Honeymoon Chocolates has announced that it will close its retail and manufacturing location at 16 N. Central Avenue in Clayton on October 29.
“We needed twice as much traffic in that space as we’d been getting to break even, and it never looked like we were going to get there,” says co-founder Cam Loyet, adding that nearby construction also contributed to the decision. “So we began looking into alternative options.”
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Now, the business is in the process of moving its production and storage to a commissary in Chesterfield, at a time when the brand’s ramping up in other ways.
The Product
The major difference between Honeymoon and its competitors is how the product is sweetened: Instead of standard sugars, the company uses raw honey, purchased directly from local beekeepers. Honeymoon is also a 100 percent “bean-to-bar” operation, which means full involvement in every step of the chocolate-making process.
Its products include single-origin chocolate bars, roasted cocoa beans, roasted nibs, drinking chocolate, chocolate tea, and branded merchandise.
The locally owned storefront opened early last year with the hope of increasing the brand’s local exposure and expanding its presence nationwide. Honeymoon Chocolates are also available at a variety of local retailers including Whole Foods, The Annex, Winslow’s Table, and SqWires, among others. The chocolates are also launching at seven metro area Fresh Thyme stores later this week.
Nationwide, the brand has resonated in the Los Angeles area, where its products are sold in Erewhon, Jimbo’s, Lassen’s, and Clark’s stores. “We’re in 15 Whole Foods in Chicago, but the market in LA is more health-conscious and fitness-forward,” says Loyet. “They read labels and are hyper-concerned about what they eat there, so we were able to fill a gap.”
At the Fancy Food Show this June in New York, the brand launched its chocolate-dipped honeycomb, where it was so well-received that discussions have begun with World Market and Williams-Sonoma to carry the product, says Loyet.
“The honeycomb is a little more expensive, but our next push will be to launch a less expensive, mini-chocolate bar, something in the $5 range,” adds Loyet. “It’s no secret that the market is much larger at a lower price point.”
The Background
Honeymoon Chocolates began as a dorm room project when co-founders (and now married couple) Cam and Haley Loyet discovered they shared a passion for chocolate. Cam began tinkering with chocolate nibs and used the first batch of finished chocolate to apply for a grant through their college, which led to a $5,000 award and mentorship. They eventually decided to devote their energy into the chocolate business. The first products reached shelves in 2019 and has since become a premier local source for handcrafted, bean-to-bar chocolate.
Despite the Clayton store’s closure, Loyet says, “our chocolate factory will resume its manufacturing and fulfillment seamlessly.” Loyet adds that the company also hopes to receive an Arch Grants “growth grant,” part of the company’s ongoing matching fundraising effort to raise $200,000.
“We received our first Arch Grant in 2021,” Loyet says. “The growth grants were later awarded to businesses with high-growth potential. This grant will propel us forward and help with our move into the new space, so we can manufacture more chocolate.”
