A perfect journey for The Amazing Chocolate Workshop

DS Smith’s UK packaging division has partnered with The Amazing Chocolate Workshop once again to develop and test new e-commerce packaging, which captivates and entices the customer on arrival.

The mission of the Amazing Chocolate Workshop is to take the boundaries of chocolate to a whole new level – creating a world of mesmerising, mind-boggling and quirky chocolate creations that fill people with joy.  Its chocolate products are hand-made to look exactly like everyday objects such as tools, cameras, kitchen utensils and other paraphernalia.

The business started in 2014, selling chocolate at small craft events and markets. Since then, the range has expanded to 110 different shapes. This has resulted in more complex challenges when designing packaging for the online retail business that works for the whole range, especially the ‘pick and mix’ service which allows customers to create their own unique gift set.

DS Smith has worked closely with The Amazing Chocolate Workshop since its beginning, developing a pack which has a “wow” factor on arrival at a customer’s home and provides vital protection for the fragile chocolate items. Because of the success of the first range, The Amazing Chocolate Workshop approached DS Smith once more when developing new packaging to tackle the issue of reducing damage to the delicate chocolate products in the final mile of delivery.Ed Starr, joint founder and owner of The Amazing Chocolate Workshop, explains: “We love the reaction our chocolate gets when our customers open their box for the first time.  Security, protection and customer experience are key considerations in the design and testing process.”

DS Smith was able to offer The Amazing Chocolate Workshop access to DISCS™, its industry-leading new technology, which tests whether a packaging design can withstand the bumps and scrapes of the average e-commerce supply chain. Using this real world testing on The Amazing Chocolate Workshop products, DS Smith produced impactful packaging in keeping with the brand image of being rustic and recyclable, while ensuring the safe and secure delivery of their products to their customers.

Named after the different types of testing (Drop Impact Shock Crush Shake), the unique DISCS™ system consists of five pieces of equipment, each replicating a part of the product journey and informing the design of protective packaging.

Sara Blount, Sales Manager for DS Smith e-commerce UK, comments: “The DISCS™ technology means that we are able to assure The Amazing Chocolate Workshop that their new packaging will survive the stresses and strains of the supply chain and arrive with their customers in great condition. It is vital that the chocolate arrives safely and that every customer has a moment of “home theatre” when they open their delivery.”

By collaborating closely with The Amazing Chocolate Workshop, DS Smith has created a design which perfectly meets the specification. Each gift box has a flexible corrugated insert that surrounds the chocolate without undermining the rustic experience that the company aims to create.  The new packaging eliminates any need to fill additional space and allows the customer to get the full reveal experience as soon as the pack is opened.