Patchi has brought in supplies from surrounding countries to help meet demand ahead of the busy Eid season after a fire destroyed its Dubai warehouse.
The blaze broke out in the company’s chocolate factory in the Al Quoz Industrial Area 2 a week ago. The building’s contents helped the fire to spread quickly and took firefighters an hour and a half to bring under control.
“We did have a fire and it did affect our warehouses. But it did not affect our supply,” said a spokeswoman for Patchi. “We have factories nearby in the Gulf.”
Patchi brought in supplies from Beirut, its home market, and from Saudi Arabia, to ensure it had enough products ahead of Eid, which is one of the company’s busiest periods.
“I’m not sure of the number but [it] did satisfy the demand. We are OK,” added the spokeswoman.
It is understood that more than 140 staff from across the Middle East and South East Asia work in the Patchi factory. Most of them are believed to have left for the evening by the time the blaze broke out.
The cause of the fire is still not known and Patchi is currently seeking other premises in Dubai.
Patchi was founded in 1974 in Lebanon by Nizar Choucair. It now has more than 140 boutiques in 21 countries, including Armenia and Indonesia. It is believed to be the biggest chocolatier in the Middle East.
In 2008 the company collaborated with Harrods to produce the world’s most expensive box of chocolates. The 49 hand-wrapped chocolates were made from organic cocoa and decorated with either a gold and Swarovski crystal flower or silk rose. The box cost £5,000 (Dh29,763).
According to Euromonitor, the chocolate confectionery market will reach US$292.4 million in 2017 in the UAE, up from $225.7m last year.
It grew 7 per cent last year in value, but the UAE market was still the fourth largest after Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Morocco.
gduncan@thenational.ae
