Forecourt operator Fuzail Patel has launched his take on the viral Dubai pistachio chocolate bars, the latest confectionery trend on TikTok despite their hefty price tag.
Fuzail’s handmade Yoh Sweet-branded bars are already listed at seven petrol stations, and he says that he has around 55 more roadside locations in the pipeline to stock the confectionery which retails at £6.50 a piece.
Fuzail, who is head of operations at the Redbeck Group chain of four forecourts in the north of England – in Wakefield, Rotherham and two in Manchester – has been getting his own share of social media coverage.
One TikTok influencer suggested heating up the chocolate in the microwave to enjoy as a dessert.
While pistachio is the top seller, there are four flavours to choose from, including white hazelnut, biscotti, and cookies & cream, and Fuzail has others up his sleeve to maintain interest in coming months.
In their first month, over 10,000 of the bars have been sold, says Fuzail, who has enlisted Dewsbury-based Tastebuds as his distributor, and is selling a multi-pack of four bars for £21.50 on TikTok Shop.
The bars, which have been produced at Fuzail’s Rotherham store, will soon be made from a production unit in Leeds. They are made with Belgian chocolate, and have a goo consistency in the middle. They are wrapped in paper to give an artisan feel, and have striking pink cardboard packaging.
“We have massive interest from forecourt retailers right now,” says Fuzail. “It is a high margin, on trend product that customers love,” he adds, explaining that the bars cost £3.50 at wholesale. “This is a viral chocolate bar made by a forecourt operator for forecourt operators,” he adds.
One stockist, the Listers Arms, Shell service station in Bradford, which started to list the chocolate bars a few days ago, says that sales are steady, and expects they will pick up after half-term when students get to hear that the business has the bars, when they return to a nearby school and sixth school college.
“We’re selling around 10 to 20 a day and expect there will be a buzz when students return after half-term,” says site manager Haroon Ijaz.
