The second instalment of our ‘Lily Loves’ blog features the wonderful Oli The Choc. Oli’s love of chocolate started at a very young age seeing his parents run a successful family business ‘Simon Dunn Chocolatier’ with shops across South Manchester. After finishing college and not knowing what he wanted to do, a position became available within the family business in Stockport and the rest is history!
Very quickly, Oli’s passion for chocolate grew and after working for the family business for five years, he realised that he wanted to share his passion by sharing with others the magic of chocolate. This brought with it the idea of ‘Oliver’s Chocolate Parties’, a concept designed by Oli to give people the same feeling that he had as a child when watching and helping his parents make chocolates. As Oli himself says, “there is no better feeling than creating something special from nothing and feeling really proud of yourself afterwards.”
‘Oliver’s Chocolate Parties’ quickly became a success, resulting in him leaving the family business and setting up on his own 10 years ago. ‘Oliver’s Chocolate Parties’ have grown in demand year on year and clients have ranged from kids’ parties to adults’ birthdays, corporate events and hen dos. There is even an option for Oli and his team to host the party for you – creating a bespoke package to suit you, from suggesting and organising a venue, sourcing the food, invitations, entertainment and more!
Fast forward to 2020, and the impact of COVID-19 unfortunately meant that ‘Oliver’s Chocolate Parties’ were not able to go ahead. Oli had to go back to the drawing board and think of a way to pivot the business and his offerings. His aim was to bring some extra joy into people’s lives during and after lockdown and, as a result, he decided to take his presence online and offer the experience virtually.
Throughout the past six months or so, Oli has been selling chocolate making kits which can be delivered globally and allow people of all ages to bring the magic of chocolate into their own kitchens. There are many kits to choose from, such as chocolate pizzas, chocolate mobile phones and even vegan chocolate kits. Each kit is delivered to your door, along with step by step instructions and YouTube tutorials to enable you to make the delicious treats in the comfort of your own home. Whilst this is great for keeping kids entertained, it is also a unique and fun way to bring employees together for a virtual work activity and Oli has had many corporate enquiries.
In addition to this, Oli has also been hosting an ‘After School Choc Club’ which goes live every Friday afternoon at 4pm on Facebook, where kids can cook-a-long and learn how to make things like lollies, chocolate fries and more! For the adults out there who are wanting to cook-a-long and to learn how to make delicious and unusual chocolate treats like white chocolate truffle skulls, Oli has been doing live shows on Facebook with a local company called Sugar & Crumbs. His next live class will be on Monday 28th September and tickets can be bought online.
If you follow us on social media, you will have seen that we are thrilled to have partnered with Oli The Choc for our candidate placement gifts. Oli has created the ‘Chocolate Smash’ which we send out to all permanent candidates when they start their new role to wish them good luck. Not only is figuring out how to smash the chocolate great fun, but we love the social aspect of our candidates sharing the deliciousness with their new colleagues. We’ve even hidden some Lily Shippen merchandise inside (but ssshhh – don’t ruin the surprise)! Unsurprising, they’ve gone down a treat and we have received brilliant feedback from all of our candidates – I mean, who doesn’t love chocolate?!
The ‘Chocolate Smashes’ can be tailored to your specific brand and can be personalised using your company logo and merchandise. These make a great new starter gift, birthday or work anniversary present for members of your team or employees.
We have been extremely impressed with Oli and the work he has done for us so far and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him. He is extremely passionate, friendly and professional and has over 16 years of knowledge and expertise.
If you would like to learn more about Oli The Choc and the services he provides, please don’t hesitate to contact him at https://www.olithechoc.com/ or you can find him at Oli The Choc on Facebook and @oli_the_choc on Instagram.