I know this is off the topic of my normal boring political blog, but after attending the launch of Papa Chocolat, I was intrigued enough to comment on it. As always, I was watching tweetdeck when I saw a very odd hash tag being #bernardisback. I couldn't help but notice more and more of the people I follow were raising the excitement level of it. Out of curiosity I contacted @chett12 to get the details on what exactly this was about. This is when she informed me that Master Chocolatier Bernard Callebaut was launching his new company Papa Chocolat.
Now I am far from a huge fan of chocolate, but the Callebaut name is known everywhere. After contacting Chett again, I was invited to the launch. My goal was not to go as a chocoholic, rather looking for an investment opportunity. This is where Podium Ventures comes into play. Podium is the company solicited to promote Papa Chocolat, and in my own opinion the did quite well. The most intriguing thing was the way in which they got the word out. Not only do they use the traditional forms of communication, but also had a social media team to get out the word. Now I don't know if all the hype on social media means these people will buy the product or not, but it definitely got the word out. The venue was packed and there was more media than a political convention. Did it pay off the have social media as a tool? For me yes as I plan to get in on the offering memorandum.
Now as an investment I have a different reason for doing so than the promotion Podium generates for the Papa Chocolat name. My whole reason for being there was to learn about the Callebaut's and what the plan going forward is. We all know that the last Callebaut company went into receivership and was taken over by another group of investors. I am sure many of you wonder why I would take the risk on this venture. Simply put...Passion. As I listened to Bernard speak, he was a very humble and excited man. The way he spoke of his current hardships and what he wanted to do was heart warming. Surrounded by his family he spoke from the heart about his love for making chocolate, and it was sincere and passionate while he spoke which you could see in his eyes. Once all the talking was finished, the chocolate came out and it was delicious.
Later in the evening I had the opportunity to chat with the Callebaut's. Not only are they a very genuine couple, but were completely overwhelmed by the support of fellow Calgarians. Will they succeed in business this time? I just can't see how with past experience and passion they can't!
The event was fun, good to hear you enjoyed it! Great photo of little Callebaut & his papa!
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I'm so happy you made it out and share the enthusiasm of the Callebaut's!
ReplyDeleteThanks. I can't take credit for the photo though. I pulled it off twitter, it was taken by @donnamct
ReplyDeleteThank you for writing about us and saying such kind things.
ReplyDeleteWe are new to social media, but we are very happy with the results so far. We are glad you are here to celebrate a new journey with us!
This is Great praise for a couple who not only ripped off from their suppliers but stole from their very own family and employee's. Why is it when another Bernie Madoff gets away with stealing millions of dollars the media decides he’s a hero just because they like the taste of chocolate, that’s ridiculous. Bernard Callebaut went out of business for a reason, he and his wife stole over 20 million dollars over a 10 year period from their own company and they thought they could get the legal system to simply clear the debt and the system would just handed back to them like nothing happened. Stop trying to make these two into hero’s their criminals and the legal system should be doing their job to put them in jail for the next 150 years. At the very least the law should tracking down where they hide all the money they stole, {check out their lawyers}! How much money has to be stolen before we stop making hero’s out of criminals? These two didn’t just steal from the citizens of Canada they stole money from people all over the world, money that keeps other company running and pays for their employee’s to live on. Someone needs to do something to stops these people before they do it again.
ReplyDeleteanonymous from december 27th was proven exactly correct as mr and mrs callebaut were found guilty in a court of law of contempt of court by taking 200 lbs of chocolate, computers, furniture, statues and various other items after having been warned by the court appointed receiver not to. these stolen items were used to begin papa chocolat which was and is direct competition to choc bernard callebaut. mr and mrs callebaut are directly responsible for the ruin of the old co into receivership and are directly responsible for breaking the law and using stolen items to compete with their old business. this is not a shock to those still trying to manage thousands of $$$'s in unpaid invoices because of mr and mrs callebaut. they now ride around calgary in a new fiat automobile attend the glencoe club educate their son in an expensive private academy have a nanny and a housekeeper. their abuse of others their sense of entitlement as noted by justice romaine and their continued conniving should be enough for all of canada to stop supporting any single thing these two do.
ReplyDeleteCould it be that mr. Barry Callebaut is in jail right now? Can anyone confirm this rumour?
ReplyDeleteI can not believe the media coverage this criminal has received. Gosh! What a waist of time - can we not focus on good people for a while?
ReplyDeleteDerrik,
ReplyDeleteDid I read that you gave money to BC? Seriously? Your more likely to get it back if you burned it . . . criminals are charming - you have been sucked it like all of the other people they take advantage of.
They consume and consume and consume and then discard.