Girls! Make Your Mark/Handbag.com People’s Choice

Pioneer finalist

Jo Morey, Haute Chocolat, West Sussex
Many women would describe themselves as having "an innate passion" for chocolate, but not everyone would have the courage to turn it into a business like Jo Morey with Haute Chocolate, a combined shop and café promising to provide escapism and indulgent, luxurious chocolate to busy people throughout the day.

 
Still in Haute Chocolat's infancy Jo has already overcome several hurdles, including initial lack of finances. On a shoestring budget, Jo cannily combined holidays with research to secure meetings with major hitters and used her negotiation skills to secure an experienced independent market consultant to facilitate focus groups. She admits that when recruiting female testers, the promise of delicious free chocolate was somewhat of a help!

 
Jo is targeting London and Brighton as the first locations for this unique concept, and we can't wait for the opening event.

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