Posted by Brian Bailey on September 20, 1997 at 23:06:56:
In Reply to: Advice from experienced chocolatiers posted by Susan Boardman on September 19, 1997 at 20:34:36:
Hmmmm....
First, it sounds like you want to be involved hands on in your shop. That's great. I would recommend that you go to work in a serious chocolate shop first before you invest in one of your own. Visit if you can, some good Swiss and French shops. It sounds like you have a love for the art already and can appreciate the hand work and craft necessary to make good chocolates. The technical knowledge takes only half a lifetime to learn, the artistic part takes a mere 3 lifetimes.
I say that not to discourage you, but I run into so many people everyday that "want to have their own bakery...pastry shop...chocolate shop..." but change their mind very quickly when they actually have to work in one.
Chocolate is perhaps the costliest ingredient in a pastry shop. The people who know how to work it cost the most of this segment of the industry. Expensive materials, labor (if you can find trained people) make for a risky business proposition.
And, oh yeah, the equipment is all expensive, tempermental, imported stuff.
But...
Chocolate is one of the most beautiful, complex foods in the world. It can produce huge amounts of pleasure both for the creator and consumer. It is THE indulgence. Good chocolates contribute to your soul. Please open a fantastic chocolate
shop. But work in one for a while so you gain the full respect for the undertaking.