Waitrose May Export Prince Charles' Line to Former Colonies
Unlike Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Channel Islands, where they have foreign franchise operations, the chain will not be opening its own stores. Instead, assorted products will be exported for other stores to stock, presumably in line with what David Morton, Waitrose's director of international development, describes as "long term growth plans to make the Waitrose brand accessible to more people in more places." Waitrose products are already available in 25 countries, including the Caribbean.
Expectations were first raised by the Financial Times last September when it reported Waitrose was "talking to North American retailers and distributors about selling Duchy Originals products in U.S. stores. Waitrose hopes to have a selection of the range in U.S. outlets next spring, according to people familiar with the plans."
Duchy has been renamed Duchy Originals from Waitrose, giving shoppers a double hit of the brand name on which to rely. Duchy Originals was founded by Prince Charles and licensed exclusively to Waitrose in 2009. According to the Financial Times, "It is anticipated that U.S. expansion will begin with a range of 'quintessentially British' products such as biscuits, honey and jam. ... Eventually, Waitrose hopes to produce locally in the U.S."
A spokesperson from Waitrose Communications told RetailWire this week, "Whilst I can confirm it will involve Waitrose branded products, I'm afraid we don't have any more details at this stage."
Waitrose was named in January, for the second consecutive year, as Britain's favourite supermarket in a survey of more than 12,000 members of consumer publication Which?.