Chocolatier expands capacity

After a significant increase in turnover, family-run Holdsworth Chocolates has expanded to create a larger manufacturing and office facility in the heart of the Derbyshire Dales.

Its handmade chocolates have been a hit with well-heeled customers shopping at Harrods and other fine food halls and department stores for more than a quarter of a century.

The expansion was made possible with a grant from the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership’s Regional Growth Fund (RGF) of almost £25,000.

This formed a crucial part of a £123,000 investment in fitting out new premises at Deepdale Business Park, Bakewell, and purchasing new machinery.

Seven new jobs have also been created as a result of the company’s expansion.

David Sharples, managing director of Holdsworth Chocolates, says: “Prior to this project taking place, production was running at capacity.

“Holdsworth Chocolates was experiencing good levels of growth but there was a need to relocate to larger premises in order to meet production demand and retain and grow our customer base.

“It was also vital that we relocated locally, within Bakewell, to ensure that our existing local employees could be retained; and for us to have the opportunity to recruit more skilled team members from the surrounding area in future.

“Without the RGF we would not have been able to raise sufficient finance to carry out the project within the desired timescales.

“This in turn would have jeopardised our ability to service current customer demand and create the almost immediate growth we needed to meet demand from new areas.

“It’s great news that, thanks to this RGF funding, we have been able to drive our business forward and sell our delicious chocolates to thousands of new customers.”