For 30 years, Seattle Chocolate has offered ethically sourced, imaginatively flavored and whimsically wrapped bars and truffles that consumers can feel just as good about buying as they do unwrapping and eating – and while the company’s core values and high quality are not changing, its branding is.
The Seattle Chocolate Company’s eponymous brand has a bold and joyful new look and name – Maeve – inspired by an Irish warrior queen that the founder says better represents the woman owned businesses’ fearless approach to chocolate.
The new name and look also will allow the brand to expand beyond its hometown region into new markets and appeal to a broader base of fun-seeking but socially-conscious consumers by better highlighting the full scope of the company’s values, according to Seattle Chocolate CEO Jean Thompson and Brand Manager Ellie Thompson.
“Seattle Chocolate has been around for a long time and has very steady growth and a really loyal following in the Pacific Northwest, but we found that no matter how hard we tried to get into different retailers across the country, we would run into sell-through problems because” Seattle was not necessarily known for chocolate, Jean Thompson said. “So, we knew we needed to come up with a new brand that was non-regionally named.”
The new branding also better represents the company’s ideals with call outs about how it is carbon neutral, donates 10% of net profits to farmer, has sustainable packaging and is women-owned.
While the reasons for the brand are serious, the new look is not. Rather, Ellie Thompson explains that it focuses on fun and whimsy.
“Consumers do not want to be preached at. They want to have all the substance and depth, but they want to still enjoy chocolate. It is a very emotional food that you eat when you are happy or you are sad, and we wanted to acknowledge that experience. So, the font of all our bars are really fun, maximalist escapism, high-fantasy that we know our audience of Gen Z and millennial women love,” she explained.
At the same time, the back and inside of the packaging provides additional information for those who want it.
“In our ideal world, the bars catch their eyes on shelf and then they become loyal fans over time as they read about the depth side,” Ellie Thompson added.
Maeve celebrates women
The brand’s new name – Maeve – pays tribute to a first century Irish warrior queen who Jean Thompson said represents everything the company has fought for in the past three decades, including supporting women on cocoa farms, in the corporate world or as they fully embrace all planned and unexpected events that happen in life and the emotions they bring.
Maeve “was a first century Irish warrior queen, but also is often depicted as a goddess, and she is a real character. She actually believed that women should fight for what they believe in,” and “are equal,” which Seattle Chocolate Co. also believes and advocates for within the communities where it sources its cocoa, explained Jean Thompson.
For example, 10% of the company’s net profits support programs for female farmers, widows and children. The company also works with a non-governmental organization in Ghana to offer loans to farmers.
“We also liked Maeve because it sounded feminine, like a woman’s name, and we wanted people to know that this is a bunch of women bringing this product to you,” added Ellie Thompson.
High quality ingredients remain top priority
While a lot is changing with the rebranding of Maeve, much of what consumers love about Seattle Chocolate will remain the same.
“We have been on this continuous improvement plan since three years ago. We went carbon neutral and we are constantly trying to recycle more and do all the right things,” said Jean Thompson. But, she added, “who we are, what we stand for, this continuous improvement commitment is not changing at all.”
This includes the company’s commitment to “rigorous standards for sourcing ingredients,” including using all natural flavors and colors, non-alkalized cocoa and non-GMO ingredients, added Ellie Thompson.
The flavors, texture and overall eating experience also will stay the same, she added, noting the truffle centers of Maeve’s three-layer bars are the company’s “biggest differentiator.”
She notes: “A lot of the actual chocolate itself is the exact same as before, just in a new outfit, if you will.”
– Videography, editing and production by Caroline Rude
