Why 80% of Éntisi’s festive business is gifting

India’s festive gifting basket is being re-engineered. A quick-commerce search that starts with a simple box of kaju katli can end with a hamper of dark chocolate, trail mix, crackers and cheese. The sweets aren’t vanishing; they are sharing space with gifts chosen to say something specific.

From ritual to expression

At Mumbai-based artisanal chocolate brand Éntisi Chocolatier, founder and CEO Nikki Thakker says gifting contributes roughly 50% of overall business. In the festive period that figure climbs to about 80%, with Diwali as the most important window.

The surge shows up across the segment. SMOOR, the Bengaluru gourmet chocolate brand, attributes 25–30% of revenue to gifting, especially hampers, and says 90% of its sales are purchases made as gifts for others. Food Square India sees gifting rise from about 10% of retail revenue in a normal month to 20–25% at peak festive season.

Ferns N Petals chief marketing officer Avi Kumar, looking back over 30 years, describes the shift as moving from ritual to “a form of expression.” Consumers still gift for traditional reasons, but they now choose for relevance to the recipient, relationship and occasion.

Why gourmet hampers win

• Permissible indulgence: MTR Foods’ Anupam Nair says buyers are not leaving sweets; they want jaggery, dates, dry fruits, ghee and portion-controlled formats. That insight produced Mysore Pak Date Bites.
• Variety plus shelf life: Food Square’s Kunal Ganger says mithai can feel repetitive and has a short shelf life, opening room for premium chocolate, stuffed dates, flavoured nuts, cookies and cheese.
• Premiumisation beyond metros: Digital exposure is pulling smaller towns toward premium gifts; Ganger says premiumisation is no longer limited to metros.

The job has changed: sell the choice, not the box

The strategic frame here is jobs-to-be-done. The old gifting job was discharging a festive obligation, so the conversation was “how much was inside the box.” The new job is social expression: what was chosen and why. That single shift changes product, pricing, packaging and media.

SMOOR reads the less-sweet signal and launched Kunafa with 70% dark chocolate. Éntisi leans on packaging-led storytelling and digital discovery. Farmley’s Aman Gupta focuses on consistency in how a pack opens and feels. Food Square offers a festive catalogue and dedicated gifting concierges. FNP ties its 350-plus stores, e-commerce and quick-commerce partnerships into one omnichannel moment.

For brand managers, the takeaway is simple: don’t sell the volume of the box; sell the thoughtfulness of the curation. The gift has to feel chosen.

Source: Afaqs!