An Interview with David Levy, owner of Chocolate Tales
By Adam
May 30, 2011
Small Business & Entrepreneurship
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By Donna Marrin
Tell us about your business and how you started it.
Chocolate Tales is an entertainment company that uses chocolate as its medium. I started the business after working with chocolate, alongside a good friend of mine who had studied chocolate making in Belgium.
I arrived in Canada two years ago with no capital to open a business. My wife and I brainstormed various ideas and came up with this idea, based on similar activities I had already performed outside of Canada.
What was your early vision for your business, and how has it changed over time?
The vision was to be a household name in Ontario—first through entertainment and at later stages, via products (chocolate production). I am still working on it, and based on my business plan, I am about six months ahead of myself. To be honest, I haven't had to alter the business plan yet.
Can you share any interesting facts about chocolate?
In North America, each person consumes approximately 12 pounds of chocolate in
the course of a year—or about three-quarters of a chocolate bar per week. Out of one cocoa tree harvest, you can produce about four to five chocolate bars. Dark
chocolate is healthy for you… good for your heart, liver and blood system.
Describe a day in the life…
At 6:00 am, I’m on the computer replying to all the emails inquiring
about our services. By 9:00 am, I’m at the office, marketing and receiving phone calls, meeting at noon with possible business opportunity, back to the office to pack
for an event; leave for the event at 3:00 pm; by 9:00 pm—home sweet home.
How do you find balance between your business life and your home life?
As my schedule shows, there’s currently no balance between work and private life. I
take about one or two days off during the month. Chocolate Tales is a start-up and I
use my own (cheap) labour to thrust it forward!
How would you describe your ideal day?
On an ideal day, I close five events and interview the perfect candidate to be a
Chocolatier/Entertainer.
Do you have a favorite business tool or resource?
The Internet is the strongest tool I have; I would say that 90% of my investment in marketing is online. The Web provides me with an ever-increasing number of leads.
What is the key to your success?
The key to my success is to work hard and have a good understanding of my
potential customers’ needs and interests.
ABOUT DAVID LEVY of CHOCOLATE TALES Throughout the years, I have developed an appreciation for the magical cocoa bean and its primary product: chocolate. It all started when I was a child... my father would return from his travels in Europe and bring us chocolates from the countries he visited: France, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Italy and Spain were only some of the places that he purchased the very best European chocolates for us to enjoy. I noticed that between all the chocolates, the Belgium brands were the smoothest and richest of them all. This memory stayed with me for years, dormant until I was a young adult travelling around Europe myself. I was in the process of figuring out what profession to pursue, and wanted something unique that I could be shared with others. Chocolate is what I found! I decided that working with chocolate was exactly what I wanted to do. And the rest is history! Since then my wife and I have dedicated ourselves to the teaching of specialty chocolate making, and entertaining people with the secrets of making wonderful chocolate creations. For more information, contact Chocolate Tales: 1-800-905-2858 or visit www.ChocolateTales.ca. You can also see the link to our video at http://youtu.be/ZC9jupfaU0Y
Tell us about your business and how you started it.
Chocolate Tales is an entertainment company that uses chocolate as its medium. I started the business after working with chocolate, alongside a good friend of mine who had studied chocolate making in Belgium.
I arrived in Canada two years ago with no capital to open a business. My wife and I brainstormed various ideas and came up with this idea, based on similar activities I had already performed outside of Canada.
What was your early vision for your business, and how has it changed over time?
The vision was to be a household name in Ontario—first through entertainment and at later stages, via products (chocolate production). I am still working on it, and based on my business plan, I am about six months ahead of myself. To be honest, I haven't had to alter the business plan yet.
Can you share any interesting facts about chocolate?
In North America, each person consumes approximately 12 pounds of chocolate in
the course of a year—or about three-quarters of a chocolate bar per week. Out of one cocoa tree harvest, you can produce about four to five chocolate bars. Dark
chocolate is healthy for you… good for your heart, liver and blood system.
Describe a day in the life…
At 6:00 am, I’m on the computer replying to all the emails inquiring
about our services. By 9:00 am, I’m at the office, marketing and receiving phone calls, meeting at noon with possible business opportunity, back to the office to pack
for an event; leave for the event at 3:00 pm; by 9:00 pm—home sweet home.
How do you find balance between your business life and your home life?
As my schedule shows, there’s currently no balance between work and private life. I
take about one or two days off during the month. Chocolate Tales is a start-up and I
use my own (cheap) labour to thrust it forward!
How would you describe your ideal day?
On an ideal day, I close five events and interview the perfect candidate to be a
Chocolatier/Entertainer.
Do you have a favorite business tool or resource?
The Internet is the strongest tool I have; I would say that 90% of my investment in marketing is online. The Web provides me with an ever-increasing number of leads.
What is the key to your success?
The key to my success is to work hard and have a good understanding of my
potential customers’ needs and interests.
ABOUT DAVID LEVY of CHOCOLATE TALES Throughout the years, I have developed an appreciation for the magical cocoa bean and its primary product: chocolate. It all started when I was a child... my father would return from his travels in Europe and bring us chocolates from the countries he visited: France, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Italy and Spain were only some of the places that he purchased the very best European chocolates for us to enjoy. I noticed that between all the chocolates, the Belgium brands were the smoothest and richest of them all. This memory stayed with me for years, dormant until I was a young adult travelling around Europe myself. I was in the process of figuring out what profession to pursue, and wanted something unique that I could be shared with others. Chocolate is what I found! I decided that working with chocolate was exactly what I wanted to do. And the rest is history! Since then my wife and I have dedicated ourselves to the teaching of specialty chocolate making, and entertaining people with the secrets of making wonderful chocolate creations. For more information, contact Chocolate Tales: 1-800-905-2858 or visit www.ChocolateTales.ca. You can also see the link to our video at http://youtu.be/ZC9jupfaU0Y