Tony’s Chocolonely: From Dutch TV to American Chocolate Revolution — A US Market Entry Story
In 2002, Dutch journalist Teun van de Keuken was working on an episode of the consumer watchdog television program “Keuringsdienst van Waarde” when he made a disturbing discovery. While researching the chocolate industry, he uncovered the uncomfortable truth that most chocolate consumed worldwide was directly linked to illegal child labor and modern slavery in West Africa, particularly in Ghana and Ivory Coast. These two countries produced nearly 60% of the world’s cocoa, yet the farmers remained trapped in poverty while multinational chocolate companies profited enormously.
Shocked by this revelation and disturbed by his own unwitting participation in this system as a chocolate consumer, Teun decided to take dramatic action. In a provocative piece of journalism that would eventually change the industry, he filmed himself eating chocolate bars and then attempted to turn himself in to the Dutch authorities as a “chocolate criminal” — an accomplice to illegal child labor. When the authorities declined to prosecute him, Teun escalated his campaign. He tracked down and interviewed former child slaves from West Africa’s cocoa plantations, bringing their stories to Dutch television screens.
But Teun wasn’t satisfied with merely exposing the problem. In 2005, determined to prove that ethical chocolate production was possible, he founded Tony’s Chocolonely (Tony being the Anglicized version of his name, and “Chocolonely” reflecting his lonely battle against industry practices). The company was established with a clear mission: to make 100% slave-free chocolate not just for themselves, but to inspire the entire chocolate industry to follow suit.
The first Tony’s Chocolonely bars were distinctive in several ways. They were packaged in bright red wrappers with bold typography that clearly communicated the brand’s mission. More significantly, the chocolate bars themselves were unequally divided into irregularly-sized pieces — a deliberate design choice that served as a physical representation of the inequality in the chocolate value chain. This unique, visually striking product design would become one of the brand’s most recognizable features and a conversation starter about their mission.
The early years were challenging. Working with Kees Klomp, a socially conscious entrepreneur, and Maurice Dekkers, his television producer, Teun had to navigate the complexities of establishing ethical supply chains in an industry not known for transparency. They began by sourcing Fairtrade certified cocoa, but quickly realized this alone wasn’t enough to achieve their mission of eradicating slavery from their supply chain.
By 2007, Tony’s had developed its own sourcing principles, which would later evolve into what they call their five sourcing principles: paying a higher price, building strong farmer relationships, professionalizing farming cooperatives, long-term commitments, and improving quality and productivity. These principles aimed to address the root causes of child labor and slavery in cocoa — mainly extreme poverty and lack of alternatives for farmers.
Between 2007 and 2012, the company grew steadily in the Netherlands, gradually expanding its product range beyond the original milk chocolate bars to include dark chocolate and various flavor combinations with ingredients like caramel sea salt, which would later become their best-selling variety. Henk Jan Beltman joined the company and eventually acquired a majority stake in 2011, becoming the Chief Chocolate Officer. Under Beltman’s leadership, the company maintained its social mission while professionalizing its operations and preparing for growth.
By 2012, Tony’s Chocolonely had become the fastest-growing chocolate company in the Netherlands, resonating strongly with Dutch consumers who appreciated both the quality of the product and its ethical stance. The company was expanding its retail presence from specialty shops to mainstream supermarkets and was beginning to achieve significant brand recognition.
In 2013, Tony’s took a major step forward by implementing its “bean-to-bar” traceable sourcing model, working directly with farmer cooperatives in Ghana and Ivory Coast. This allowed them to trace their cocoa beans back to the specific cooperatives they were sourced from — a level of transparency almost unheard of in the industry at that time. The company paid a premium above the Fairtrade price, the so-called “Tony’s premium,” to ensure farmers could earn a living income.
As their Dutch market share continued to grow, reaching around 5% of the total chocolate market by 2014, Tony’s Chocolonely began to consider international expansion. The company’s success in the Netherlands had proven that consumers would support an ethical chocolate brand that combined quality with purpose. The chocolate tasted good, looked distinctive, and allowed consumers to feel they were contributing to positive change with every purchase.
The company’s sales had grown from approximately €3 million in 2010 to over €17 million by 2014, with a team that had expanded from a handful of passionate advocates to dozens of employees. Their Amsterdam headquarters, playfully called the “Chocolonely HQ,” embodied their colorful, mission-driven culture, with bean bags, bright colors, and constant reminders of their purpose.
By 2015, Tony’s Chocolonely was looking beyond the borders of the Netherlands. Their success story had caught the attention of ethical consumers and industry observers internationally. The question now facing Henk Jan Beltman and his team was where to go next. They needed to assess which international markets aligned with their mission and offered the right conditions for their unique approach to chocolate making and marketing.
The United States, with its massive chocolate market worth over $20 billion annually and growing consumer interest in ethical products, represented both an enormous opportunity and a daunting challenge. Could a Dutch chocolate brand with an unusual name and a strong social mission successfully navigate the competitive U.S. market? How would they need to adapt their approach while staying true to their founding principles? These were the questions Tony’s team began to explore as they considered taking their chocolate revolution across the Atlantic.
Tony’s Chocolonely’s American Exploration
Henk Jan Beltman assembled a small task force to evaluate the American opportunity. The team included Pascal van Ham, the company’s head of marketing, along with several team members with international business experience. They were charged with answering the fundamental question: Could Tony’s mission-driven chocolate succeed in America without compromising its core values?
The team began with comprehensive desk research, analyzing market reports on the U.S. chocolate industry. They discovered that while mainstream chocolate sales were relatively stagnant, premium chocolate was growing at nearly 5% annually. More encouraging was the growth of ethical food products, with sales of Fair Trade certified goods increasing by double digits year over year. This suggested an opening for Tony’s unique positioning at the intersection of premium quality and ethical production.
“We needed to understand if American consumers would care about our mission the same way Dutch consumers did,” recalled Pascal van Ham. “Slavery in cocoa supply chains wasn’t exactly front-page news in the U.S., so we wondered if we would need to adapt our straightforward messaging.”
To gain deeper insights, Tony’s team conducted a series of extended field trips to the United States throughout 2015. They visited specialty food stores, chocolate shops, and mainstream supermarkets in key urban centers from New York to San Francisco, studying shelf placement, pricing strategies, and packaging designs of potential competitors. They observed that while ethical chocolate brands existed in America, they were mostly positioned as niche, artisanal products with subtle messaging about their ethical credentials. Nothing quite matched Tony’s bold approach of placing its mission front and center in its marketing.
The team also conducted informal taste tests, bringing samples of Tony’s signature irregularly divided bars to gauge American palates. They discovered that while Tony’s milk chocolate was well-received, American consumers tended to prefer chocolate with a higher cocoa content than was typical in Europe. This insight would later inform product adaptations for the U.S. market.
Retail partnerships would be crucial to any successful entry strategy. The team reached out to several specialty retailers and distributors who might be aligned with their ethical stance. Whole Foods Market emerged as a particularly promising potential partner, given their established procedures for vetting and highlighting ethical products. Initial conversations with their buyers were encouraging, suggesting an openness to Tony’s unique offering, though negotiating terms would come later.
Running parallel to this market research, Tony’s legal team was investigating the complex regulatory landscape for imported food products in the U.S. They discovered that FDA requirements for chocolate labeling differed from European standards, necessitating packaging adjustments. Trademark protection was another concern — ensuring that the Tony’s Chocolonely name and distinctive packaging could be legally protected in the American market.
Perhaps most critically, the team had to figure out the logistics of supplying the American market without compromising their supply chain principles. Tony’s chocolate was produced in Belgium by contract manufacturer Althaea, using cocoa beans from their partner cooperatives in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Could this existing supply chain be extended to serve the U.S. market while maintaining full traceability and without creating excessive carbon emissions?
To answer this question, Tony’s brought on Kees de Graaff, an experienced supply chain consultant, to map out potential import and distribution models. After evaluating multiple scenarios, they determined that shipping finished products from Belgium to a U.S. warehousing partner offered the best balance of maintaining quality control while minimizing environmental impact. Establishing American manufacturing would be a future consideration if sales volumes justified it.
Financially, U.S. expansion would require significant investment. By mid-2015, Teyko van Riessen, Tony’s financial director, had developed detailed projections and capital requirements for the expansion. The company decided to allocate €2.5 million to fund the first two years of U.S. operations, with the understanding that achieving profitability would likely take 3–4 years. This investment would come from a combination of retained earnings and a new round of financing from impact investors who shared Tony’s vision.
Beltman and the executive team recognized that success in America would require local expertise. In late 2015, they hired Dena White, an American with experience in both the premium food industry and social enterprises, to lead the U.S. entry as Country Manager. Based in Portland, Oregon, White would build a small American team to manage relationships with retailers, handle marketing, and oversee logistics.
“We knew we couldn’t simply export our Dutch approach wholesale,” explained Beltman. “We needed people who understood the American market and could translate our mission effectively. But we also needed to ensure they fully embodied our culture and values.”
To facilitate this cultural alignment, White and her initial team members spent several weeks at Tony’s Amsterdam headquarters, immersing themselves in the company’s unique culture and underlying philosophy. They participated in “Tony’s Week,” an intensive onboarding that included education about the cocoa industry’s challenges, the company’s sourcing principles, and even a chocolate-making workshop.
As 2015 drew to a close, the contours of Tony’s U.S. entry strategy were becoming clearer. They would position themselves as a premium chocolate brand with an uncompromising ethical stance, targeting initially the conscious consumers who shopped at specialty retailers like Whole Foods. Rather than competing directly with mainstream chocolate giants, they would offer a distinctive alternative that combined indulgence with impact.
Product adaptation was minimal but strategic. The team decided to lead with Tony’s most popular flavors — Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, and the bestselling Caramel Sea Salt — but adjusted cocoa content slightly to better align with American preferences. The irregular divided pieces and colorful packaging would remain, though nutrition labeling and ingredient declarations would be adapted to meet FDA requirements.
Pricing strategy was another critical consideration. In the Netherlands, Tony’s sold at a moderate premium to mainstream chocolate but was priced accessibly compared to luxury brands. After analyzing the U.S. premium chocolate segment, they determined a target retail price of $5–6 for their 6.35oz bars — positioning them at the upper end of mainstream premium but below ultra-premium craft chocolates that could sell for $10 or more.
By December 2015, the final piece of pre-entry preparation fell into place when Tony’s secured a partnership with Portland-based specialty food distributor Vendor West, who would handle warehousing and distribution to initial retail partners. With logistics, legal compliance, product adaptation, and team building underway, Tony’s Chocolonely was poised to make their American debut.
Breaking Into America
In January 2016, the first shipment of Tony’s Chocolonely chocolate bars arrived at the Port of Portland. Dena White and her small team of three employees — a sales manager, a marketing coordinator, and an operations specialist — gathered at the warehouse to witness the arrival of the distinctive red, blue, and yellow packages that had conquered the Netherlands and were now poised to take on America.
The team had decided on a measured approach to their American launch — what they called internally their “soft landing strategy.” Rather than attempting an immediate nationwide rollout, they would focus initially on establishing a strong presence in three key metropolitan areas: Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco. These West Coast cities were selected for their concentration of conscious consumers, vibrant food scenes, and strong retail partners aligned with Tony’s values.
Their first retail partnership materialized through Whole Foods Market’s Pacific Northwest region, where a forward-thinking buyer had been impressed by both the product quality and the company’s mission during earlier discussions. In February 2016, Tony’s bars appeared on the shelves of 45 Whole Foods stores across Oregon and Washington, marking their official American debut.
The team supported this initial placement with a grassroots marketing approach that mirrored the authentic, mission-driven strategy that had worked so well in the Netherlands. They organized in-store sampling events where team members personally handed out pieces of Tony’s chocolate and shared the story behind the unequally divided bars. These face-to-face interactions proved invaluable in communicating the brand’s purpose to American consumers unfamiliar with the company’s Dutch origins.
“Americans loved the taste, which was a relief,” said Mark Thompson, Tony’s U.S. sales manager. “But what really set us apart was the reaction when people heard about our mission. You could see that moment of connection when consumers realized they could enjoy premium chocolate while supporting something meaningful.”
The team complemented these in-store efforts with targeted outreach to food bloggers, ethical consumer groups, and social media influencers in their launch cities. They sent sample packages with information about cocoa industry practices and Tony’s alternative approach. This generated modest but meaningful coverage in local food publications and on Instagram, where the distinctive unequally divided bars proved visually appealing.
By May 2016, early sales data from the initial Whole Foods stores showed promising results. While not matching the explosive growth they had seen in the Netherlands, Tony’s was outperforming category averages for new premium chocolate brands. The Caramel Sea Salt variety emerged as the clear favorite among American consumers, just as it had been in Europe.
Encouraged by this reception, the team accelerated their expansion within their targeted geographic footprint. They secured placement in prominent independent specialty retailers like New Seasons Market in Portland, PCC Community Markets in Seattle, and Bi-Rite in San Francisco. These smaller, community-focused stores proved to be valuable partners, often giving Tony’s prominent positioning and actively telling the brand’s story to their loyal customers.
The team also began learning important lessons about the American market that would shape their approach going forward. They discovered that while Dutch consumers were familiar with the issue of slavery in cocoa supply chains thanks partly to Teun van de Keuken’s original exposé, American awareness was much lower. This required a more educational approach to marketing, explaining not just Tony’s solution but the underlying problem it addressed.
“We had to balance education with inspiration,” explained Sarah Jacobson, Tony’s U.S. marketing coordinator. “Americans responded better when we focused first on the positive impact they could have rather than leading with the negative aspects of the industry.”
Another key insight emerged around packaging and portion sizes. The team noticed that while Europeans typically enjoyed chocolate as a deliberate treat, often sharing a bar among family or friends, Americans frequently consumed chocolate as an individual snack. This observation led them to accelerate the introduction of smaller, individually wrapped chocolate pieces alongside their classic large bars — a product adaptation they hadn’t initially planned until later in their U.S. rollout.
By August 2016, six months into their American journey, Tony’s expanded their distribution to the broader San Francisco Bay Area and began exploring opportunities in Los Angeles. They also secured their first East Coast placement through a partnership with a specialty distributor serving premium food stores in New York City, testing whether their West Coast success could translate to other regions.
The U.S. team maintained close connections with the Amsterdam headquarters, with weekly video calls to share learnings and coordinate strategy. Henk Jan Beltman visited quarterly, and Dutch team members rotated through Portland to support marketing events and retailer meetings. This ensured the American operation maintained Tony’s distinctive culture while developing approaches tailored to the local market.
Supply chain operations presented early challenges as the team adjusted to the realities of international shipping timelines and inventory management across a vast country. A stockout of the popular Caramel Sea Salt bars in July 2016 served as a painful lesson, leading to more robust forecasting and inventory buffers for future shipments.
By November 2016, as they approached their one-year anniversary in the American market, Tony’s had achieved distribution in over 300 retail locations. While still a tiny fraction of the U.S. chocolate market, they had established a foothold with a clear growth trajectory. More importantly, they had proven that their mission-driven approach could resonate with American consumers.
To mark this milestone and build momentum for the crucial holiday season, they organized their first major American marketing initiative: “The Big Chocotruck Tour.” A bright red food truck customized to resemble a Tony’s chocolate bar toured Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco, offering free samples and information about Tony’s mission. The eye-catching vehicle generated social media buzz and local press coverage, introducing the brand to thousands of potential new customers.
As 2016 came to a close, White and her team gathered at their modest Portland office to review their first year in America. They had achieved first-year sales of approximately $1.2 million — modest by chocolate industry standards but exceeding their conservative internal projections. More importantly, they had built the foundation for future growth: established retail partnerships, growing consumer recognition, and a clearer understanding of how to translate Tony’s Dutch success to the American market.
With lessons learned and confidence growing, the team began planning for 2017 — when they would transition from their soft launch phase to a more ambitious expansion strategy that would test whether Tony’s Chocolonely could become a significant player in the world’s largest chocolate market while staying true to its mission of making chocolate 100% slave-free.
Capability Building and Full Market Entry
In February 2017, the U.S. team moved from their temporary workspace to a proper office in Portland’s Pearl District, a neighborhood known for its concentration of creative businesses and sustainability-focused companies. The new headquarters — painted in Tony’s signature red, blue, and yellow colors — provided space for the growing team. New hires included specialists in retail category management, digital marketing, and supply chain operations — capabilities essential for the next phase of growth.
A critical focus for early 2017 was strengthening the company’s supply chain and distribution capabilities. The limited stockouts experienced in their first year had highlighted vulnerabilities in their international supply chain. To address this, Tony’s established a partnership with a larger warehousing and fulfillment provider in Portland with national distribution capabilities. This allowed them to maintain higher inventory levels and fulfill orders more efficiently as they expanded beyond their initial West Coast footprint.
Tony’s also invested in technology to support their growth, implementing a specialized inventory management system that integrated with their Amsterdam headquarters. This gave them real-time visibility into production schedules, shipping timelines, and inventory levels across their global operation, enabling more accurate forecasting and reducing the risk of stockouts.
With these foundational capabilities in place, the team turned their attention to broadening their retail presence. In March 2017, they achieved a significant milestone when Whole Foods Market approved Tony’s for national distribution, making their chocolate bars available in over 470 stores across the country. This expansion required careful coordination of production schedules in Belgium to ensure sufficient inventory without compromising freshness.
To support the Whole Foods rollout, Tony’s launched their first national marketing campaign in the U.S., called “Crazy About Chocolate, Serious About People.” The campaign included in-store displays highlighting the unequal division of their chocolate bars, sampling events at high-traffic Whole Foods locations, and partnerships with ethical influencers who shared Tony’s story on social media. While modest by big chocolate brand standards, the campaign represented a significant step up from their initial grassroots efforts.
April 2017 saw the launch of Tony’s U.S. e-commerce platform, another important capability development. The online store allowed consumers in areas without retail access to purchase directly, while also serving as a platform for telling Tony’s story more comprehensively than was possible on crowded retail shelves. The team invested in developing digital marketing skills, experimenting with targeted social media advertising to drive consumers to both their online store and retail partners.
“E-commerce wasn’t just a sales channel for us,” noted Sarah Jacobson, who now led Tony’s U.S. digital initiatives. “It was a storytelling platform where we could fully explain the problems in cocoa production and how Tony’s five sourcing principles addressed them.”
As distribution expanded, the team confronted new challenges in maintaining product quality and presentation across diverse retail environments. They developed a field marketing team — initially just three people covering key regions — who visited stores to ensure proper merchandising, train retail staff on Tony’s story, and gather feedback on how the brand was performing in different markets.
By June 2017, Tony’s was ready to expand beyond natural and specialty retailers. They secured their first conventional supermarket placement through a regional chain in the Pacific Northwest, testing how their premium-priced, mission-driven chocolate would perform alongside mainstream brands. The results were encouraging, showing that even in conventional settings, a segment of consumers would choose Tony’s despite the higher price point.
The summer of 2017 brought a significant capability enhancement when Tony’s hired Jennifer Harris, an experienced food industry executive who had previously managed chocolate brands for a major confectionery company. As U.S. Commercial Director, Harris brought structured category management approaches and relationships with larger retailers that would prove valuable for Tony’s next phase of growth.
Under Harris’s guidance, the team developed a more sophisticated approach to their product assortment and pricing strategy. They introduced a slightly smaller 6oz bar at a $4.99 price point specifically for conventional supermarkets, making the brand more accessible without compromising on ingredient quality or farmer premiums. This strategic adaptation recognized the different shopping behaviors and price sensitivity in conventional retail compared to natural specialty stores.
Tony’s also began building relationships with American cocoa industry stakeholders, joining the Fine Chocolate Industry Association and participating in industry conferences. These connections provided insights into the American chocolate market while also giving Tony’s a platform to advocate for their mission of slave-free chocolate. Beltman made several trips to the U.S. to speak at sustainable business conferences, raising the company’s profile among socially conscious business leaders.
By September 2017, the team had expanded retail distribution to over 2,000 stores nationwide, with particularly strong presence in urban markets on both coasts. Sales were tracking at nearly three times their 2016 levels, though growth brought new challenges in maintaining consistent supply and quality control.
The fall of 2017 saw Tony’s make their first appearance at major U.S. trade shows, including the Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore and the Specialty Food Association’s Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. These industry showcases allowed them to connect with hundreds of potential retail partners and distributors, accelerating their expansion into new regions and channels.
A significant organizational capability development came in October 2017, when Tony’s established formal impact measurement protocols for their U.S. operation. Working with their global impact team in Amsterdam, they adapted their tracking systems to measure not just sales and distribution metrics, but also awareness of cocoa industry issues among American consumers and the influence of Tony’s approach on other chocolate companies operating in the U.S. market.
“Success for us wasn’t just about market share,” explained Beltman during a team meeting in Portland. “It was about how many people we could educate about the problems in cocoa, how many farmers benefited from increased premiums as our sales grew, and whether we were pushing the industry toward more ethical practices.”
The holiday season of 2017 represented a critical test of Tony’s expanded capabilities. They introduced limited-edition holiday flavors specifically developed for the American market, including a Gingerbread Cookie variety that proved particularly popular. They also created gift sets featuring multiple flavors with educational materials about their mission, targeting the conscious gifting market.
The holiday push stretched their supply chain to its limits but demonstrated the value of their earlier investments in inventory management and distribution systems. Despite record sales volumes, they maintained 97% fulfillment rates to retail partners and e-commerce customers throughout the busy season.
By year-end, Tony’s had achieved U.S. sales of approximately $3.5 million — a nearly 200% increase over their first year. While still a fraction of their Netherlands revenue, the growth trajectory confirmed the potential of the American market. More importantly, consumer research indicated that brand awareness had more than doubled in their core urban markets, with a significant percentage of customers able to articulate Tony’s mission and what made their chocolate different.
As 2018 began, the team conducted a comprehensive review of their market entry progress, identifying both successes and areas for improvement. Their direct-to-retailer distribution model had worked well for specialty stores but proved less efficient as they expanded to larger chains with centralized purchasing. In response, they began developing relationships with national distributors who could provide access to broader retail channels.
The review also highlighted the need for continued adaptation of their marketing approach. While the slavery-free message resonated strongly with some American consumers, others connected more with the quality of the product and the colorful, distinctive packaging. This insight led to more nuanced messaging that balanced ethical impact with product experience, adapting to different consumer segments while maintaining the core mission.
With two years of market experience and strengthened operational capabilities, Tony’s Chocolonely had successfully transitioned from testing the American market to establishing a legitimate presence. The team now turned their attention to the next phase of their U.S. journey — accelerating growth to achieve the scale needed for both commercial success and meaningful impact on the cocoa industry’s practices.
Growth Acceleration
February 2018 marked a pivotal moment when Target, one of America’s largest retailers, approved Tony’s Chocolonely for placement in the premium chocolate section of 900 stores nationwide. This partnership represented a major leap into mainstream retail and would expose the brand to millions of new consumers. It also brought new challenges — Tony’s would now be competing directly against much larger chocolate brands with massive marketing budgets and long-established consumer relationships.
To support this expansion, Tony’s secured additional investment from impact-focused venture capital firms interested in both the company’s commercial potential and its social mission. This $4 million injection of capital was earmarked specifically for building U.S. market presence, allowing the team to make more substantial investments in marketing, sales infrastructure, and team expansion.
The Target launch in April 2018 coincided with the introduction of Tony’s redesigned packaging for the American market. While maintaining their distinctive unequally divided chocolate bars and colorful wrappers, they enhanced messaging about their mission with clearer explanations of the inequality in cocoa on the inside of each wrapper. They also added QR codes linking to detailed information about the specific cooperatives that supplied cocoa for each bar, bringing their supply chain transparency directly to American consumers.
As their visibility grew through the Target partnership, Tony’s elevated their marketing approach with their most comprehensive U.S. campaign to date. “Sweet Solution” highlighted the stark contrast between conventional chocolate production and Tony’s alternative model. The campaign featured educational digital content, strategic social media activations, partnerships with ethical consumer influencers, and targeted out-of-home advertising in urban markets where consumer awareness of supply chain issues was highest. Through striking visuals and storytelling, Tony’s explicitly connected their uniquely uneven chocolate pieces to the fundamental inequalities in cocoa farming, making their mission tangible and memorable for American consumers.
The campaign resonated strongly with American audiences, achieving significant engagement across digital platforms. More importantly, it delivered measurable business impact, driving substantial increases in both direct-to-consumer e-commerce conversions and in-store purchase velocity.
June 2018 saw another capability enhancement with the opening of Tony’s first U.S. satellite office in Minneapolis, housing a small team focused on managing the Target relationship and other Midwest retail partnerships. This regional presence allowed for more responsive service to key accounts and deeper understanding of consumer behaviors outside the coastal urban centers where Tony’s had first found success.
By mid-2018, Tony’s had expanded its product portfolio to include ten permanent varieties tailored to American taste preferences, including Dark Almond Sea Salt and Milk Honey Almond Nougat that were developed specifically for the U.S. market. They also introduced 1.8oz “Small Bars” in three varieties, addressing the American preference for individual snacking occasions discovered during their earlier market research.
The team’s supply chain capabilities continued to evolve to support this growth. They established a second warehouse facility on the East Coast, reducing shipping times and costs for their growing retail presence in that region. They also implemented more sophisticated demand planning systems, incorporating machine learning algorithms that analyzed seasonal patterns, promotional impacts, and regional variations to improve inventory forecasting.
The summer and fall of 2018 also saw Tony’s expand beyond traditional retail into food service channels. They created food service-specific formats and began partnerships with specialty coffee chains, independent bakeries, and corporate dining services that aligned with their ethical mission. These channels provided additional revenue and introduced the brand to consumers in new contexts.
September 2018 brought a significant organizational development when Dena White was promoted to Managing Director of Tony’s North America, with expanded authority to develop strategy specifically for the U.S. market. Recognizing the distinctive nature of American consumers and retail landscapes, Amsterdam headquarters granted the U.S. operation greater autonomy to adapt the global brand strategy to local conditions, within guidelines that protected core mission principles.
This increased autonomy enabled quicker decision-making and more targeted innovation. In October 2018, the U.S. team launched limited-edition “Friendpack” bundles that contained five different chocolate varieties with messaging encouraging consumers to “share the story” with friends. This U.S.-specific initiative became one of their most successful promotions, driving both sales and mission awareness through social sharing.
As the 2018 holiday season approached, Tony’s dramatically expanded their seasonal offerings, creating gift sets at multiple price points that told their story of ethical chocolate in engaging ways. They secured holiday end-cap displays in natural grocery chains and prominent placement in the gifting sections of major retailers, positioning their colorful packages as gifts that delivered both premium chocolate and positive impact.
The investments in capability building throughout 2018 paid dividends during this crucial selling period. Despite holiday sales volumes more than tripling compared to the previous year, their enhanced supply chain and retail execution capabilities ensured product availability throughout the season. Their customer service team, expanded and trained to handle increased volume, maintained response times for both consumer inquiries and retailer needs.
The year closed with Tony’s U.S. sales reaching approximately $9 million — nearly tripling their 2017 performance. Beyond the financial metrics, they had achieved significant impact milestones: their sales growth had generated over $300,000 in additional premiums paid to cocoa farmers through their ethical sourcing model, and consumer research indicated that awareness of slavery issues in cocoa had increased significantly among their target demographics.
Early 2019 brought new challenges as larger chocolate manufacturers began to take notice of Tony’s growth. Several competitors launched products with ethical messaging or redesigned packaging with brighter colors reminiscent of Tony’s distinctive style. While imitation validated their market approach, it also created potential confusion for consumers about what made Tony’s truly different.
In response, the team doubled down on transparency, expanding their “open chain” platform that shared detailed information about their sourcing model. They invited consumers to trace their specific chocolate bars back to the cooperatives that supplied the cocoa, visualizing the impact of their purchase through farmer stories and community investment details.
“We welcomed other companies addressing slavery in cocoa — that was literally our mission,” said Beltman during a team visit to Portland. “But we needed to ensure consumers understood the difference between marketing claims and fundamental business model choices that put farmers first.”
By spring 2019, Tony’s had expanded distribution to over 6,500 retail locations nationwide, a remarkable achievement for a brand that had entered the U.S. market just three years earlier with placement in 45 stores. Their growth rate outpaced the premium chocolate category by more than five times, confirming that their combination of ethical mission and premium product experience was resonating with American consumers.
With this accelerated growth came new capability needs. The team expanded again, bringing on specialists in trade promotion management, consumer insights, and public relations. They also enhanced their digital capabilities, implementing a robust direct-to-consumer strategy that complemented retail sales while providing valuable data on consumer preferences and behaviors.
As Tony’s approached its fourth year in the American market, the brand had evolved from an intriguing Dutch import to an established player in premium chocolate with a distinct voice in the industry. While still dwarfed by chocolate giants, they had achieved what many European food brands could not — successful translation of their product and purpose to the competitive American market.
Capability Evolution and Market Establishment
In October 2019, the company reached a significant milestone when they moved their U.S. headquarters to a larger facility in Portland that reflected both their growth and commitment to sustainability. The new office space, converted from a former warehouse, featured recycled building materials, solar panels, and collaborative workspaces decorated in Tony’s signature colors. The headquarters served as a physical manifestation of the brand’s values and long-term commitment to the American market.
“We wanted our team and partners to feel that we weren’t just visiting the U.S. market — we were putting down roots here,” explained Dena White. “This space reflects both our growth and our intention to become a permanent fixture in American chocolate.”
The U.S. team, working closely with Amsterdam, conducted a comprehensive strategic review to identify the capabilities needed for long-term success. They determined that consumer loyalty, supply chain resilience, and distinctive brand experiences would be critical differentiators as competition intensified.
To build consumer loyalty, Tony’s took a community-centered approach rather than implementing a conventional loyalty program. They recognized that their most valuable customers weren’t just frequent purchasers but those who connected deeply with their mission of slave-free chocolate. Their strategy focused on transparent storytelling and creating meaningful engagement opportunities that would naturally inspire advocacy.
Through their e-commerce platform and digital communications, Tony’s shared detailed stories from their partner cooperatives, educational content about cocoa farming challenges, and transparent impact metrics. This approach helped consumers understand the tangible differences their purchases made in farmers’ lives. Their direct communications emphasized action over transactions, inviting consumers to join them in changing the chocolate industry rather than simply accumulating points or rewards.
At in-person events like chocolate tastings, retail demonstrations, and their Chocotruck Tour stops, Tony’s team members engaged directly with consumers, creating personal connections to their mission. These interactions went beyond product sampling to include conversations about inequality in cocoa and Tony’s alternative approach, turning casual customers into informed advocates who could articulate the brand’s purpose to others.
Supply chain resilience became increasingly important as sales volumes grew and the company expanded into new retail channels. In early 2020, Tony’s established more robust forecasting capabilities, implementing advanced analytics that incorporated external factors like competitive promotions, seasonal patterns, and macroeconomic indicators to improve prediction accuracy.
They also diversified their logistics network, establishing partnerships with three regional distribution centers strategically located to serve different parts of the country efficiently. This reduced both costs and carbon emissions while improving service levels to retail partners across the vast American geography.
Perhaps most significantly, they began exploring the feasibility of U.S.-based production. While all manufacturing had previously occurred in Belgium with finished products shipped to America, the growing volumes made local production increasingly viable. By February 2020, they had initiated discussions with several contract manufacturers with ethical credentials who could potentially produce Tony’s chocolate to their exacting specifications using cocoa beans from their partner cooperatives.
Brand experience emerged as another key area for capability development. In December 2019, Tony’s opened their first American “Chocolate Experience” pop-up store in Portland’s fashionable Pearl District. More than just a retail outlet, the temporary store offered interactive exhibits explaining cocoa farming challenges, chocolate-making demonstrations, and customization stations where visitors could create their own flavor combinations.
The success of this initial experiment led to plans for additional pop-ups in key markets like Seattle, San Francisco, and New York throughout 2020. These physical spaces allowed Tony’s to create immersive brand experiences that communicated their mission more effectively than was possible through regular retail channels, while generating valuable consumer insights through direct interaction.
To support these enhanced consumer touchpoints, the marketing team evolved their storytelling capabilities, moving beyond explanation of the slavery problem toward more sophisticated impact narratives. They developed mini-documentaries featuring cocoa farmers from their partner cooperatives and created interactive digital content that allowed consumers to explore the journey of their chocolate from bean to bar.
Then in March 2020, like companies worldwide, Tony’s plans were dramatically disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. With retail partners shuttering temporarily and consumer behavior shifting radically overnight, the team had to rapidly adapt their carefully developed strategy.
The pandemic served as an unexpected test of the resilience capabilities they had been building. Their diversified distribution network proved invaluable as shopping patterns changed, with some channels collapsing while others surged. Their agile inventory management systems allowed them to shift products between channels as consumer buying behavior evolved.
Most significantly, their e-commerce investments paid off unexpectedly when online chocolate sales skyrocketed during lockdowns. Having built robust direct-to-consumer capabilities, Tony’s was able to capture this demand more effectively than many competitors. By April 2020, e-commerce had grown from approximately 8% of their U.S. sales to over 25%, requiring rapid scaling of their fulfillment operations.
The pandemic also accelerated their adoption of digital marketing capabilities. With in-person sampling and events no longer possible, they redirected resources toward social media content, virtual tasting experiences, and partnerships with online influencers. The marketing team quickly developed virtual versions of materials originally intended for retail staff training, creating online education modules about ethical chocolate that reached thousands of consumers directly.
By summer 2020, as the initial shock of the pandemic stabilized into a “new normal,” Tony’s resumed their strategic initiatives while incorporating lessons from the crisis. They fast-tracked their U.S. manufacturing exploration, recognizing that pandemic-related shipping disruptions had highlighted vulnerabilities in their international supply chain. By September 2020, they had signed an agreement with a Vermont-based chocolate manufacturer to begin producing a portion of their volume for the U.S. market beginning in 2021.
The fall of 2020 brought a significant organizational evolution when Tony’s established a formal U.S. Advisory Board comprising industry experts, ethical business leaders, and cocoa sustainability specialists. This body provided strategic guidance specific to the American market context while ensuring alignment with the company’s global mission.
Throughout this challenging period, Tony’s continued to grow against the odds. By the end of 2020, despite the pandemic’s disruptions, U.S. sales had reached approximately $15 million — representing over 60% growth from the previous year at a time when many specialty food brands were struggling to maintain sales levels.
Beyond financial metrics, they achieved significant impact milestones. Their growing volumes had increased farmer premiums substantially, with over $1 million in additional income flowing to cocoa-producing communities through their direct relationships. Consumer research showed that unprompted awareness of slavery issues in chocolate had increased significantly among American consumers compared to pre-Tony’s entry levels, suggesting their educational efforts were having broader market impact.
Tony’s Chocolonely’s American Chocolate Revolution
By early 2022, as the world began emerging from the pandemic’s disruptions, Tony’s Chocolonely had solidified its position as a significant player in the American premium chocolate market. What had begun as a cautious exploration of U.S. possibilities had evolved into a thriving operation generating over $20 million in annual sales across multiple channels, with a team of 35 dedicated employees working from offices in Portland, Minneapolis, and a newly established satellite in New York City.
The brand’s retail footprint had expanded to over 10,000 stores nationwide, spanning natural foods retailers, conventional supermarkets, specialty stores, and mass merchandisers. Their distinctive, colorful bars had achieved near-ubiquitous placement in the premium chocolate segment, with Tony’s securing prime shelf positioning in most major chains. Market research indicated they had captured approximately 2.8% of the premium chocolate category nationally, with significantly higher shares in urban coastal markets where awareness of their mission was strongest.
“When we started in the U.S., we were this quirky Dutch chocolate brand with an unusual name and a bold mission,” reflected Dena White during the company’s January 2022 state-of-business review. “Now we’re recognized as a category leader driving conversations about ethics and responsibility across the chocolate industry.”
This market position had been hard-won through strategic capability building and continuous adaptation to American consumer preferences while maintaining their core ethical principles. Their once-novel approach of combining premium quality with transparent ethical sourcing had become increasingly common in the marketplace, with several major chocolate manufacturers launching products with similar positioning.
In response to this intensifying competition, Tony’s doubled down on their transparency advantage. In March 2022, they introduced “Bean ID” technology on all U.S. packaging, which allowed consumers to scan a QR code and trace the exact batch of their chocolate bar to the specific farmer cooperatives that supplied the cocoa. The digital experience included profiles of farmers, impact metrics for that cooperative, and documentation of the price premiums paid for that specific batch of beans.
“No one else could replicate this level of transparency because no one else had built the direct supply relationships and traceability systems,” explained Michael Chen. “While competitors made general claims about sustainability, we could show the exact path from specific farmers to the bar in a consumer’s hand.”
This transparency initiative coincided with the completion of Tony’s first phase of American manufacturing. By April 2022, approximately 30% of their U.S. volume was being produced at their Vermont manufacturing partner’s facility, using cocoa beans imported directly from their partner cooperatives. This shift improved freshness, reduced carbon emissions from shipping, and significantly enhanced their ability to respond quickly to changing market conditions.
The U.S. team strategically evolved their marketing approach to reflect their growing market establishment. As American consumers became more familiar with Tony’s and issues in cocoa supply chains, they shifted from primarily educational messaging about slavery in chocolate toward more solution-focused communications. This evolution maintained their distinctive visual identity — vibrant colors, playful elements, and unequally divided bars — while placing greater emphasis on the positive impact of their sourcing model.
Their communications increasingly featured success stories from partner cooperatives, highlighting tangible improvements in farmer livelihoods resulting from their premium pricing model. They complemented these impact narratives with greater emphasis on the exceptional quality and flavor profiles of their chocolate, demonstrating that ethical sourcing and premium taste could go hand-in-hand.
This marketing evolution was evident across their retail presence, digital content, and packaging. In-store materials moved beyond stark statistics about industry problems toward celebrating the growing community of conscious consumers and chocolate makers working toward positive change. Their social media content similarly balanced education with inspiration, featuring more joyful imagery alongside continued transparency about industry challenges.
The shift reflected a maturing understanding of American consumers, who responded more strongly to positive action steps than to problem-focused messaging alone. Rather than positioning themselves strictly as industry critics, Tony’s increasingly presented themselves as pioneers of a better approach to chocolate — one that other companies could adopt. This nuanced evolution maintained their mission focus while making their message more accessible to mainstream American chocolate consumers.
Rather than positioning themselves as outsiders challenging the industry, they had begun engaging more collaboratively with other chocolate companies, retailers, and industry groups to advance systemic changes in cocoa sourcing. In May 2022, they co-hosted an industry summit on ethical chocolate in Chicago, bringing together stakeholders from across the supply chain to discuss practical approaches to eliminating forced labor.
The summer of 2022 brought a significant retail expansion when Target increased Tony’s presence from 900 to nearly 1,800 stores nationwide following strong sales performance. This expanded footprint included prominent endcap displays in the candy aisle featuring Tony’s complete range, dramatically increasing their visibility with mainstream American consumers.
To support this growth, Tony’s continued enhancing their operational capabilities. They implemented advanced demand sensing technology that incorporated real-time POS data from retail partners, allowing more responsive production planning and inventory management. This system, integrated with their Vermont manufacturing partner, reduced lead times for replenishment from weeks to days in many cases, improving service levels while reducing working capital requirements.
Their direct-to-consumer business had also evolved significantly, moving beyond simple e-commerce to become an innovation platform and data source. By fall 2022, their online store offered exclusive flavors, custom gift options, and subscription programs not available in retail channels. More importantly, it provided valuable first-party consumer data that informed product development and retail strategy.
In October 2022, Tony’s reached a significant milestone when internal analysis confirmed they had become the third-largest premium chocolate brand in natural channel retailers nationwide, behind only long-established brands Lindt and Ghirardelli. In conventional supermarkets, they had climbed to fifth position in the premium segment — an extraordinary achievement for a brand that had entered the market just six years earlier.
They had built deep expertise in measuring and communicating impact — both social and environmental. Their annual “FAIR” report, adapted specifically for the U.S. market, provided transparent metrics on cocoa pricing, farmer income, carbon footprint, and progress toward their mission of making chocolate 100% slave-free. This accountability resonated strongly with American consumers increasingly skeptical of vague corporate sustainability claims.
As 2022 drew to a close, the leadership team gathered in Portland to review their achievements and chart their course for the future. The discussion focused on three strategic priorities that would guide their next phase of growth and impact in the American market.
First, they identified mainstream consumer education as a critical focus area. While they had successfully built awareness among conscious consumers, research showed that most mainstream chocolate buyers remained unaware of slavery issues in cocoa. To address this, they approved development of their most ambitious marketing initiative yet — a documentary-style advertising campaign for national television that would introduce their mission to millions of new consumers.
Second, they committed to accelerating their manufacturing transition, with a target of producing 80% of U.S. volume domestically by 2024. This would require establishing additional manufacturing partnerships and investing in specialized equipment to maintain their quality standards and unique unequally divided bar format as volumes increased.
Third, they prioritized innovation beyond their core chocolate bars. The team approved development of new product formats including baking chocolate, seasonal items, and foodservice offerings that would extend the brand’s reach while creating new opportunities to communicate their mission to different consumer segments.
These initiatives would be supported by continued investment in the capabilities that had enabled their success thus far — supply chain transparency, consumer engagement, operational excellence, and mission-aligned organizational culture.
As they entered 2023, Tony’s Chocolonely had transformed from an ambitious Dutch import to an established force in American premium chocolate. Their journey illustrated how a mission-driven European brand could successfully adapt to the U.S. market while maintaining its core values — by developing market-specific capabilities, making strategic adaptations without compromising principles, and continuously evolving their approach based on consumer insights and operational learnings.
The road ahead would undoubtedly bring new challenges as larger competitors continued adopting elements of their ethical positioning and changing consumer preferences required ongoing innovation. Yet the foundation they had built — deep consumer connections, operational excellence, transparent supply chains, and a talented, mission-driven team — positioned them well to continue growing both their business and their impact on the chocolate industry.
Note: This article was extensively written with the help of AI technology, which assisted in researching, organizing, and drafting the comprehensive narrative of Tony’s Chocolonely’s journey.