THE Chocolate Cellar has been providing delicious, homemade goodies for people in Wirral and all over the country for 17 years.
Owner Bala Croman says there are chocolates for everyone – to suit all ages and tastes – from chocolate novelties to truffles to hot chocolate.
Here, in our Trader of the Week feature, Bala tells us how much she likes working with chocolate, how it brings joy to everyone that tries it and how the online chocolate making workshops that were a hit during lockdown.
What’s the name of the business?
The Chocolate Cellar
What’s the address?
50 New Chester Road, New Ferry, CH62 5AB
Are you the owner/manager?
The owner
When did you open the business?
2005
Has it always been in the same location?
No we have been very mobile. I started off from home and then took on a small space in Birkenhead. In 2008, I decided to take some space in Liverpool One, but this was very expensive for so in 2012 I moved the business back home to keep overheads down. After outgrowing the space at home, I decided to move into our current space in New Ferry, where we have settled in well.
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Are you local to the area? Did you grow up here?
I moved to Wirral from London
Tell me a bit about your business
I have a chocolate business and at The Chocolate Cellar we make delicious, delightful chocolate. We are based in New Ferry and are open four days a week. We also have an online shop.
What do you do? What services do you provide?
We make chocolates for everyone. We make award winning truffles, chocolate novelties and hot chocolates for all ages. We supply other local shops and delis and we make chocolates as well as chocolate show pieces for weddings and corporate events. We also run chocolate making workshops for children’s parties and schools as well as hen parties, team building and any other special occasions.
Why did you decide to open your own business?
I started making chocolates as a hobby and tested them on friends and family who encouraged me to sell them. I started off selling them when I had a batch so only every now and then. But, I soon started getting orders for special occasions and thought how great it would be to make chocolates all the time. The business has grown very organically.
What’s your business background?
I have always wanted to run my own business and I have played around with different business ideas but this is the first business I have fully committed to.
Why this type of business?
Chocolate is such a delightful, intriguing medium to work with and it brings so much happiness to everyone, through looking at it, smelling it, tasting it and giving it as a gift. It is amazing and so diverse to work with.
How did the Covid-19 pandemic affect your business?
We have been open throughout the pandemic. We were not able to run any of our workshops or go to any markets or events, so this side of the business was very severely affected. We did start making kits that were sent out for people to make their own chocolates and also ran workshops via Zoom. It was a very difficult time for everyone and I decided to focus on improving the online shop, offering free local delivery. We delivered gifts for parents from their children, for friends, and for so many people who were alone and vulnerable or isolated. We were honoured that our customers trusted us to be the go-between in their families.
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What makes your business different to others in the same area/field? What sets your business apart from your competitors?
As a business, we aim to bring joy and happiness to our customers through our chocolates and through our service. We are focused on doing this well and will always try move with the times. We are keen to work and collaborate with other small independent businesses.
Why do loyal customers return to your business?
We genuinely care about our customers and, over the years, we have got to know them and their families and many have become friends.
What's next? What do the next few months hold for you and your business?
Our biggest focus is Christmas and making sure that we make enough stock! After that there are some new products that we will be launching just in time for Mother's Day!
If you would like be featured as Trader of the Week, email heidi.summerfield@newsquest.co.uk
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