Blog 

On May 16, 2011, we unlocked the door of our shop on Providence Road without much fanfare. After a buildout that ran late, then later, then later still, we were ready, or ready enough. Chef Bill was hoping for a few quiet weeks to get comfortable in the new kitchen. The rest of us figured the best way to test a kitchen was to start selling chocolate. (Our 2011 look back tells it better than I can.)

A month later we threw our grand opening party, and it's still one of the busiest days we've ever had. That summer, Logan arrived.

A shell of our own

Before the shop, we'd spent three years at Charlotte-area farmers markets.

"A place of our own. It felt like a turtle finally had a shell, and our family had a place to grow. Some of that quite literally: Logan rode on Robin's back, sat on a table and watched Paw Paw stir chocolate, or rode on my arm like a football while I made phone calls and packed boxes. It was such a joy to fully step into a place we had built with the public's help."

— Andy

In 2011 the shop felt so open and spacious. We've added products, staff and equipment since then, and today the same space feels a lot smaller, in the best way.

"The shop kitchen was much quieter in the beginning. It was basically me making product, hoping everyone would like it, with Robin and Andy helping and Karen working up front with customers. My earliest memory is watching people's reactions as they looked around, and their smiles as they tried samples and filled their own boxes to take home. In my years in food service I rarely got to see anyone enjoying what I made, so that was new for me, and I still enjoy it today. Of course, that's my pre-Logan memory."

— Chef Bill

"A few new customers found their way to us each day, and our faithful customers from the farmers markets showed up weekly to support our new venture. I remember a gentleman from a nearby retirement community who stopped by every Sunday for a brownie. He'd stay and eat it right there. I think he was sneaking it while his wife wasn't around! I could write a small book of early memories. All good ones."

— Karen

Our first Valentine's Day

One of my favorite early memories is our first Valentine's Day. We had a line of customers, and I was holding baby Logan while trying to ring people up. One kind customer offered to hold him while I finished the sale. When I was done, I looked up and she had simply passed him to the next person in line.

That's Charlotte for you. And it's a good picture of how this shop has always worked: with a lot of help from the people who walk through the door.

What's changed

Our roles, and our relationships. People grow and change, so the family grows and changes, and so does the business we built around it.

"We started trying to do it all, and Charlotte makes that hard. We had to scale back some of our original ambitions, because of location or just not enough hours in the day. Time has changed us all. I'm not in the kitchen as much anymore, and many wonderful people, friends and employees have rotated through our doors. But we are still who we are."

— Andy

We even tried growing outward once: a second shop that we ran for three years before deciding our energy belonged here on Providence Road.

The biggest change might be Logan. The baby who got passed down the Valentine's line is 15 now, and he's grown right along with the shop. He works part-time, spent this past summer as our intern, helps teach our classes, runs our market tables, and pulls candy canes with Andy. Front of house to back, he's had a hand in nearly every part of what we do. (Ask him for his favorite memory, though, and he'll tell you about sneaking candies as a little kid, with Paw Paw watching and maybe even encouraging him.)

"It would be silly of me not to name Logan's arrival as the first big change. He was in the shop with all of us for his first years, and becoming 'Paw Paw' was a big, wonderful change for me. It wasn't long before the kitchen got loud, busy and small. I'd always been able to work by myself, so hiring and training more people was a big change, too."

— Chef Bill

What hasn't

How much we care: about each other, our chocolate, our staff and our customers.

"We continue to be a warm, welcoming family, doing our best to help customers choose chocolates that bring joy, whether for themselves, for someone receiving a gift, or for a celebration."

— Karen

We still believe in real ingredients, we still make everything in-house, and we still think a box of chocolates is one of the best ways to share a little love.

Why we make chocolate sculptures every Halloween

We're built around a creative, artful product, and our kitchen is full of talented people. Sculpture season gives them room to stretch and show what they can do. It gives our customers a peek at what happens behind the counter, and it shines a little light on the people who make it all happen.

"Sculpting with different materials has always been an exciting part of my career, from my very first job making bread sculptures, through years of all kinds of materials, to working all in chocolate now. These days I also get to help others practice their own creative arts, and that's been just as rewarding as still doing it myself."

— Chef Bill

The tradition started in October 2012, when we invited everyone to help build a chocolate Halloween diorama. About 30 of you came out to paint chocolate bones, mummies, bats and pumpkins, and together we built our Secret Cemetery. Chef Bill has always loved Halloween, and we said then that we hoped it would be the first of many.

Come celebrate with us

So for our 15th, we're opening the kitchen again, and the graveyard is back.

Sunday, October 25, 1–5pm. Free, come anytime.

• Watch us temper chocolate on our marble slab (1:15, 2:15, 3:15 & 4:15) and make a full table of peppermint bark (1:45, 2:45, 3:45 & 4:45)
• Try a few pairings you might not expect: wine with PRP Wine (21+), coffee from Magnolia Coffee Roasters, tea from K-Teas, and milk with our new Cookies & Cream Bon Bon
• Dig through our chocolate graveyard for white, milk and dark chocolate bones and take your collection home
• Find the number 15 hidden throughout our chocolate sculptures, including an Alice in Wonderland showpiece
• 15% off in the shop on party day, and online October 23–25 with code HAPPY15

Thank you for fifteen years in the shop, and for every chocolate moment since our first farmers market in 2008. We can't wait to see you.

— Robin

About The Secret Chocolatier: Family-run and women-owned, The Secret Chocolatier started at Charlotte-area farmers markets in 2008 and opened its shop at 2935 Providence Rd in May 2011. It has served more than 75,000 customers and was named Small Business of the Year by the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority in 2026.