Green Chocolate from UAE
Crispy Texture, Rich Filling Features
"Marketing Utilizing SNS Influence"
The chocolate brand "Fix Dessert Chocolatier" (Fix Chocolate), based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and known as "Dubai Chocolate" in Korea, is gaining tremendous popularity. It became a hot topic when broadcasters Park Narae (left) and Jeon Hyunmoo tasted it on the popular MBC variety show. [Image source=MBC 'I Live Alone' broadcast screen capture]
The chocolate brand 'Fix Dessert Chocolatier' (Fix Chocolate), based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is gaining tremendous popularity. Known in Korea as 'Dubai Chocolate,' this product is characterized by its overflowing filling and colorful design, made by mixing kadaif (a thin noodle from the Middle East) with green pistachio cream.
The buzz around 'Dubai Chocolate' began in earnest when a TikTok influencer's video of eating the chocolate bar went viral. In the video, the influencer takes a bite of the large, thick chocolate bar, and the crispy crunching sound along with the flowing green filling piqued the curiosity of the MZ generation. The video quickly spread through social media, currently amassing 64 million views.
Videos featuring 'Dubai Chocolate' as content are gaining popularity on YouTube. Photo by YouTube Capture
Interest in Dubai Chocolate is growing in Korea as well, leading to a flood of similar products. Recently, CU started selling 'Dubai Style Chocolate,' and GS25, 7-Eleven, and Emart24 are also set to launch their versions by the end of this month.
Fix Chocolate Has Over 200,000 Followers... SNS Marketing Targeting the MZ Generation
Fix Chocolate is a newly launched brand from 2021. It is produced by a small company with about 10 employees. This dessert company focuses on Middle Eastern-style chocolate bars filled with various ingredients. All production is done by hand. They do not operate any offline malls or official websites, so purchases are only possible at two stores located in Dubai. They limit sales to 500 chocolate bars per day, priced at 65 AED (about 24,000 KRW) each, which is relatively expensive, but they sell out immediately once the purchase link opens due to high demand.
As the popularity of 'Dubai Chocolate' grew, Fix Chocolate earned the nickname 'Millennial Willy Wonka.' Willy Wonka is a character from Roald Dahl's 1964 novel "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." He is portrayed as the entrepreneur who created the greatest chocolate factory in the fictional world. Keywords symbolizing Willy Wonka such as 'creativity' and 'innovation' overlap with Fix Chocolate’s brand image, leading to this nickname.
The reason for its global fame is attributed to SNS marketing targeting the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z). The smartphone penetration rate in the UAE reached 96% as of 2023, making SNS marketing highly effective. In fact, Fix Chocolate’s Instagram and TikTok followers number around 200,000 and 220,000 respectively. The UAE’s status as a 'young country' also played a role. In 2024, the median age in the UAE is 33.6 years, which is over 10 years younger than South Korea’s 46.1 years.
A report on overseas market trends by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) Kati analyzed Fix Chocolate, stating that it "cleverly utilized the ripple effect of SNS." The report noted, "It has a chocolate form perfect for short-form videos. Additionally, it collaborates with SNS influencers to spread content and actively communicates by sharing consumer reviews in Instagram story highlights. It is becoming established as a 'must-try chocolate when visiting Dubai,' and attention is focused on whether it can evolve into a chocolate shop with a long-standing tradition."
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