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You could say that Liam Burgess was destined to make chocolate.

The 23-year-old founder of craft chocolate specialist NomNom grew up next to the giant Cadbury factory at Bournville, then later when the family moved to Wales they lived opposite the Pemberton’s chocolate farm at Llanboidy in Carmarthenshire.

Now the company he founded four years ago with a £3,000 loan from the Princes Trust has taken over the Pemberton’s site, abandoned following the closure of the popular tourist attraction.

And you might well have seen the distinctive looking bars, which are being picked up by independent shops, delis and restaurants across Wales.

“Chocolate has always been in my life. I made chocolates in the restaurants where I worked after leaving school,” he said.

“Then when the Princes Trust gave me the £3,000 I started making chocolate in a caravan in my mum’s back garden.”

(Image: Nomnom Chocolate/Facebook) (Image: Nomnom Chocolate/Facebook)

But the chocolate has never been your ordinary, run of the mill bar. It comes in unusual (and delicious) flavours including 'Peanut Butter', and 'Welshcake'. And it costs around £4 a bar, though special editions like 'Espresso Martini' can cost around £7.50.

Liam drew inspiration from the time he spent working with a French chef in his restaurant days.

“I got really inspired with all the people making stuff in random corners of Wales,” he said.

“I used different sources from around Wales, things like fresh rhubarb and lemon curd.”

He used the £3,000 to buy some essential equipment and ingredients, and when he had made a batch of chocolate he loaded it all in a van and drove around local independent shops to sell it.

“I didn’t come back till it was all sold,” he said.

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Organic growth

The company grew in this fashion, gradually increasing its production as outlets multiplied. Bit by bit Burgess was able to take on staff. Two of the earliest, Seren Atterbury and Lili Woollacott, were, like him, graduates of the local school who didn’t want to leave the area.

They joined NomNom without any particular training or experience, but now Seren is production manager in charge of making the chocolate, while Lili looks after customers.

NomNom’s expanding production soon outgrew the caravan and the company moved into a kitchen, then a converted cowshed. Now Burgess plans to move into the former Pemberton’s factory, provided they can raise the money needed to buy the property.

Sharing the love

(Image: Nomnom Chocolate/Facebook)

The company is now making around £500,000 a year in sales. It’s been profitable from the start, although could be even more so if it weren’t for Burgess’ approach to chocolate making, which combines a taste for adventurous new flavours with a concern for the social impact of the business.

He’s particularly proud of the fact that the cocoa beans are processed in Madagascar, within 48 hours of being picked. Not only does this guarantee freshness, it means more of the value is retained in the country of origin.

“It seems bizarre the idea of buying cocoa beans in Madagascar and making the chocolate in Wales,” he said.

“With our model of processing in the country of origin the cocoa is processed within 48 hours. No other chocolate is processed fresh in the country of origin.

“Our costs are significantly higher but it seems to be the right thing to do,” he added.

So important is the relationship with cocoa growers and processors in Madagascar that Burgess took the whole team to the island country to meet them and see how they work.

Unusual flavours

(Image: Nomnom Chocolate/Facebook)

NomNom is known among chocolate lovers for its unusual flavours, from Hot Cross Bun to Halen Mon. At the moment Burgess is working on what he calls a “mermaid’s cocktail bar” flavoured with Pembrokeshire seaweed rum, and an organic milk chocolate bar made with Calon Wen milk.

“It’s all about the seasons, giving something new to people all the time,” he said.

“But we have our classics that are always there. I also find, because we’re using different Welsh products, they have different audiences,” he added.

But you won’t find NomNom chocolate in Tesco or any supermarket anytime soon. The 2,000 bars the company makes every day are mostly sold through independent shops, although you can also get them online and some are sold internationally, the Scandinavian countries being a particularly market.

The company now employs 18 people and hopes to grow further when it moves onto the former Pemberton’s site. It continues to be a remarkable story for the young man with a taste for unusual chocolate.