The administration is part of a prepack agreement that will result in Prestat, which also fell into administration, being acquired by chocolate manufacturer L'Artisan du Chocolat, owned by Polus Capital Management. Prestat continues to trade as an online store, but it closed its historic Piccadilly shop in central London in February. Marasu's Petit Fours was established in 1986 by patissiers Rolf Kern and Gabi Kohler and was acquired by the Prestat Group in 2006.
Prestat held two Royal Warrants and counted the Royal Family, including Princess Diana, among its clientele. In 2003, The Economist magazine ranked Prestat as one of the top three chocolate shops in the world, and it is believed to have inspired the fantastical sweet shop in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Prestat's truffles were also referenced by Roald Dahl in his novel My Uncle Oswald.
The chocolate industry has been impacted by global cocoa prices soaring to record highs in 2024 due to disease and extreme weather in key producing nations like Ghana and Ivory Coast, which together account for approximately 60% of the world's cocoa production.