In a cowshed in the lush west of Wales live Nomnom, a team of innovative chocolatiers putting Welsh chocolate on the map. Founder Liam Burgess speaks with Buzz about their philosophy.
What gave you the idea to start a chocolate company in the west hills of Wales?
Wales is world class when it comes to delicious ingredients from the land and sea. The inspiration to start Nomnom came from all the incredible producers we have down here. Working as a chef since I ran away from school, I discovered more and more of these mad makers and growers hidden in the hills and I just wanted to wrap them all up in chocolate.
How and where do you source the beans for the cocoa you use?
Chocolate is a really nasty industry dominated by a ruthless handful of global fat cats. For us, we need a tectonic shift towards sending value back down the supply chain to the growers and their communities. In May we had a whole crew trip to Madagascar to visit the growers and meet the trees that grow our beans. Madagascar has some of the rarest and most precious cocoa beans in the world and our partners out there are blazing a trail in changing the industry.
Our beans are processed fresh in the country of origin by the people that grow them, which means not only is our chocolate the freshest in the planet, it’s also the fairest. Back in Wales at the cowshed, we then conch the raw ingredients together to turn it into chocolate. Madagascar has a strong connection to Wales and in celebration of the bi-centenary we are creating a special 69% Madagascan milk chocolate made with organic Welsh milk from the Calon Wen Co-Operative.
You have some very innovative and unique flavours in your chocolate, how do you come up with these new ideas?
Honestly? We just have fun. We’re constantly brewing a whole melting pot of ways to delight our customers. We change our flavours with the seasons and we’re always on the hunt for magic hidden in the hills. Currently we’re working on an Espresso Martini Bar with our friend Mungo the coffee man who lives in the tower of a castle. He came down one day to show us his new coffees and ‘happened’ to have with him the ingredients for an espresso martini. After a few cocktails it happened upon a chocolate bar and the Black Mountain Roast with Smoked Chase Vodka Espresso Martini Bar was born.
Since your chocolate is such a raw home-grown concept would you say the branding concepts are designed to reflect this?
Our branding was a complete accident. Although I probably shouldn’t say that. Anyway, at the beginning I just didn’t have the cash and when I went to pitch my idea to the princes’ trust to get some start up funding we didn’t have any packaging. So in a mad panic I went to Llanboidy Post Office, grabbed a roll of brown paper, some foil from mum’s kitchen and stamped on the letters with an old stamping kit my granddad gave me. I guess marketing folks would call it “authentic”.
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What are your plans for expansion in future?
By some weird twist of fate, we are actually over the road from an abandoned chocolate factory that was shut down three years ago. It’s on the farm next door to us and it used to be the only chocolate farm in Britain. We want to turn it into the most delicious farm in the world and make all kinds of indulgent new treats. The problem is we don’t really like banks, so we want to be able to build our company with the power of the people.
I think business is changing and hell does it need to. For me, it’s about how we can grow Nomnom alongside the people we make our chocolate for and invite them to build the future with us. So we’re making some chocolate bricks. That’s all I’m saying.
What can the Welsh Government do to better support Welsh businesses?
Starting a business in rural Wales isn’t the most obvious choice but I think it’s the best place in the world to do it. Forget Silicone Valley, west Wales is the new California. What Welsh Government need to do is realise what incredible talent and entrepreneurialism we have we have here and be ambitious and creative about how we position ourselves in the world. We need talent to stay here and not piss off to London. So I think it’s really important that we invest in and inspire young people to stay at home and turn Wales into the incredible economy it could be. Internet would be a good start.
What is a mistake that most chocolate manufacturers make?
“Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it”.
Nomnom Chocolate, Llanboidy. Info: 01994 448761 / www.nomnom.cymru
video by TIM TYSON SHORT