Meet Rajani Konkipudi | Chocolate Maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rajani Konkipudi and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rajani, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Starting an artisanal bean-to-bar chocolate business during a time when most of the folks around here munch on a grocery store chocolate bar was a very scary endeavor. I grew up eating Cadbury’s Milk Chocolate and thought that it is a true chocolate bar. Most bars on the grocery store shelves are either filled with sugar or flavors such as vanilla (this is often a wonderful way to hid bad fermentation and defects in cocoa) to make the chocolate palatable. With confusing labels, the customers are often left with a sense of accomplishment thinking that they chose good chocolate. That is where I wanted to tell the story and the journey of the simple cocoa transformation from a bean to a silky chocolate bar that we now experience.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I often describe myself as a moonlighting chocolate maker ( I work in corporate) influenced by ethnical upbringing with a deep understanding of spices.

Chocolate making is meditation. I am in my element when I am working with chocolate. Everything I see and taste on a daily basis, influences and inspires my seasonal bars. I am always asking myself “How do I turn this into a chocolate bar?”
The journey was and still is an uphill battle, primarily because I am the only one who is handling the cocoa from the time the beans arrive to our facility, to the time they end up on the shelf. I have part time help now because our production has grown substantially.

Chocolate does not have to be complex. Most often, the best chocolate bar is one with just cocoa beans and sugar, free of added flavors. We want people to taste the delicate flavors within the cocoa bean and feel good about eating something so clean and pure. We want to be that chocolate maker that will push your boundaries to try simple ingredient, no artificial additive chocolate inspired by various spices and ethnical flavors.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
As a foodie and chocolate enthusiast, 1. first stop would be Baobab Fare, an East African restaurant with a very warm story that comes thru the food and hospitality.
2. Bonbonbon, yes, I am obsessed with their Bonbons.
3. A road trip to Grand Rapids to taste Mokaya Chocolate , and onto
4. Empire to meet up with the masterminds behind Grocer’s Daughter while enjoying the Sleeping Bear Dunes.
5. Greenfield Village, Henry Ford Rouge Plant,

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
No small business can survive without those few guardian angels and Gurus. I would love to give a shout out to my sisters in chocolate, Alex Clark (Bonbonbon), Jody (Grocer’s Daughter), Jenny (Conexion Chocolate). whom I met down in Ecuador on our journey to source and have since become a family. I often run my ideas and questions by them. They are always available to help me.
Later after dabbling primarily in making good dark chocolate, I met McKenzie (Map Chocolate), my chocolate Guru who encouraged me to color outside the traditional dark chocolate lines. I became more confident in introducing fruit bars, and alternative mylk bars.

My biggest cheerleaders are Sophia Rhea (Projet Chocolat) and Mara Papatheodoro (Master Foodie) who have pushed my creative boundaries and helped me launch one of my best sellers, the “Joy of Julia” bar (a French red wine bar) that was created to honor Julia Child.

At the end of the day, everything was made possible by my children. My daughters would help with package designs, flavor decisions, event applications, interviews, pop-ups, communication, and everything in between and they often got paid only in chocolate. My girls are the heart of Dwaar Chocolate.

Website: www.dwaarchocolate.com

Instagram: @Dwaar_chocolate