巧克力衍生的8大职业

    手工艺创业者

    很多手工巧克力作坊的创始人，包括米米•维勒在内，最初的动力都是出于对巧克力，而不是对商业的热爱。维勒辞掉干了25年的社工工作，在密歇根州艾姆派尔创办了一家巧克力店，名字叫杂货商老板的女儿（Grocer's Daughter）。她有很多定期光顾的老客户，有些人来免费帮忙，也有些人成了店里的雇员。

    她说：“很多人不求回报，慷慨相助。”她把这些朋友编成“巧克力品尝团”，其中有个人说服她将这家租来的铺子涂成亮绿色。这些朋友还帮助她联系到了第一个批发客户——Zingerman's Delicatessen。

    维勒的店一周营业七天。去年，店里的销售额增长了40%。维勒在店里种了很多花草，有薰衣草、罗勒、迷迭香和薄荷，这些都会成为巧克力中的配料。维勒说，杂货商的女儿会雇佣一些“非常有创意的巧克力制造者”，其中有些只有十几岁。他们最初只是店里的顾客，后来却变成了员工。他们发明了一种香辣巧克力包裹的腌肉，还在巧克力中尝试加入茶叶。维勒说：“人们通常来店里都会问：‘这个星期又有什么新花样？’”

    Artisanal entrepreneur

    Many of those who launch artisanal chocolate shops, including Mimi Wheeler, are inspired by a love for chocolate, not business. Wheeler left her 25-year career as a social worker to create Grocer's Daughter, a shop in Empire, Mich. Customers come by regularly, some have turned into unpaid helpers and some joined her staff.

    "I saw an immense spirit of helpfulness and generosity," she says. She enlisted friends to join "tasting teams," and one of them convinced her to paint the leased shop a brilliant green. Her friendships also helped her land her first wholesale account: Zingerman's Delicatessen.

    Her shop is open seven days a week, and sales increased 40% last year. Wheeler grows herbs there, which show up in the chocolates: lavender, basil, rosemary, and mint. Grocer's Daughter employs some "very creative chocolatiers," Wheeler says, including some teens who started visiting the shop and ended up working there. They've developed a chocolate chili rub meat marinade and started using teas in chocolate. "People come and say, 'What's new this week?' says Wheeler.