The Canny Chocolate Company transitions from hobby to booming confectionary company
South Shields has its very own golden ticket in The Canny Chocolate Company, as local entrepreneur and chocolatier Kevin Reay plans to sweeten up the seaside town with his mouth-watering creations.
The Canny Chocolate Company only started serving its sweet treats back in 2020, but the business has gone from strength to strength since its spontaneous inception during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based within South Shields Business Works, The CCC is the first of its kind in the town, and the business plans to bring attention to the wealth of creativity and quality present within the region.
From travel agent to trained chocolatier, CCC founder Kevin’s portfolio career embodies the entrepreneurial spirit. A Marsden native, the 27 year old has been around the world and back to South Shields again. Straight after completing his A-levels Kevin satisfied his urge to travel, leaving home to travel the world while working in the tourism industry.
He started out as a holiday representative for Thomas Cook before working as an excursions manager for P&O Cruises and getting his undergraduate degree in tourism and hospitality management along the way. On his return to South Shields, he turned his attention to property, working as an estate agent for Jan Forster. It’s safe to say that Kevin is not afraid of immersing himself in new opportunities.
However, it was the pandemic that spurred him on to take the biggest leap of faith to date, in which he took a lockdown hobby and transformed it into a successful business.
As we all know, the pandemic left many of us homebound and in search of something to occupy our time and exercise our brains. For Kevin, an internet search led him to an online business called Learning With Experts, which offers a range of courses for the public to purchase in the hopes of learning some new skills or finding a new hobby.
During his search, Kevin came across a chocolate-making course led by award-winning English chocolatier Paul A. Young. As Kevin says himself, “chocolate is a feel good thing”, and during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic he realised how much he and everyone else needed to enjoy that type of escape. So, from a corner of Kevin’s kitchen, a homegrown chocolatier was born.
At the heart of The Canny Chocolate Company, is Kevin’s passion for uninhibited creativity. Despite years of travelling, it was a global pandemic that gave Kevin the confidence to move outside of his comfort zone.
Since his first chocolate-making course, Kevin has invested around £50,000 into his so-called “hobby”, where he has worked alongside experts and honed his craft into a true artform. After moving into its business premises in September 2021, The CCC has established itself as a beacon of success within the local independent business community, but even Kevin admits that he has “completely and utterly surprised” himself.
Diving head first into an unfamiliar industry while having to navigate new roles and responsibilities, Kevin knew that he could only be as strong as the people that surrounded him. With tremendous help from his sister Lynzie, an integral £12,000 investment from good friend and local entrepreneur Paula Fowler, as well as continued support from the local area, Kevin has been able to cultivate his passion into a “canny” regional success story.
In the North East, it’s a widely known fact that people love to celebrate and support their own. It’s this commitment to the region that has created a space for small businesses to thrive and survive in the wake of a pandemic.
As a small-batch chocolatier, Kevin is well acquainted with the highs and lows that accompany the role of a small business owner. But instead of letting fish/pond comparisons scare him away, Kevin decided to build his brand around the exclusivity and undeniable charm that only an independently-owned company can offer.
“Business is tough,” Kevin said. “It’s hard. You’ve just got to take each day as it is. Some weeks are really good weeks, some weeks are terrible. This might be a selfish thing to say, but I’m thankful for the pandemic in some ways because I wouldn’t be where I am now without it. The time and the money I wasn’t spending on petrol and tunnel fares meant I had the disposable income to learn a new skill and launch this business.”
The Canny Chocolate Company focuses on exposing customers to new experiences and tastes, while providing them with an ethically-sourced, additive and preservative-free take on their favourite comfort food .
With no strict recipes or menus being followed, no batch is the same. However, what never changes is Kevin’s dedication to fairtrade, sustainability sourced and 100% traceable ingredients.
“Everything that I make is all different each time,” he explained. “I’ve learned very quickly not to follow a recipe. The chocolate you taste today might be a little bit different next week because I make things in small batches and I don’t ever stick to the same menu. I’ve got to constantly keep it fresh for my customers and that also keeps it fresh for me.
The Canny Chocolate Company offers a variety of chocolate treats including bon bons, bars, truffles, lollipops and vegan blends, which is supported by Kevin’s informative and hands-on workshops and bookable interactive demonstrations.
Kevin’s delectable creations are attracting customers from far and wide, expanding beyond his local community. With a social-media focused strategy combined with word-of-mouth community support, Kevin has been able to convert potential into profit.
The Canny Chocolate Company has even caught the attention of British businessman Steven Bartlett of Dragon’s Den, who chose Kevin’s company as one of ten UK businesses to be awarded the Vodafone Small-Business Shout Out Award 2022.
The win earned The Canny Chocolate Company hundreds of new followers and customers from across the UK. But in spite of his growing national reach, Kevin prides himself on being a local lad, whose DIY mindset and subsequent success has turned the spotlight onto the legions of entrepreneurs who are making a difference within the North East.
Ultimately, Kevin believes that “the pandemic motivated people to start shopping locally”, and without such a shift, The Canny Chocolate Company would not be what it is today.
For Kevin, one of the main reasons that small businesses are able to thrive in the North East is the region’s community-first attitude and willingness to support local people. The support he has received from his local customer-base and council has been invaluable to his success, he said.
This continued support has allowed Kevin to explore his craft and discover new flavours, shapes, colours and textures. It’s this endless inventiveness that remains at the heart of the business. In Kevin’s words, The Canny Chocolate Company maintains a focus on “quality over quantity”.
This outlook is unlikely to change in the near future, Kevin said. While many ask him if he has aspirations to follow in the footsteps of international brands like Hotel Chocolat, Kevin is content making a comfortable living while doing what he loves and producing the end product with his own hands.
“I’m comfortable with my small business infrastructure,” Kevin explained. While he has no concrete plans for expansion, the Canny Chocolate Company is certainly growing as Kevin prepares for his 2022 Great Taste Award submission and what he is expecting to be another busy Christmas period.
As Kevin hinted, “you never know what the future holds”, but as life happens chocolate helps. We can’t wait to see what The Canny Chocolate Company gets up to next, but for would-be entrepreneurs in the region, Kevin has some wise words of advice.
“Research and know your market,” he adds. “I can’t stress enough how important it is to be prepared. However, you also have to make sure that you have enough time to commit to a project, as well as the subsequent marketing needed to get your idea out into the world.
“And remember, make sure to find a good work/life balance, because to find your own slice of success you need to find time to enjoy the process. I know people who run businesses who are run off their feet and they don’t have time for themselves. But I make sure to draw the line between work and leisure.”
Whether you’re a North East native, a travelling tourist or simply a gift-buyer looking to support a small business, for more information, online bookings or purchases head to the Canny Chocolate Company website, or head in-store to experience the well-deserved hype for yourself (open Thursday, Friday and Saturday).
