From the experiment in the kitchen to the real sweet in the market, from selling locally to exporting globally, Cowgirl Chocolates is still thriving as the pioneer to spiced chocolate.
Photos by Jessica Greene | rawr
Cowgirl Chocolates owner Marilyn Lysohir first received the idea for adding spicy components into chocolate from her brother. Since the idea was pitched, Lysohir has infused pepper into the chocolates and been the first to make habenero caramel and other desert sauces.
Marilyn Lysohir, Cowgirl Chocolates owner, used to work in a chocolate factory in Sharon, Pa., selling and packing chocolate. Since she was studying art in college, the factory also asked her to sculpt chocolate bunnies, turtles and elephants. Through this experience, Lysohir had a good background in the chocolate business.
“(Cowgirl Chocolates) were one of the pioneers in the chocolate industry to actually infuse pepper with the chocolates,” Lysohir said. “And now, it wasn’t until about five years ago that everybody started to do it.”
Besides infusing pepper with the chocolates, Lysohir said they are also the first to do habanero caramel, coco powder and dessert sauces.The idea of adding pepper and spices in chocolates could be traced back to the Aztec and the Mayan culture in 1900 B.C., Lysohir said, even though it seemed like a new and bizarre idea during mid-‘90s when Lysohir’s brother came up with it.
Lysohir said the owner of the chocolate factory she used to work for told everyone that he would give out $100,000 for a new flavor in chocolates.
Her brother, Bobby Lysohir, came up with the idea to put spicy pepper in chocolates for the contest.
“He took that idea to that factory and the boys at the factory who worked with the chocolates played a joke on my brother,” Lysohir said. “When he wasn’t looking, they put in so much spicy pepper that made it way too hot and they laughed at it.”
It was her brother’s idea that inspired her to start the experiment in her kitchen. She added some spice in the chocolate and had people try it.
“People that liked spicy food absolutely loved them,” Lysohir said. “And in 1997, I sold my first couple pounds and made my first dollar and I did it at the beginning just as kind of experiment.”
Lysohir never thought that her curiosity about pepper in chocolates would establish the very first step in her business. The determination to support her brother’s idea after being laughed at by the factory workers was something that drove her to press on. Lysohir’s effort was rewarded when she officially trademarked “Cowgirl Chocolates” in 1997 and attended a fancy food show in San Francisco.
“I remember people saying, ‘Oh you’re learning chocolate, I don’t think so,'” Lysohir said. “But if I got them to try the chocolate, they would all say, ‘Wow, this is really good.'”
It wasn’t until 2002 her chocolate business started to become successful. After she won awards in the fiery food contest with her chocolates, the Food Network realized that spicy chocolate was a growing trend, Lysohir said.
“So what they did is they interviewed us and they played it on TV in 2002,” Lysohir said. “And so many people accessed our website that it actually broke the server in Moscow, Idaho. It was broken for half a day or so.”
Lysohir said it is really amazing that millions of people heard about Cowgirl Chocolates and hundreds of thousands went to her website and made orders. Soon, Cowgirl Chocolates had more sales than expenses.
After the interview with Food Network, everything came together — the chocolates, the company and the sales. The University of Idaho even did a case study on the Cowgirl Chocolates business, Lysohir said.
“In fact, today, we actually sent out some chocolates to somebody studying the case study,” Lysohir said. “And they’re all happy that the company is still going strong after 13 years from when the case study was written.”
As the only Cowgirl Chocolates store, Lysohir said they will get orders nationally as well as internationally and there are hundreds of stores that sell their chocolates. One of the orders they have had is from the Harry Potter Studio in London.
While some successful stores are eager to expand their business and open new branches, Cowgirl Chocolates is waiting for the best timing.
“You have to be really careful in business, not to grow too fast that your expenses multiply with that gross,” Lysohir said. “So you have to make sure if you’re going to grow, your sales can help support that gross.”
Besides chocolates, the other selling point of the Cowgirl Chocolates store is the packaging. With her art talent, Lysohir always has a good sense of unique design and that makes her always look for unusual ways to package the chocolates, she said.
“I thought it was a cute little store,” said Jen Neglay, an employee of Cowgirl Chocolates. “I like the art part of it, the creativity part of this store, the packaging, the uniqueness of packaging.”
As the owner of Cowgirl Chocolates, Lysohir has done so much to make her business and herself successful and beloved.
“She’s awesome. She really is. I couldn’t find a better boss or someone to work with,” said Lexi Edwards, an employee of Cowgirl Chocolates. “She makes this store a wonderful place to work.”
With her brother’s idea, her experience working in chocolate factory and her unique art sense, Lysohir initiated her first business and it turned out to be a good one.
“So that’s how we started, that’s my first job, my curiosity, my also wanting to have my brother understand that it was a good idea,” Lysohir said. “It is now a successful company and he’s very proud he came up with the idea.”
Chin-Lun Hsu
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