Lake Champlain Chocolates Shares the Love

BY: Emily Cummings
February 6, 2010

BURLINGTON—Local favorite, Lake Champlain Chocolates (LCC), wooed customers with free hot chocolate samples and a barbershop quartet singing romantic songs. The celebration was in the spirit of Valentine’s Day and was held on Saturday, February 6th at 2 p.m. It may have been one week prior to the big day, but for Lake Champlain Chocolates love is already in the air.



"We couldn’t think of a more fun way to get in the mood for Valentine's Day," Gary Coffey, Director of Retail for LCC, was quoted as saying.

The event, which was located at LCC’s Pine Street Factory Store and Cafe, showcased Retail Manager Emily Jones’ elegant designs. Jones, currently studying as an undergraduate student at Champlain College majoring in Graphic Design, redesigned all the chocolate sculpted signs in the store, along with many of the new poster signs hung on the walls. Jones worked to make over 160 hearts for Valentine's Day.

Assistant Store Manager, Rachel Bruce, explained that LCC tries to do something different every year for the holiday and for their customers—the new addition this year being the barbershop quartet. “It’s been really great. They've got a good following. A lot of the quartet’s fans came in to see the group perform,” Jones said, “It’s been a lot of fun.”

The barbershop quartet, called High Voltage, was formed in 1985 and has since been steadily entertaining audiences all over the New England region along with New York and Quebec. Every member of High Voltage belongs to the Green Mountain Chorus, the Burlington, Vermont chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society, and will be offering a fun twist on the classic Valentine. Singing Valentine's will be available from the group Friday, February 12th to Sunday, February 14th. If you're interested and would like more information, check out www.SingingValentines.com.

With the sounds of love coming from High Voltage, it only made the hot chocolate samples that much sweeter. There was also a nice variety of chocolate samples throughout the store. "There are about five different samples around the store," Bruce said, "We like to offer samples on the weekends since there aren't any tours going on." LCC offers tours during the week for anyone interested Monday through Friday, on the hour, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. You don't need a reservation, although large groups are encouraged to call ahead of time, and it's free.

Walking around the store, in every direction one could see that LCC has definitely caught the love bug. Hearts, decorative boxes and sweet sayings filled the shelves and cases. "This design for the boxes has been around for two or three years now," said Bruce referring to the design on the chocolate boxes, "It's a great design because it's not just the typical pink and red. It's got green and purple too and I think it makes the design that much more unique." The box design will be changing next year. "Next year there will be a whole new design," Bruce said, "I can't wait; I'm really excited."

The brightly colored packaging adds a touch of whimsy to the box. It's a great accent for those who end up making their Valentine's Day purchases at the last minute. "We see people coming in at the last minute in a panic," said Bruce, "I think it adds something for them to be able to get a box of chocolates that has a bit more unique of a design. People see the box and they really appreciate it."

The hot chocolate, the samples and the quartet all combined to make a really pleasant afternoon for visitors to Lake Champlain Chocolates that Saturday. There was a constant flow of people coming in from the bitter cold. Almost every one of them came in and went straight in for the hot chocolate. The hot chocolate, made with all natural ingredients, was another one of LCC's products.

Lake Champlain Chocolates moved into the current Pine Street location in 1998 and makes all of their chocolates in one 24,000 square foot building. During peak season, the local company employs nearly 100 people. LCC prides itself in using only the freshest, natural ingredients for all their products. Although a local business, Lake Champlain Chocolates are available not only at retail stores in Vermont, but also through mail order, through their website www.lakechamplainchocolates.com and at specialty shops nationwide.

Events like this one, charmingly coined "Sounds of Chocolate Looove" by the company, show how much they not only value good chocolate, but also the people who enjoy it. LCC plans to continue the event next year but isn't sure yet what exactly they will do. "We'll probably continue this for our customers next year, but we'll see what we come up with," Bruce said.

Lake Champlain Chocolates is a local Vermont business serving people nationwide. The event appeared to be well received by the area's patrons of all ages. By all accounts, it was a nice way to spend a blistery Saturday afternoon in Burlington, Vermont.