Brands
DS group and Läderach open India’s first luxury chocolate café at Jio World Plaza
MUMBAI: FMCG company, The Dharampal Satyapal group (DS group), which is the exclusive Indian partner of Swiss luxury chocolatier Läderach, has launched India’s first Läderach Café at Jio World Plaza. This landmark opening offers a sophisticated chocolate experience, redefining indulgence with Läderach’s signature artisanal craftsmanship.
The café, a haven for chocolate enthusiasts, features elegant interiors and European-inspired outdoor seating. It showcases a diverse menu blending classic Swiss creations with locally inspired flavours. Special offerings include Coconut Cold Chocolate, Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate, and desserts like the Signature Chocolate Trio, Coconut Lime Cheesecake, and Berry Choco-Gato.
Läderach India spokesperson Sanskriti Gupta said: “Läderach’s first chocolate café in India, in Mumbai is the perfect place to debut this unique concept. The city’s enthusiasm for our brand has been remarkable.”
Beyond sweet treats, the café offers savoury dishes such as Beetroot & Goat Cheese Salad, Poulet Parm Focaccia, and buttery croissants. Signature pairings, including Hot Chocolate with Avocado Toast, add a creative touch to the menu, which also caters to vegan preferences with options like Vegan Hot Chocolate.
Open daily from 11 AM to 10 PM, the café provides an accessible luxury experience, with an average cost of Rs 2,000 for two. Takeaway and delivery services ensure customers can enjoy Läderach creations at their convenience.
Renowned globally for its FrischSchoggi (fresh chocolate) and commitment to high-quality ingredients, Läderach’s debut café brings an elevated dining experience to Mumbai, blending tradition with modern culinary artistry.
Brands
Dunkin’ Donuts to exit India as Jubilant FoodWorks ends 15-year franchise deal
The quick service restaurant giant is ending a 15-year franchise partnership with the American doughnut chain, even as it renews its Domino’s agreement for another 15 years
NOIDA: Dunkin’ is done in India. Jubilant FoodWorks Ltd, the country’s leading quick service restaurant operator, has decided not to renew its franchise agreement with the American coffee and doughnut chain, and will wind down its Indian stores in a phased manner before December 31, 2026, bringing a 15-year partnership to a quiet, loss-laden close.
The decision, approved by JFL’s board on March 30, 2026, ends a relationship that began with a Multiple Unit Development Franchise Agreement signed on February 24, 2011. JFL will now evaluate and undertake what it described in a regulatory filing as the “rationalisation and/or cessation of certain operations and/or sale, transfer or disposal of assets and/or assignment or transfer of franchise rights,” all in consultation with Dunkin’s brand owners and strictly within the terms of the original agreement.
The numbers tell the story bluntly. In the financial year 2024-25, Dunkin’ India posted a revenue of Rs 37 crore against a loss of Rs 19 crore — a haemorrhage that was always going to test the patience of a parent company recording revenues of Rs 6,104 crore and a profit of Rs 194 crore in the same period. Doughnuts, it turns out, were never going to move the needle.
The contrast with JFL’s handling of its other marquee franchise could hardly be sharper. Even as it walks away from Dunkin’, the company has just doubled down on Domino’s, signing a fresh Master Franchise Agreement on March 31, 2026, granting it exclusive rights to develop and operate Domino’s Pizza stores in India for 15 years, with an option to renew for a further 10.
JFL, incorporated in 1995 and promoted by the Bharatia family, operates a network of more than 3,500 stores across six markets — India, Turkey, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Its portfolio includes Domino’s and Popeyes on the global side, and two home-grown brands: Hong’s Kitchen and COFFY, a café brand in Turkey.
For Dunkin’, India was always a stretch. The brand never quite cracked the cultural code in a market where filter coffee and chai command fierce loyalty and where the doughnut remains, at best, an occasional indulgence rather than a daily habit. Fifteen years, mounting losses and a parent with better things to spend its capital on was always going to be a difficult equation to solve.
The doughnut has had its last day. The pizza, however, is staying.
