The next time you attend a ceremony, you can either give the hosts the traditional floral bouquets, only to have it thrown into the dust bin the next day. Or, you can gift them a custom-designed bouquet made of chocolates.

Thanks to the local demand, homemakers in Coimbatore who make and sell these chocolate bouquets are doing good business. Here are some of these creative entrepreneurs who make and sell edible chocolate bouquets by-the-order.

Sornam Thirumal
It has been two years since homemaker Sornam Thirumal has been making and selling chocolates from her home in Sundarapuram. Having completed a certificate course in chocolate making, it was her trip to Switzerland that became the turning point. “On one of our trips to Switzerland, my husband and I visited chocolate factories. That is where I got this idea from,” Sornam says. When she returned to India, she started making and selling chocolates under the brand name Cira Choco, a Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FASSAI) certified company.

Sornam makes chocolate bouquets in a variety of flavours like milk, dark chocolates, white chocolate and nuts. Sornam tells us that most of her customers preserve the dry flowers that she uses to set the bouquet. She requires the full amount to be deposited in her bank account once the order is placed. Orders for chocolate bouquets are accepted via email, Facebook, Whatsapp and over the phone.

Nithya Pradeep
As a child, Nithya was always fascinated by art and craft. It is this love for art that prompted her Nithya Pradeep to try her hands at making chocolates. The idea clicked and became an instant hit with her circle of friends and family. It has been a year since Nithya started making and selling chocolates. She has been getting repeat orders for her home-made chocolates and her edible chocolate bouquets. “I get orders for birthdays, anniversaries, and other celebrations. Depending on the occasion I create the chocolate bouquets in for my customer,” Nithya says.

Nithya makes plain chocolates and adds nuts to it, on request. For anniversaries or weddings, her chocolate bouquet would contain heart-shaped chocolates wrapped in red colour paper. A bouquet for a kid’s birthday will have flower-shaped chocolates and the wrapper can be customized. She requires a minimum of two days to ready the order and the order must be picked up from her home in R S Puram.

Rajeshwari Gobinathan
About four years ago, homemaker Rajeshwari Gobinathan decided to do something different for the guests of her daughter’s first birthday party. She made and presented chocolate bouquets in a variety of flavours. The guests started placing orders for more and more chocolate bouquets. Thus, the brand name Vikashni’s Treats was born from her home kitchen in Ramnagar.

Rajeshwari makes chocolate bouquets in flavours like bubblegum, strawberry, hazelnut, and guava among others. She can also make bouquets with chocolates filled with fruit puree or caramel. “I share images of chocolate bouquets samples on Whatsapp and only after getting an approval from the customer do I begin working on the order,” Rajeshwari says. She also undertakes door delivery of the order on request, and charges depending on the area where chocolate bouquet has to be delivered. Orders are taken over the phone, on Whatsapp, and via emails.