One thing we’ve found a lot of pleasure in is making things off the beaten path.  I’m not saying picking out some chocolate treat from our menu is bad, we love all we have built but in the end we’re artists and the menu is just the beginning of a discussion.  As a way for us to show a little of what we are able to do the rest of the fun happens when we get to talk about your chocolate ideas.

Customizing Chocolate For Your Special Event

Custom chocolate favors is an easy one that gets personalized.  Maybe it’s an initial on a chocolate truffle or a special design on a cake or torte.  After the initial phone calls or meeting with a client the family discusses options and thoughts, sleeps on it, forgets some, talks about it again, and then ideas begin to gel.

Last week we had an order for some customized brownie pops. After a few calls back and forth and internal talks we decided to ditch the pop idea and just go for something more favor driven.  

We had a special birthday woman who told us her name, her favorite color, and her upcoming celebration.  She wanted us to run with the concept on our own and just make something special that she could give her friends that were attending.

A Custom Enrobed Brownie

What we came up with was something simple, colorful, and unique for her.  We also like the dual message of 60 and flip it over 09. That doesn’t happen terribly often.

Happiness is Chocolate

No matter what we are doing we have to enjoy doing it. If we’re not having a good time we think that will directly translate into your chocolate experience. So far everyone we treat seems to have a great experience and that’s fantastic.

If you find yourself in need of some delicious enrobed chocolate goodness you can check us out locally at the markets or buy chocolate online. If you are ready to dream little (or big) chocolate dream, we’ll be more than happy to do that as well.

This entire journey began last Spring, over a year ago.  It was just an idea, a dabble, a trial.   Let’s see where it goes, if there was a consumer audience desiring something more.

You were, and we’ve been supplying it ever since.

From one market to three we see cycles in life that we never knew were there. Consistency in the inconsistent as it were.  In the public we get to interact with a lot of people, enriching our lives with stories as we trade a spoonful of chocolate ganache, maybe the exchange of a special truffle.

Education by Trail and Error

Every interaction we do brings us a little more knowledge on how to handle the situation the next time.  There is no real playbook when you are working out the kinks in online, retail, wholesale.  Finances are so much fun. Tracking all the CoGS, R&D, taxes.. oh taxes.. you vex us all with complications.

There are so many caveats starting a business, I don’t think anyone is able to have their eye on all the minutia that is involved.  It truly is a daunting task and we have all shared in the awe to anyone out there that has established themselves.

The Path to Retail

We are learning and that’s the great thing. In our retail account endeavors we’ve made great connections with local Common Market and Reid’s Fine Foods.  These two companies bend a good ear to local businesses.  

We’ve been trying to break into some other retail engagements but the more you deal with “corporate” the more you end up repeating yourself, a larger lag time occurs, and a general uncaring seems evident which is sad.  Even if you’re big you should empower the local sides of your business to be flexible.

Private labeling is new territory for us too.  A fast growing local business wanted to support us and we’ve started pilot testing of some chocolate in their stores under their branding.  We certainly hope their audience likes what we’ve delivered! More “secrets” for The Secret Chocolatier!

For all intents and purposes retail has been a lot of fun! We are about to start some regular demos supporting our brand, products, and those who host us.  If you would like to learn more about our products in your store, or curious about a unique product for your own brand get in touch.

Chocolate School is Not Out

No Summer break for us.  There is so much more to learn and do.  I step back from all the fine grained details and I can see thousands more in the distance.  We’re just now starting to talk about looking for a kitchen of our own, maybe the glimmer of a little showroom.  Evolving to those ideas will take so much more work it almost makes me light headed.

For me, I am lucky.  I have great chocolate and a good family.

Mother’s day is right around the corner and there are many things I reflect upon fondly but, because food is one of the ways we communicate, celebrate and nurture relationships, I usually end up thinking about family gatherings and things surrounding food.

My Mother Helped Me Start the Day Right

One of the many things I remember growing up is that I always ate breakfast. When I would get bored with cereal my mother and I would to talk about choices that were tasty in the morning. I would decide what sounded good at the time and usually stuck with it for a few weeks till I needed a change again. Sometimes she would make me poached eggs (I love dipping toast into the runny yolk). The most interesting breakfast I remember was a “jelly omelet”. The omelet was cooked with plain eggs in a pan, a spoonful of jelly was put in the middle, then it was folded over (yum, yum). That little bit of sweetness made sure this child got a healthy dose of protein, vitamins, and iron to start the day. How clever of her! Because I was one of 5 children and we all had staggered school times I don’t know how many times she went through this each morning but I’m thankful for having a role model of good eating habits.

Traditions are What You Make Them

Following in that tradition, when my children were younger I always made sure they started the day with healthy food (though at times they tried to resist). Sometimes we had hot cereal, cold cereal, and the girls each had a special bowl handed down to them that they loved using for boiled eggs. But I especially remember cooking French toast at 6:15 in the morning because it was a favorite. Then the three of us would run out the door trying to get to school on time, I as teacher and they as students.

Honoring Mothers

So this year once again I will remember & honor my mother who always made me feel smart.

I will remember my aunt who through her own example showed me that women are intelligent and can go anywhere and do anything.

I will remember my grandmother who was always modern and so up to date on things that impacted me, even when I became a teenager and young adult.

I will remember my mother-in-law, who helped me in so many ways when my children were young. (Babysitting and helping me keep my sanity).

And I will remember my two sisters who are both amazing mothers and who I miss very much.

Take time to remember the women in your life.
Happy Mother’s Day!

Karen

p.s. I of course, will be sending my mother chocolate truffles, but don’t tell -sshhh

What does Spring mean to you?

To us, and we have big talks about this, Spring has clean, fresh thoughts. Light, bright, and fun. Spring stepped through on the calendar a few weeks ago but the climate is still figuring it out here in the Carolina’s and much of the Northern Hemisphere. We’re still glad to be in transition though.

At the end of a season we feel the call to shift. Everyone around us does from working through closets, a clean home, an office where you can find the paperwork, our farmer friends planting seeds, to the foods that you start getting a hankering for (grill night anyone?).

Where do you fall in the Spring lineup? Anything you miss that you welcome back with open arms?

As things shift we begin to dream of the new flavors we want to explore or some signatures to bring back. Not having a shop means we can’t have as diverse a selection as we would like. Great things take time, we understand, but that doesn’t mean we have to stifle our creativity. We just have to dole it out sparingly across the months.

We hope we can entice you to try some of our Spring chocolates. The organic Violet flowers truffles are a becoming quite a hit this season. Followed by Pink Grapefruit, Chai, & Vanilla Bean.

Well, chocolate is good all the time but that’s beside the point. It’s tough times. No doubt about it. Yet every day we help people enjoy something more for a few moments with Chocolate. That’s really special.

We were speaking with a reporter the other day who was asking about chocolate in an uncertain economy. I was reminded of a passage from Discover Chocolate where Clay talks about how everyone can be a King with chocolate.

There are very few items that you can indulge in that usually cost a lot. How can you have a feast if all you can afford is a taste of the gravy? How often can you just have a sip of the best wines? Old liquors still cost hundreds a serving. Even if chocolate is $100/pound a delightful treat may only cost $5. That’s not bad at all. It’s nice to know that everyone can have a real moment that doesn’t break the bank.

It’s one reason we like our product so much, each bite no matter how big or small is a delight. Sourcing high quality ingredients worked with passion and artisanal fundamentals creating an affordable product that really can daze people. Robin said it best tonight that she sometimes felt bad to continue talking when she saw that glaze happen over a persons eyes. I look forward to a day we can point someone to a seat or couch and tell them to sink into that feeling for a bit.

Until then continue supporting the ingredients with good stories, recipes that excite the artisan, and places that give you comfort. For a small price you’ll find some chocolate indulgences that will keep you happy.