ISM is Europe’s largest trade fair for sweets and snacks and takes place at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany, from 28 to 31 January. Savetsomphob said receiving the ISM Award is a great honour for himself and the company.
"The ISM Award not only reflects my personal success, but also the success of the entire team and the support of all those people who have accompanied me on this path. It serves as motivation to continue making a significant contribution to the Thai sweets market and shaping the industry with our innovative spirit.”
The ISM Award 2024 will be presented during the festive ISM dinner on 28 January. Pablo De Abadal, Senior Commercial Manager at Sino-Pacific Trading, will hold the laudation. Savet Savetsomphob, son of the prize winner, will accept the ISM Award on behalf of his father.
In the 1970s, when the sweets market in Thailand was mainly limited down to sweets, Savetsomphob recognised the opportunity of establishing the chocolate market in Thailand. In spite of fundamental challenges, like the limited number of climatised sales outlets, he introduced the first chocolate brand, Van Houten. This courageous decision laid the foundation for Sino-Pacific's impressive success. Their market shares in the year 2023 were 60% in the chocolate category, 35% in the sweets and fruit gums section, 25% in the biscuits, and 15% in the snacks section, including 70 brands from all over the globe.
Having worked in the food industry since 1973 and a significant player on the Thai market, the Savetsomphob family not only pursued business interests on importing chocolate to Thailand. Their vision was to actually transform the market, said a spokesperson for Koelnmesse.
In a tropical country like Thailand, the quality assurance of the chocolate products was priority number one for Savetsomphob from the very start. His professional training at Allied Chocolate Company Limited, especially in the chocolate quality section, enabled him to implement continuous air-conditioning along the entire logistics chain, contributing to the country’s sweets and snacks industry.