User:Lesibondar/Millennium (factory)

Millennium — is a confectionery company based in Dnipro, Ukraine, and their trademark under the same name.

History
Established in 1999, Millennium was the first major confectionery company to be built from nothing - other companies used the power of factories that had been built in the Soviet Union. When Millennium was created, the team had 20 people (as of 2019, this number has reached 3,000 ).

In 2000, the company was the first in Ukraine to produce aerated (air) chocolate (under a license from the German brand Mauxion). Up to now, this type of chocolate remains the company's "trademark" - about 50% of the production at the factory is taken up by this product.

In 2001, Millenium was the first company in Ukraine to release a chocolate with whole nuts - Millenium Gold. It also had its own branded packaging with a cut-out, a design that has lasted almost unchanged for more than a decade.

In 2004, the factory launched a new market with its new chocolate sweets, creating another well-known brand - "Lyubimov". Also in 2006, "Oskar Le Grand" was founded - chocolate in thin bars, which allows you to better sense the details of the taste.

Since 2009, the company has been producing packaging that had previously been used only in Switzerland and Japan. The "Freshpack" lines pack the sweets without air access and keep them fresh for much longer.

The company often tries new tastes and formats of new products. In the 2010s, Millennium discovered new markets and new chocolate recipes for Ukrainian customers. This is how the "European collections" were born: extra-black brut, and later the Discover Europe collection. Each chocolate bar is dedicated to a certain country and its own confectionery traditions: Switzerland (milk with whole almonds), Belgium (black with salt) and France (extra milk), etc.

In 2016, the trademark won several nominations in the professional business award "Leader of Year Import Export Award". That year, export sales of the Millennium chocolate factory were twice higher than in 2015.

At the end of 2018, a new catalog of Fruits & Nuts chocolate was released. The recipe mixes chocolate and whole nuts with dried fruit, which, according to the management, is a very delicate process.

Nowadays, the company's products are exported to 25 countries, and according to Marketing Director Arina Shebanova, different products are popular in different countries. For example, dark chocolate is more popular in China, milk chocolate is more popular in Europe, and the amount of aerated chocolate on the Ukrainian market is higher than in other countries.

The company produces many brands of chocolate and sweets: "Millennium, "Lyubimov", "Oskar Le Grand" etc. The factory's chocolate is exported to more than 30 countries, including the United States, Australia, China, the UAE, the European Union, and Southeast and West Asia.

The company's production is exported to 30 countries.

Research suggests that 85% of the Ukrainian population is well aware of the factory's production.

The brand is a sponsor of Ukrainian television shows: "Dancing with the Stars" and "Heads and Tails" ("Орел і решка").

Main products
Millennium's product range includes not only chocolate bars, but also chocolate sweets. Main products:


 * Millennium chocolate. The range includes many types of chocolate: Golden Nut (chocolate with whole nuts), Favorite (bars with 70%-80% cocoa), Air (aerated), Discover Europe (themed chocolate related to European countries), etc.


 * Chocolate sweets: Assorted Millennium Elegance (6 original candy shapes and 7 flavors), Millennium Riviera (boat-shaped candies with premium nuts), Ocean Story (marble chocolate in the form of sea figures), Gold Series (candies with solid large-caliber nuts);


 * Lyubimov chocolate. This brand produces bars of chocolate and heart-shaped sweets. Other confectionery products are also available under the Lyubimov brand: chocolate-covered fruit, truffle almonds, and bird's milk.


 * "Lyubimov" and Ukrainian artist Evgeniya Gapchinskaya have released a collaboration collection of chocolate in unique designs that changing every season.


 * Oskar Le Grand - is a specialty chocolate (72% from Ecuador and 82% from Saint-Thomas) in super-thin bars. The brand also produces truffle sweets.

Awards

 * In 2016, the trademark won several nominations in the professional business award "Leader of Year Import Export Award"..


 * In December 2018, the Ukrainian People's Award selected Millennium as the best product in the chocolate category..


 * In May 2018, the Favorites of Success rated Millennium as the best product in its category.