The Real Reason You Won't Find Godiva's Stores Anymore

Only a few years ago, you could walk into a crowded mall and likely find a Godiva location. Their decadent chocolates were always advertised in store windows, and it was hard to walk past and not be convinced to indulge in a chocolate treat. Over the years, though, malls have seen plenty of stores come and go and brick-and-mortar shops are less popular now than ever with the hard switch to online shopping. Many brands have either completely closed their stores or at least reduced them substantially in favor of online purchasing and e-commerce, per Fortune.

Godiva was once known as a high-end chocolate brand that was considered a  luxury. According to Food Dive, when Nurtac Afridi stepped in as CEO of the brand in late 2020, Godiva's vision changed. Now, you won't find a single Godiva store in North America and according to Afridi, it is for a good reason.

As soon as Nurtac Afridi stepped in as CEO of Godiva, a new vision for the company was realized: Consumers wanted easier access to the brand's chocolate. And rather than keep the chocolates to just Godiva stores, Afridi told Food Dive that selling them in regular places, such as department stores, made more sense for the consumer. It turns out she was right because Godiva's business grew a whopping 37% in the year since the company shifted gears.

"In addition to rewarding [and] gifting others, they want to reward themselves, too," Afridi said of the consumer. "So we wanted to make it more available, and to speak to more consumption purposes." The company also revamped its online presence, which helped increase its digital sales by nearly one-third. Prior to Afridi becoming CEO, there had been plans to launch Godiva cafés, but those plans were scrapped in favor of distribution to retail stores and online shopping. Though you won't find a Godiva store today, you can find their chocolate with ease in other shops.