Insanely Delicious - Undercover Chocolate Company

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Diana Levy, owner and CEO of Undercover Chocolate Company, LLC., located in East Hanover, NJ, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

We created the brand Undercover Snacks to manufacture unbelievably delicious, healthy-in-disguise snacks. Our Chocolate Quinoa Crisps are the perfect better-for-you indulgence for chocohaulics and healthy eaters everywhere. We manufacture our Non-GMO, Rainforest Alliance Certified treats in a Certified Gluten-Free, Peanut, and Tree-nut free facility and are a Certified Woman-Owned Business.

Tell us about yourself

Having always wanted to be an entrepreneur, I initially had a small chocolate business. In 2016, two of my three daughters were diagnosed with Celiac Disease. I experimented with ingredients to find a truly delicious, better-for-you snack using the same premium real chocolate I had been using in my chocolate business. I discovered that by crisping quinoa (like a rice crispy), I could create an incredibly crispy crunchy treat with such an amazing texture that I could use less chocolate than similar crunch bars and still create something satisfying and indulgent. By using quinoa instead of rice, our crisps have the added benefit of having protein, fiber, and nutrients with less sugar and fewer calories than similar chocolate crunch bars or crispy treats.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

To keep up with demand, in 2018, we opened our own state-of-the-art, SQF certified manufacturing facility capable of making over 40,000 bags of Undercover a day. We have scaled rapidly from neighborhood stores to Whole Foods to over 10,000 stores nationwide. We also sell internationally and are aboard United Airlines.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Everyone else can leave at the end of the day - even if there are issues left to deal with. When you are the owner, at the end of the day, you are responsible for everything and have to work until the job - or the order - is done.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

1. Look for whitespace in the market and then get started in some way, shape, or form, even if you do not have 100% of the information you need to create a business plan. Sometimes just being in the game enables you to spot the opportunity.
2. Be persistent and work on the problem. There are a million problems and challenges in starting a business. To succeed, you will need to work through them constantly.
3. Be willing to pivot - whether for opportunities or challenges, be nimble enough to modify your product or your business plan if that's what it takes to succeed.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.undercoversnacks.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UndercoverSnacks
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/undercoversnacks/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/UCSnacks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/undercoversnacks/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.