Support Your Neighbors: The Chocolate Shoppe

Note: Support Your Neighbors is a feature where we take a moment to highlight local business and the people living in our community who run them. 

The chocolate speeds down the belt faster than it can be processed. Hands, smeared with ruined confections, shovel the dripping morsels into pockets, down shirts and into the mouth. That classic moment from I Love Lucy is one owner Darlene Wizorek thinks of often as she works on an enrober (the proper name for the device) on a regular basis.

Although with Valentine’s Day on the horizon, cranking the englober up to Lucy-like speeds may not be as distant a thought as it once was.

When Wizorek opened the Chocolate Shoppe in 1980, she had no idea that the family-run business would become so popular. So popular in fact, that they opened a second shop in Mendham. “In both stores we try to listen to the customers and gear our products around them, “Wizorek said. “In Mendham customers asked for seasalt caramels, we made them and they sell like crazy.  However, in Washington they are not nearly as popular. “

The Chocolate Shoppe motto is that it is impossible not to find something you like, as their selection boasts a wide variety of custom sweets. But the inconsistent economy has weighed heavily on both owner and customer alike. “I do think that people are being more careful with their spending, but they still want a quality product and they don't want to skimp on their chocolate,” Wizorek said. “We do find that for these special occasions, like Valentine's Day, customers are willing to spend on the finer things like good chocolates. And we give the best price we can always.”

No matter what the economy is or what the demographic of the store is, the philosophy never changes. “Our strategies are just to make a delicious product the best we can make it,” Wizorek said.  

Family Power

Darlene’s husband and children share in the running of the stores with her, and that has lead to a high level of customer interaction. “My daughter Emily manages the store,” Wizorek said.  “She was a business major and worked at Taylor's Home-Made Ice Cream and Mangel's Home-Made Candies. “

Daughter Jessica and son Daniel help out part time, both have each with unique skills that make running the shop easier, but it was daughter Erin who shaped the course of the business. “Erin manages the stores in Mendham,”Wizorek said. “She was the key for opening that store because she lives down the road.”

With all that time together, it might seem like a struggle to get along. For her part, Wizorek doesn’t see it that way, “It is not always an easy job, but I think that it is usually a fun job. I think that we all truly enjoy the job and working together,” the owner said. “We all are happy because the smell of chocolate raises our serotonin levels and puts us in a happy mood.”

While she does have a dog in the fight, Wizorek is also clear on why people should buy locally. “Not only is it better to support a local business, but chocolate is a fine art that global companies don't understand and they miss the personal touch,” Wizorek said. “We work with customers to create what they need for an event, such as personalized wedding favors, platters of favorite chocolates for an event. We see our customers on a regular basis and want them to be pleased with their purchases.”

For her part, Wizorek believes being a part of a community means giving back. “When you live in the community you are invested in the community,” Wizorek said.  “We also support and donate to our local communities.