Pashmina Lalchandani's guest appearances

Pashmina Lalchandani

Future Commerce Podcast: eCommerce, DTC and Retail Strategy

Well Tempered

Chocolate On The Road

Julia Zotter

Kristy Leissle

Ecole Chocolat

Pam Williams

Uncommon Cacao

Erin Andrews

Megan Giller

Robert Scoble

Matt Taylor

Rachel Swanson

ERIC SMITH

Ben Parr

Charlie Cole

Scott Emmons

Jonathan Epstein

OwlTail

Fair Trade, Fair Labor, and Sustainable Chocolate is PossibleShipping chocolate is challenging enough, but sourcing and housing craft chocolate from global suppliers, and creating a marketplace for consumers who have very specific expectations around buying and consuming chocolate is harder still.The challenges of creating a great customer experience with shipping delays in the midst of COVID created issues in the logistics industry, and those had massive impacts on the quality of the product at the time of delivery. Some chocolate only arrived a month post-purchase, at which point it wasn’t consumable. This represents a problem in a luxury chocolate perishable category, when you’re at mercy of carriers and covid-related delays.“I don't think the mission makes us grow slower, but I think my focus and laser focus on becoming a profitable company, you know, kind of meters our growth. And because we're not funded, because it's like something that has been bootstrapped, we don't have the luxury of throwing thousands of dollars into ads or marketing and having that long cycle of seeing a return on our investment with customer acquisition.” —PashminaThe connection formed to chocolate as a kid reflects the outcome adults make in wanting to take the leap towards craft chocolate.“You have recipes and a whole ecosystem built around chocolate and the brands with those...so you're not just unseating a single experience, you're unseating experiences across multiple food ecosystems, which is another challenge and also an opportunity.” -BrianBar and Cocoa are MBE-certified as a minority-owned business, and supports minority and BIPOC growers and founders. Their focus on doubling their Made at Origin chocolates have allowed them to support more people who are growing cacao at the source. As Pashmina says, “rather than just for these countries importing beans, the chocolate is staying there and being sourced locally, made locally by local manufacturers, whether they own the farms, whether they're working directly with the farms there.” Associated Links:Check out Bar &amp; Cocoa here: https://barandcocoa.com/Get our latest report here: Service is the New Storefront

<h3>Fair Trade, Fair Labor, and Sustainable Chocolate is Possible</h3><ul><li>Shipping chocolate is challenging enough, but sourcing and housing craft chocolate from global suppliers, and creating a marketplace for consumers who have very specific expectations around buying and consuming chocolate is harder still.</li><li>The challenges of creating a great customer experience with shipping delays in the midst of COVID created issues in the logistics industry, and those had massive impacts on the quality of the product at the time of delivery. Some chocolate only arrived a month post-purchase, at which point it wasn’t consumable. This represents a problem in a luxury chocolate perishable category, when you’re at mercy of carriers and covid-related delays.</li><li>“I don't think the mission makes us grow slower, but I think my focus and laser focus on becoming a profitable company, you know, kind of meters our growth. And because we're not funded, because it's like something that has been bootstrapped, we don't have the luxury of throwing thousands of dollars into ads or marketing and having that long cycle of seeing a return on our investment with customer acquisition.” —Pashmina</li><li>The connection formed to chocolate as a kid reflects the outcome adults make in wanting to take the leap towards craft chocolate.</li><li>“You have recipes and a whole ecosystem built around chocolate and the brands with those...so you're not just unseating a single experience, you're unseating experiences across multiple food ecosystems, which is another challenge and also an opportunity.” -Brian</li><li>Bar and Cocoa are MBE-certified as a minority-owned business, and supports minority and BIPOC growers and founders. Their focus on doubling their Made at Origin chocolates have allowed them to support more people who are growing cacao at the source. As Pashmina says, “rather than just for these countries importing beans, the chocolate is staying there and being sourced locally, made locally by local manufacturers, whether they own the farms, whether they're working directly with the farms there.” </li></ul><h3>Associated Links:</h3><ul><li>Check out Bar &amp; Cocoa here: <a href="https://barandcocoa.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://barandcocoa.com/</a></li><li>Get our latest report here: <a href="https://pages.futurecommerce.fm/service-is-the-new-storefront" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Service is the New Storefront</a></li></ul>

Laser-Focused on Profitability (feat. Pashmina Lalchandani, Co-Founder of Bar & Cocoa)

Pashmina kinda started Bar &amp; Cocoa “by accident,” with co-founder and former co-owner Chris Lacey, back when they were offering craft chocolate subscription boxes under the name “ChocoRush.” Fast forward half a decade and a few big moves, and Pashmina is now running one of the world’s largest online craft chocolate retailers, offering nearly 80 makers &amp; 800+ products. Each brand was carefully chose by Pashmina herself; she’s even helped many of them get FDA certification for their products. The company’s selection is growing quickly, and with the holidays coming up, I wanted to make sure we all have a better sense of the mammoth that a retail business can be— even if they haven’t physically seen any customers in nearly a year. So in this interview, Pashmina &amp; I dig into global warming, social-based marketing, and adjusting in the middle of the pandemic. I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation as much as I enjoyed having it.  Show Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chocolateontheroad/ Show Notes: https://damecacao.com/interview-pashmina-lalchandani-bar-cocoa/

Pashmina kinda started Bar &amp; Cocoa “by accident,” with co-founder and former co-owner Chris Lacey, back when they were offering craft chocolate subscription boxes under the name “ChocoRush.” Fast forward half a decade and a few big moves, and Pashmina is now running one of the world’s largest online craft chocolate retailers, offering nearly 80 makers &amp; 800+ products. Each brand was carefully chose by Pashmina herself; she’s even helped many of them get FDA certification for their products. The company’s selection is growing quickly, and with the holidays coming up, I wanted to make sure we all have a better sense of the mammoth that a retail business can be— even if they haven’t physically seen any customers in nearly a year. So in this interview, Pashmina &amp; I dig into global warming, social-based marketing, and adjusting in the middle of the pandemic. I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation as much as I enjoyed having it. Show Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/chocolateontheroad/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/ch</a><a href="https://www.instagram.com/chocolateontheroad/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ocolateontheroad/</a> Show Notes: <a href="https://damecacao.com/interview-pashmina-lalchandani-bar-cocoa/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://damecacao.com/interview-pashmina-lalchandani-bar-cocoa/</a>

INTERVIEW: Pashmina Lalchandani, CEO of Bar & Cocoa

Description: Pashmina Lalchandani is a craft chocolate advocate, internet marketer, CEO and co-founder of Bar &amp; Cocoa (formerly Choco Rush), a fine chocolate subscription service mailed monthly to homes across the United States and international destinations. The Bar &amp; Cocoa online site is home to numerous fine chocolate brands from around the world.   Podcast RSS Themes discussed in this episode: - Why she set out to create this e-commerce chocolate business model- Her outlook on the state of the craft chocolate scene now, and what manufacturing inventions will grow the industry- Cacao varieties for package labeling and chocolate transparency - Appellations rather than the concept of terroir Pashmina's 'To the Cosmos' Picks:Potomac Chocolate - 85% Upala, Costa Rica from Finca La AmistadRitual Chocolate Balao, Ecuador Map Chocolate, 'Chop Wood, Carry Water'; 73% Madagascar with cardamom &amp; honeycomb Pashmina (on the left) in Costa Rica Fact checking:- Pizzaiolos &amp; Naples' 'Vera Pizza' guild/program that authenticates pizza makers processes and product- Rogue Chocolatier regarding starting his business after Scharffen Berger's acquisition - Dandelion Chocolate's reference to Scharffen Berger's move East- On on the topic of cacao strains; the most recent efforts and varieties from Camino Verde in Duran, Ecuador are listed via Meridian Cacao website   Where to find Pashmina and Bar &amp; Cocoa (formerly Choco Rush when this interview took place) : Website: Bar &amp; Cocoa Twitter: Bar &amp; CocoaFacebook: Bar &amp; Cocoa Instagram: Bar &amp; Cocoa Where to find Lauren, host of Well Tempered and chocolate maker at WKND Chocolate: @wkndchocolate via TwitterNew podcasts, Conversations in Cocoa at laurenonthewknd.substack.com Permalink

Description: Pashmina Lalchandani is a craft chocolate advocate, internet marketer, CEO and co-founder of Bar &amp; Cocoa (formerly Choco Rush), a fine chocolate subscription service mailed monthly to homes across the United States and international destinations. The Bar &amp; Cocoa online site is home to numerous fine chocolate brands from around the world.   <a href="https://wkndchocolate.com/podcast?format=rss" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Podcast RSS</a> Themes discussed in this episode:  - Why she set out to create this e-commerce chocolate business model - Her outlook on the state of the craft chocolate scene now, and what manufacturing inventions will grow the industry - Cacao varieties for package labeling and chocolate transparency - Appellations rather than the concept of terroir Pashmina's 'To the Cosmos' Picks: Potomac Chocolate - 85% <a href="https://www.potomacchocolate.com/shop/upala-costa-rica-85/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Upala, Costa Rica</a> from Finca La Amistad <a href="http://www.ritualchocolate.com/shop/ecuador-85" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ritual Chocolate Balao, Ecuador</a> Map Chocolate, <a href="https://shop.chocorush.co/collections/inclusions/products/map-chocolate-chop-wood-carry-water" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">'Chop Wood, Carry Water'</a>; 73% Madagascar with cardamom &amp; honeycomb Pashmina (on the left) in Costa Rica Fact checking: -<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pizzaiolo" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Pizzaiolos </a>&amp; Naples' <a href="http://www.pizzanapoletana.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">'Vera Pizza' guild/program</a> that authenticates pizza makers processes and product - Rogue Chocolatier <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-02-07/the-rise-of-craft-chocolate" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">regarding starting his business after Scharffen Berger's acquisition</a> - <a href="https://www.dandelionchocolate.com/about/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dandelion Chocolate's reference</a> to Scharffen Berger's move East - On on the topic of cacao strains; the most recent efforts and varieties from <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/53f53106e4b0f3beda16ac23/t/54739a07e4b03fe7e3b5d073/1416862215870/FFN_CAMINOVERDE_RGB_web.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Camino Verde in Duran, Ecuador are listed via Meridian Cacao website   </a>Where to find Pashmina and Bar &amp; Cocoa (formerly Choco Rush when this interview took place) :  Website: <a href="http://barandcocoa.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bar &amp; Cocoa </a> Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/barandcocoa" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bar &amp; Cocoa</a> Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/barandcocoa" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bar &amp; Cocoa </a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/barandcocoa/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bar &amp; Cocoa </a>Where to find Lauren, host of Well Tempered and chocolate maker at WKND Chocolate: <a href="https://twitter.com/wkndchocolate" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@wkndchocolate</a> via Twitter New podcasts, Conversations in Cocoa at <a href="https://laurenonthewknd.substack.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">laurenonthewknd.substack.com</a> <a href="https://wkndchocolate.com/podcast/bar-and-cocoa-chocolate" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Permalink</a>

Episode 10: Pashmina Lalchandani Co-Founder of Bar & Cocoa 