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Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)

Artisan Chocolate Maker Experiences New Milestones

With the help of: Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership

About

Euphoria Chocolate Company has been delighting chocolate lovers in the Pacific Northwest with hand-dipped truffles, artisan chocolates and confectioneries since 1980. With three retail locations and a production facility located in Eugene, Oregon, their products are carried in several grocery stores and gift shops. Euphoria Chocolate Company sources local ingredients and features Oregon wine, beer, and spirits prominently in product offerings.

The Challenge

In 2013 Euphoria Chocolate Company was purchased by new owners, Van and Bonnie. At that time the company was leveraging outside sales staff. To target growth markets beyond Eugene-Springfield, Euphoria sought support to bring sales staff in-house. They sought assistance from OMEP to support this initiative and optimize their inventory management to ensure they had the operational capacity to meet new sales. Like many business owners, Bonnie and Van were frequently overworked, stressed by the daily challenges of running a food processing company. Demands on owners in small manufacturing companies are endless, and these owners were starting to feel the strain. They hoped that by engaging with OMEP and alleviating some of the bottlenecks, they’d experience less stress.
We were able to step back confidently knowing we had systems in place to effectively gather data and make decisions, as well as a team we can trust to navigate challenges.
— Bonnie Glass, Owner

MEP's Role

OMEP partnered with Euphoria Chocolate to build a new production team, and implement inventory management improvements. Together, they developed a top-line growth sales and marketing strategy with measurable targets and objectives and identified and trained internal sales personnel.

To ensure product flow and increase capacity, OMEP also helped the team establish visual storage and inventory management via 5S and kanban systems. Through an analysis of inventory overstock and shortages, OMEP was able to establish root causes and propose solutions.

Aside from these proficiency improvements, the OMEP team came alongside the owners to coach and mentor them throughout the process. Along the way they taught various leadership tools and techniques to empower and enhance the great work these business leaders were already doing.

Created June 2, 2020, Updated July 12, 2021