The new, decadent chocolate business bringing joy to Coast

THE Sunshine Coast's repertoire of sweet indulgences has grown with the arrival of a multi-award winning chocolate business.

FRESH APPROACH: Kokopod Chocolate founder and head chocolatier Brigid Woolnough has moved her business to Buderim. Picture: Contributed

THE Sunshine Coast's repertoire of sweet indulgences has grown with the arrival of a multi-award winning chocolate business.

Kokopod Chocolate is the newest confectionery company to call the Coast home and with some out-of-the-box thinking, it's also a tasty one at that.

The business has taken a fresh approach to the traditional crowd-pleaser by creating 13 quirky and creative flavours.

Among its offerings are flavours including Smoky Black, which is 72% chocolate infused with smoked sea salt, Leatherwood Honeycomb and the award-winning MACNUTS, which is caramelised roasted macadamia nuts covered in milk chocolate and dusted with cocoa powder.

It's a creative flair that was originally thrown into the mixing bowl as a hobby while founder and head chocolatier Brigid Woolnough was on maternity leave.

However, the passion was quick to evolve into a thriving business.

Formerly a home-based business in Brisbane, Kokopod Chocolate made the move north to Buderim in January in a bid to expand operations.

"The Sunshine Coast has a great business resource, it also suited our lifestyle and it was somewhere we wanted to be for our family and it also had a good balance between business and pleasure,” founder and head chocolatier Brigid Woolnough said.

Kokopod Chocolate Founder and Head Chocolatier Brigid Woolnough has recently shifted her business to Buderim on the Sunshine Coast. Picture: Contributed

Mrs Woolnough said she aimed to produce a high quality product not normally offered to Australian sweet lovers.

"I think that our business is very focused around fresh products and also focussed around predominately local products,” she said.

"We also use a fair trade sustainable Swiss Felchlin cacao, which is of a premium quality so our products not only taste amazing but they also have a great sort of story behind them.

"They are great for gifts, visually appealing and they tick a lot of boxes and we find that people just keep coming back more and more so it's been really great.”

Shifting to a commercial space in Buderim, Mrs Woolnough said Kokopod Chocolate continued to grow and gain national accolades.

The business has claimed two gold and eight silver awards from Australian fine food shows.

"I like the innovative side and I like creating and trying new ideas and testing new products and flavours,” she said,

"I also really like the customer feedback side and I like the point where we get to engage with the consumer and find out exactly what they do or don't like about the product.

"That's probably where I get my buzz from.”

Kokopod Chocolate Founder and Head Chocolatier Brigid Woolnough has recently shifted her business to Buderim on the Sunshine Coast. Picture: Contributed

Kokopod Chocolate won't just be pleasing Sunshine Coast tastebuds, with plans to export in the near future.

Mrs Woolnough joined eight other businesses to recently graduate from Sunshine Coast Council's Export and Global Capability Program.

"It was really valuable and was a very worthwhile experience,” she said.