Name: Rupali Samat

Company: Choc Le
Industry: HORECA hotels, restaurants, cafes & Corporates
Location: Mumbai
She started her business: The business was founded by her parents.
She moved on from her corporate job to pursue her passion with Choc
Le ( 4 years back)
Age range: 30 years

Q. WHAT MOTIVATED YOU TO START Your Venture?

The undying passion for chocolates and the innate desire to create a
legacy as a chocolatier, lead me to leave my 9 to 5 job and head to
Choc Le.
Chocolates have been part of my life since the early years; its
something everyone in the family relishes. This sinful indulgence was
lurking somewhere as my mother delved into it, whereas I moved on to
do my masters and took up a job in the professional world.
However, few years into my stint, realization surfaced for the need to
build a chocolate business professionally. Although my capabilities
dont lie in the cooking domain, both my parents are trained from Barry
Callebaut. Hence, I took up my real calling to be with Choc Le and
build it up as a professional set up with the support of a talented team.

Q. TELL US ABOUT IT in detail

It was the tussle between the heart and the head. Many of us often
dream of creative careers but never have the guts to plunge into
something. I too resisted the urge to follow my heart for a longtime;
and walked the tried and tested path, whilst working with Reliance
ADAG. The profi le at Reliance Infrastructure was with the Project
Finance team, giving me an exposure to syndication and fi nance
projects worth INR 10,000 crores.
With an interesting and comprehensive work experience for more than
four years across diff erent organizations and senior profi les, arose the
inner calling encouraging me to leave the promising professional world
for career at Choc Le.

Q. WHAT IS A DAY IN THE LIFE OF YOU LIKE?

Being surrounded by sweet delights at offi ce, gives me the liberty to
say that "life is a box of chocolates". On the other hand leading a huge
team and connecting with diverse clients everyday means quick

decision making, learning whats new, innovating continuously to meet

clients requirements and most importantly collaborating with my team
so that we can deliver together to build a large manufacturing
company.
Q. WHAT HAVE BEEN
RUNNING the venture?

YOUR

BIGGEST

CHALLENGES

SO

FAR

WITH

Building the right team to create a professional setup and ensuring

every employee is driven to match the vision at Choc Le, was a
challenge in the initial years.

Q. HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THESE CHALLENGES?

The key to brand growth is enhancing whats at hand order to deliver
whats unique. This has been our mantra at Choc Le and we believe
that presenting a branded product line is the right foot in the door.
A professional set up with the capacity & team talent diff erentiates
our brand further in an industry that is highly fragmented. For our
desserts, the fi rst-mover advantage has been - to stick to the B2B
delivery model catering to hotels and restaurants, which in a way is
again a strategic step to stay niche (in approach).
The critical element that often consumers overlook at the mention of
chocolates or desserts is that they can be vegetarian. To cater to a
larger audience, our product range across chocolates and desserts is
pure vegetarian.

WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND TO BE THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO GET NEW
CLIENTS?
Although Choc Le has been synonymous to chocolates and its varied
fl avors, the brand also off ers a huge portfolio of desserts from the
classic cheese cakes, apple pies to velvet spray mousse - that gets
supplied in a la carte and buff ets formats. We are known for our
customisation and innovations, tailor made for clients, be it for
corporates or in the HoReCa segment.
What also sets us apart is the robust R&D team, which is constantly
working to play with the consumers palates, by introducing new fl avors.
This team ensures to keep intact our originals, whilst bringing to table
the knowledge of what works best in a highly segmented market.
The team at Choc Le is one of the strong pillars, an eclectic mix of
talent that boasts of experience as chefs with renowned brands, food
technologists and quality control managers, sales and marketing team
with consumer sales experience in HORECA, Retail and Corporates.
Q. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO OTHERS?

With ever-evolving, well-travelled and well-read consumers, its critical

to keep reinventing the product portfolio. As a chocolatier, its
imperative for us to play with ingredients and keep surprising our
consumers. This has been the key for us to often innovate and combine
unexpected fl avors together, or maybe simply off er something thats
long-forgotten.
Q. HOW DO YOU KEEP MOTIVATED THROUGH DIFFICULT TIMES?
What I'm living currently. I couldn't have asked for anything diff erent
than the present.
Its been a fantastic journey, growing each day with my passion Choc
Le and at the same time pursuing my personal dream for professional
training as a dancer so as to soon represent at international platforms.

Q. WHATS YOUR FAVOURITE QUOTE?

Mantra that keeps me going through all times: Keep Walking ...and you
will never fi nd yourself walking alone (Mother Teressa)
And something that I reminisce often: Liye sapne nigahon mein, chala
hu teri raaho mein, zindagi aa raha hoo main..

Q. WHO INSPIRES YOU?

Inspiration comes from many. Some teach you to get smarter in
business, scaling growth, creating a value proposition and building
fame, while some help you to stay grounded shaping your values and
enhancing lives.
(no particular individual)

Q. DO YOU HAVE A BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY?

Grow your team - and that makes achieving goals a reality. Your people
need to believe in you so as to deliver those big dreams you have for
your clients. Also, 'never stop learning' because food has audiences
across all age groups; you might never know whose teaching you the
best tricks.

Q. SHARE A LINE WITH US, WHAT DOES ONE MALE MEMBER OF YOUR
FAMILY FEEL ABOUT YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS?
My father, one of the founders of this business, is surrounded by three
women -my mother and (his) two daughters. So for him it was critical
that we all worked our best and dreamt big. So as one of the biggest
support pillars, my father ensures that we never fall short in giving
more than what is asked of us. And he is surely proud of Choc Le.

Get in touchrupali@chocle.in
Website: www.chocle.in
Twitter: @samatrupali
Facebook Fanpage: https://www.facebook.com/ChocLeWorld