At Bon Chocolatiers, chocolate is not just a product but a passion. It’s the attention to detail and love that transforms each piece of chocolate into a work of delicious art. The Athlone couple behind ‘Bon Chocolatiers‘, Daniel and Georgia, have recently joined forces with Dunnes Stores for a bespoke range of ‘Simply Better’ chocolate products. This milestone event has changed everything for the artisan chocolate makers. It has not only led to them taking up a larger premises, located in the former Carroll’s of Tullamore building in County Offaly, but it has also enabled them to hire more people and purchase more machinery. Referring to the Simply Better contract, Daniel explains, “It has been so good for us, and we certainly wouldn’t have been able to move here without it.”

“I grew up around the food business, so I am able to understand the ups and downs. My parents lost their restaurant and their house. They lost everything.”

Dunnes Stores contract changed everything

Daniel Linehan and his wife Georgia also happen to be fully qualified and experienced chefs, but it was chocolate and pastry that piqued their interest. At last year’s ‘Blas na hÉireann’ festival, they picked up four awards, including the best chocolate box and best chocolate collection in Ireland. In 2022, they won the ‘Food and Drink Emerging Producers of the Year’, and that led them to meet the Dunnes Stores Simply Better team. As luck would have it, it was a’real coming together of minds’ when they realised they brought the same samples of different flavoured shards, clusters, and truffles as the Dunnes Team. According to Daniel, the chocolate year is cyclical, as they used to rely heavily on Valentine’s Day, Christmas, or Easter, but now, “having a big contract, it’s certainly changed everything for us in how we plan our year. The work is consistent because Dunnes is open all year round.” With four staff now fully employed (and an extra two at Christmas), they were piping by hand before they bought the tempering machine. “It would take four people three full days of non-stop piping, and I’m talking 12 hours a day, and the truffle has to be piped by hand. Now for the same order, it takes two people three hours.”

“Business is a balloon, and the only two people blowing air into that balloon are Georgia and me; if one of us stops blowing air in that balloon, it deflates. That’s what keeps me going all the time.”

Growing up with food

As a boy, Daniel grew up standing on benches to reach the counter to peel onions for his dad. His parents, Stephen and Martina Linehan, run the ‘Beans and Leaves Café’ on the banks of the River Shannon in Athlone. “I grew up around the food business, so I am able to understand the ups and downs. My parents lost their restaurant and their house. They lost everything, so I can see both sides. They are back up on their feet again and running a successful café.”

Daniel says his mam and dad are a great support to them. “Myself and Georgia are so grateful for the help they have given us. We were living with them for what was supposed to be one month, but it turned into 3 years. They let us use the cafe during COVID when it was shut down, and it was here where we were able to create and produce.” Daniel and Georgia recently brought his parents to the ‘Great Taste Golden Fork Awards’ in London, and Daniel says with a smile, “Every second person who came up to our stall would say, ‘Your mam said, to come and say, hello’!”

Starting your own business

The biggest driving force of being self-employed is that Daniel doesn’t want to be restricted—“not that I have to be in charge, but the sense that you are what you make of it.” Daniel uses the analogy that “business is a balloon, and the only two people blowing air into that balloon are Georgia and me; if one of us stops blowing air in that balloon, it deflates. That’s what keeps me going all the time.“

In the future, Daniel’s would love to have a flagship store and encourages small businesses to reach out to fellow entrepreneurs in the industry: “They were once where you are, starting off, and they will give you the best and most honest advice. Most people will help, they won’t necessarily share the recipes, but they will guide you with an open heart. It’s important to try and build that network of people, especially when a machine breaks, for example, because who else are you going to ring when your chocolate machine breaks?

Irish people love chocolate

Daniel explains that he and Georgia have set up their business because, when ever they travelled to parts of the world, they have always asked, “Why can’t we make artisan chocolate in Ireland too?” He tells me, they asked themselves, “Irish people love chocolate, people will pay for it; why is no one doing this?” He points out that in the last five years there has been a massive rise in Irish artisan chocolate makers here, which is exactly what they want to see, because he believes “without competition there is not growth.”

Finally, when asked about a dream collaboration, he mentions the famous French chef Amaury Guichon: “He is someone I dream about collaborating with. I trained under him for three months in Las Vegas.” His mantra is “don’t put yourself in a box; let nothing stop you. Just because someone hasn’t done it. Doesn’t mean that you can’t do it.”

You can see the process of how Daniel makes the chocolate here.