The year has been an exciting one for LoveRaw, as it launched its first vegan milk chocolate bar range back in April (beating Cadbury to it), alongside the unveiling of a major re-brand.
Its innovative pipeline of NPD attracted a seven-figure investment from Blue Horizon at the end of 2019, supporting LoveRaw's vision to become a household name in vegan chocolate.
Established in 2013 with a budget of just £600 as a provider of all-vegan, 100% natural chocolate with no compromise on taste, the game-changing brand is on a clean-label mission to disrupt the confectionery industry by launching the world’s first vegan hazelnut cream filled wafer bar.
No compromise
Made from the finest ingredients including LoveRaw’s very own M:lk chocolate, this exclusive treat contains no artificial nonsense, no palm oil, no dairy and no compromise, it claimed.
In discussing the brand’s decision to “veganise” popular chocolate treats, Manav Thapar, Managing Director of LoveRaw, said: “During a team NPD meeting, we asked each of our employees to choose a well-known chocolate treat that they would like to see veganised. There was a clear winner – the hazelnut cream filled wafer bar.
“As with all new product launches, we did have to jump through some hoops – the biggest being that the Cre&m Filled Wafer Bar had to taste like “chocolate chocolate” and not compromise on flavour.
"Continuing with this process amidst a global pandemic has been challenging, however, we have been lucky to be able to adapt and overcome any hurdles in order to move forward with our plans for rapid business growth.”
COVID-19
The brand’s decision to initially launch the product online in September follows a rapid shift in consumer behaviour as a result of COVID-19, causing LoveRaw to create a new e-commerce strategy focused on selling direct to consumers.
Rimi Thapar, Co-Founder & CEO of LoveRaw, added: “As a result of the lockdown restrictions, we have seen a huge shift in consumer shopping habits, with more people buying online than ever before. For this reason, we wanted to ensure our products are fully accessible to both new and existing customers. We have received an excellent response to our e-commerce store with online sales up almost 800% YoY.”
“We are, therefore, incredibly excited about the launch of our own vegan take on a classic chocolate treat and look forward to bringing it to market via the LoveRaw online store this autumn.”
