Candy Industry Senior Editor Liz Parker Kuhn recently was able to chat with Julie Leslie, owner of the first Peterbrooke shop in Lake Norman, NC, whom has plans to open additional locations throughout the area.
Leslie, a former school teacher with a background in marketing and management, is bringing Peterbrooke’s unique chocolate experience to North Carolina. The Lake Norman location, situated at 356 Morrison Plantation Parkway in Mooresville, will offer the brand’s famous handmade chocolates, such as truffles, caramels, and signature hand-dipped strawberries. Leslie and her family are eager to offer not just gourmet chocolates but memorable experiences, including chocolate classes, team-building events, birthday parties, and more.
Liz Parker Kuhn: Why did you and your family decide to open a Peterbrooke Chocolatier store in NC? Do you have plans to open additional locations throughout the area?
Julie Leslie: I have always wanted to own a confectionary business. Whenever we travel, one of the first things we do (as I’m sure many families do) is scout out what unique sweet shoppes are in the area. It’s always a part of the adventure, particularly if it’s chocolate. I was looking for a confectionary business that was more than just a cupcake or candy shop. I wanted to sell luxury chocolates with a store design that reflects that. I was looking to create more than just a chocolate shop, but the perfect gift shop for delicious presents that make a lasting impression. I also wanted this chocolate boutique to serve as a gathering place for small groups and events, and a space for kid’s birthday parties, which is so needed in our Lake Norman, NC community. I immediately had a vision for this, and I kept researching until I found a company that could match that vision. That’s when I discovered Peterbrooke Chocolatier, and I knew we had to bring it to Lake Norman.
Right now, we are focusing all our efforts on our Mooresville store location, but our plan is to open shops in Concord, Denver, and North Charlotte.
LPK: How does your background as a former teacher with experience in marketing and management help you with operating the store?
JL: I earned a marketing/management degree from Northwood University. I dreamed of owning my own business, but with college debts to pay off, I went to work for Ford Motor Company as a zone manager in CA. While I enjoyed learning the corporate side of the business, I had one foot in the creative space of teaching acting workshops. I discovered a passion for teaching and decided to pursue my masters at Pepperdine University.
My husband and I have been in the Lake Norman area now for 20 years. During those years I’ve taught for MGSD, owned and operated a company that taught acting workshops to children, had the privilege of homeschooling my own children, and I’ve hosted a number of community and neighborhood events, such as father-daughter dances, gingerbread house parties, themed birthday parties, etc. The planning, designing, implementing, and creating in each of these endeavors has helped prepare me for many of the events we will host at our shop. Part of planning for these events involved designing delicious confections in our own kitchen. I have a gluten allergy, so I often experiment with creating gluten-free treats for other groups that need them as well. You can count on there being a gluten-free confections at Peterbrooke (in addition to the sugar-free items we offer).
We love the Lake Norman community and are friends with many of the families here. We care about what the community is looking for in a chocolatier, and we will be actively implementing new ideas from our customers.
LPK: What classes/events will the store offer and what kind of confections?
JL: [We will offer our] famous truffles (milk/dark/white) such as raspberry, orange, strawberry, and mint. Specialty truffles, such as bourbon pecan, chai tea, coconut almond. Seasonal truffles, like pumpkin spice, peppermint patty, and eggnog.
Nut clusters, caramels, toffees, meltaway, chocolate dipped pretzels, peanut butter cups, hand dipped strawberries, small batch chocolate bars, chocolate drizzled popcorn, and more.
Classes/events:
- Chocolate Making/Chocolatier for a Day
- Date Nights
- Paint with Chocolate
- History of Chocolate with samples (homeschool, children, and adult classes)
- Kid’s Camps
- Christmas decorating parties
- Birthday Parties
- Girl’s Night out
- Hosting book clubs, bible studies, business meetings, support group
LPK: Why is Lake Norman an ideal fit for Peterbrooke’s first NC shop? What unique offerings will make it stand out in the market? What sort of local impact will it have, such as new jobs and community engagement?
JL: Lake Norman does not have a chocolatier like this. There’s simply nothing like this in the area. This will be the ultimate chocolate experience for the retail customer and for local businesses, from the events to the chocolate itself. We offer gift baskets for every occasion and for any company looking for a thank you basket for its’ customers or employees. There will be specialty items like chocolate dipped wine bottles and chocolate covered strawberry trees. We can make any custom chocolate piece to fit your needs. We can put logos on any size or shape of chocolate; race bars, boats, sports (such as our chocolate footballs and soccer balls stuffed with chocolate-covered popcorn), chocolate golf balls, chess pieces, and chocolate to represent any sport or company. We will also provide custom chocolate pieces for weddings, showers, corporate events, etc. We can’t wait to start making custom, small batch chocolates in our shop, but we also have the ability to fulfill large orders, using our factory in Florida, so we can service all of Lake Norman’s chocolate needs.
LPK: Has Peterbrooke Chocolatier released any new confections this year, and/or does it have any plans for new confections in early 2025?
JL: Peterbrooke is always releasing new confections. They recently debuted their version of the Dubai Bar (with shredded pastry dough and pistachio cream), which was extremely popular.
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