Chokola`j

Boutique Chocolatier Blends Technology and Sustainability, Grows Business 75 Percent

Daniel and Susan Kennedy, co-founders of Chokola'j® , blend their love of chocolate with their desire to create a sustainable, environmentally friendly business. For Chokola’j, sustainability includes using technology to manage time, costs, and resources. Chokola’j chose the 2007 Microsoft® Office system and Windows Vista® operating system, enhancing operational efficiencies by more than 50 percent and growing business at a pace of 75 percent per year.

 

Business Needs

Daniel and Susan Kennedy, co-founders of Long Island, New York-based Chokola’j®, met while they were both attending Johnson & Wales University’s College of Culinary Arts in Providence, Rhode Island. “We met on the second day of culinary school and have been together ever since,” says Daniel Kennedy. “It’s been a wonderful partnership—both professionally and personally.” 

In 2005, after graduating from culinary school and working at some of the premier restaurants on the East Coast, Daniel and Susan began exploring the possibility of starting their own business. “We both love chocolate,” says Daniel Kennedy, “but found that most of the products on the market were mass-produced and lacked attention to detail. We wanted to create small batches of high-quality chocolates—what we call ‘inspired artisan chocolates.’ We also decided to make our offerings even more intimate by focusing on locally grown and sustainably produced ingredients.”

Several members of Kennedy’s family are entrepreneurs, so he was keenly aware of the demands placed on small business owners. “We knew that we’d need the right technology to help us manage our time and resources,” says Kennedy. “For example, we needed a way to prioritize orders we received through our Web site based on requested delivery date. All of our ingredients are very fresh, so they must be enjoyed within two weeks of receiving. We needed to ensure that we didn’t produce orders too far in advance—potentially wasting time and losing money. As a small business, every minute and every dollar counts.”

Solution

From the very beginning, Chokola’j relied on Microsoft® products—to create the company’s business plan, manage the formulas for each unique recipe, and track financial information. “We knew from the get-go that we wanted to use Microsoft products,” Kennedy explains. “I don’t know how anybody uses anything else. Everyone is so familiar with Microsoft software—all we have to do is show our employees where the company files are saved. That’s the extent of the training.”

We’re using Microsoft products to manage our resources so we can focus on quality, remain competitive, and still do the things that are important to us as business owners…. It’s awesome! Daniel Kennedy Chef and Co-Founder, Chokola’j

Chokola’j started off using the Microsoft Office 2003 release and the Windows® XP operating system on two Gateway laptop computers. In 2007, Chokola’j upgraded to the 2007 Microsoft Office system and the Windows Vista® operating system. Today, Chokola’j primarily uses Microsoft Office Excel® 2007 spreadsheet software, and Microsoft Office Word 2007, and Microsoft Office Outlook® 2007 messaging and collaboration client with Business Contact Manager.

“Susan is in love with Office Excel and really knows how to get the most out of it,” says Kennedy. “We use Excel to track our inventory supplies, which helps us manage costs by ensuring that we don’t have anything on hand that we don’t really need. We also input the price of everything we purchase into our cost sheet so we can calculate how much we’re going to make from each sale.

“We track all of our invoices, accounts payable, accounts receivable, wholesale statements, and even our mileage in Excel,” Kennedy continues. “We easily export our invoices into Office Word, and everything looks crisp and professional. It’s just so simple.”

In addition to selling its artisan chocolates to local vendors, Chokola’j also maintains an e-commerce Web site. The company routes all orders and inquiries from its Web site through Office Outlook 2007 with Business Contact Manager. “To succeed as a small business, we have to be able to prioritize,” Kennedy says. “We use Office Outlook with Business Contact Manager to stay connected with our customers and our vendors, to flag each order for the appropriate delivery day, and prioritize inquiries. Business Contact Manager is a really great tool that helps us manage our business in an efficient way.”

Benefits

Chokola’j relies on Microsoft products to stay connected to customers and vendors, to increase productivity and mobility, and to efficiently manage resources so that it has more time and money to invest in perfecting its artisanal confections. 

Increasing Productivity

Chokola’j uses the 2007 Microsoft Office system to save time on administrative tasks. “We would have to spend at least 75 percent more time on our invoices if we did them manually, rather than copying and pasting from Excel into Word,” Kennedy says. “We also use the mail merge function in Office Word and Outlook to send communications to all of our clients and to create shipping labels. The mail merge function is pretty much instantaneous, so we can create mailings 50 percent faster than doing it manually, and we’re easily saving about 45 seconds per address for shipping labels.”

Managing Resources

Chokola’j can quickly compare prices and quotes from different vendors. “We know exactly what someone is going to charge us, so we can make informed decisions rather than just ordering from the same vendor because it’s easy,” says Kennedy. “We’ve used this Excel spreadsheet to save 19 percent in costs over the last year alone.”

Staying Connected

Chokola’j uses the enhanced mobility features of Windows Vista to stay productive from the office or on the road. “Wherever we go, we’re always working to some extent,” Kennedy explains. “I really don’t know how we would function without Windows Vista on our laptop computers. As an online business, it would be impossible.”

Peace of Mind

Kennedy equates Windows Vista to exceptional service in a five-star restaurant. “A great server comes and goes and anticipates your needs—you barely even know he’s there,” he says. “This is how I experience Windows Vista. It’s there when we need it and it doesn’t make us do unnecessary things. It’s a workhorse and we love it for that.”

Future Plans

Since 2006, Chokola’j has grown 75 percent per year. “Within the next two years, we’ll need more space to accommodate our growth,” says Kennedy, “but the technology that we have in place now will easily scale as we grow. 

“Quality is our number one focus,” Kennedy concludes. “We’re using Microsoft products to manage our resources so we can focus on quality, remain competitive, and still do the things that are important to us as business owners—buying local ingredients, choosing organic and fair trade chocolate, using florescent lighting and sustainable packaging, recycling. It’s awesome!”

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