Case Studies

“There’s something in the air in Wellington,” says Gabriel Davidson and he’s not referring to the aroma of cocoa beans and chocolate at The Wellington Chocolate Factory, run by himself and co-founder Rochelle Harrison.

“Wellington’s definitely on the up and up and getting a lot of attention. It’s not just the film industry but also the food industry that’s booming at the moment. I think Wellington is a brilliant place to start a new business.”

Gabrielle and Rochelle were delighted to make contact with Grow Wellington in January 2014 and quickly got on board the Visa Wellington on a Plate Supplier Showcase, run by Grow Wellington in conjunction with the Wellington Culinary Events Trust.

“It was a really great experience,” says Rochelle. “Grow has been really supportive.”

Gabriel is originally from Wellington but became fascinated with making chocolate while living in Melbourne for 13 years. He saw a niche for quality chocolate sourced from the bean of origin to the bar for a superior product.

“I chose Wellington because it’s a real foodie hub for New Zealand and it’s really exciting what’s happening here with all the artisan food producers. It’s a good time to start a new venture as long as it’s fresh, local and high quality.”

Gabrielle and business partner Rochelle Harrison renovated an old shoe factory in Wellington’s central city for their factory and shop. Customers can see where every part of the chocolate is made, starting with the roasting of  the cocoa beans which are sourced from Peru, Dominican Republic, Trinidad Tobago and Madagascar.

The company’s vision is to educate customers on finer chocolates and create a palette of new flavours that can only be found in origin bean to bar chocolate.  

After only opening the new factory in 2014, the business is poised to go global and has products around New Zealand. And they wouldn’t choose anywhere else to operate it from. “We have lots of good industry contacts here and everyone is really supportive and it’s easy to collaborate with people on projects.

“Wellington is very innovative as a city. People walk through the door who don’t know what a cocoa pod looks like but they are not scared to try a cocoa bean for the first time and are willing to try new flavours.”

Gabrielle also enjoys the choice of lifestyle and lives out of the city on the Kapiti Coast where he can enjoy the great beaches.

“It’s a nice change from living in a big city like Melbourne but it’s still only a short journey to work. Wellington is a great compact little city where you can walk everywhere and see everything in a day which is brilliant.”

Check out their video clip below.