commonly recommended for the enterprise to add more origins and add retailers in order to widen the market reach.

Language

English

Location

UPLB College of Economics and Management (CEM)

Call Number

LG 993 2016 M17 R63

Document Type

Thesis

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