Tom Daly, CEO of the US importing company, said he welcomes all the up and coming manufacturers making stroopwafels because “there is a plenty of appetite” in America.
“It is a very unique product format. There is not anything quite like it. It is kind of a cookie with a lot of caramel, so it is a hybrid of a snack and a confectionery item,” he said.
Daelmans stroopwafels initially caught the attention of the former Godiva’s director of marketing at a tradeshow in Europe back in the 1990s.
“When I stumbled upon Daelmans stroopwafels, I thought if I could bring it to the US, where the coffee consumption is high, it could result in a big business,” Daly told BakeryandSnacks.
He added the Daelmans brand has several advantages over its competitors besides containing no artificial ingredients.
“We know Daelmans are of a higher quality because it has been independently tested among consumers by a third party organization. The products are 38% higher in net weight than most other brands and also better from a price standpoint,” Daly explained.
Reducing transportation cost
Daly signed an exclusive US distribution partnership with Daelmans shortly after he launched Brand Passport in 2010.
“We started Brand Passport with a portfolio of European biscuit products [from countries like France, Scotland and Belgium], because that is one of the categories I had experience in,” he noted.
“The key to reducing the cost of distribution as an importer is all about volume: The more you put on the truck, the cheaper the transportation gets. So, having a range of products is beneficial to us from,” said Daly.
“We also have a strong marketing team to support the brands to drive ‘shelf rotation,’ meaning we need to ship in products more frequently to make sure our retailers are fully stocked,” he added.
Business expansion
Daelmans has expanded in the US from the original single pack to the current variety of pack sizes and flavors, alongside adding new stores almost annually over the past few years.
“It is a nice business we have grown. Our sales growth, especially coming from our chocolate flavor, has been significant within the last seven years,” said Daly.
Daelmans stroopwafels are currently available at the checkout counters of Walgreens, CVS and Target across the US.
Starting this month, Daelmans Jumbo Caramel stroopwafel duo packs also became available in CVS stores nationwide.
Daly said: “CVS is just the latest example of the Daelmans brand earning and defending front-end merchandising positions with candy, where it results in a broad consumer appeal and high margin for retailers.”
He added consumers could look forward to a new maple-flavored stroopwafel in the fall.