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Husband and wife Shane and Casey Meisel bought the 45-year-old Eugene chocolate-maker in July. The couple hopes to make Euphoria’s factory a destination for visitors.
The new owners of Euphoria Chocolate Company, which has sold artisanal truffles and confectionery in Eugene since 1980, hope to be the Willamette Valley’s next Willy Wonkas.
In July, Shane and Casey Meisel bought the business from previous owners Van and Bonnie Glass, acquiring its recipes, equipment and inventory, along with the leases for Euphoria’s three retail locations.
Shane Meisel told Lookout Eugene-Springfield that he plans to take the longtime local fixture back to basics by perfecting Euphoria’s core product, chocolate, and improving customer service.
Those goals lay the groundwork for the Meisels’ larger vision for the chocolate shop: turning Euphoria’s factory into a tourist destination, like Tillamook Creamery a couple hours north, Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco or Guinness Storehouse in Dublin.
“I want us to focus on what we do; make it really, really good; make it as best as it can,” Shane Meisel said, adding: “We’re here to support the community. We’re here to bring Euphoria back.”
Considered one of Eugene’s famous homegrown brands, Euphoria Chocolate can be seen on the shelves of grocery stores and gift shops across the state, including at Market of Choice and Made in Oregon.
The company also supplies chocolate sauces to some Oregon restaurants and ice cream parlors, and customers can order directly from its website, which ships nationwide.
Meisel, 45, who works for a Utah-based arms manufacturer, said he called a broker advertising a specialty manufacturing company for sale in Lane County in May after growing frustrated with corporate life.
When he learned the listing was for Euphoria Chocolate, a household name, he ran upstairs to tell his wife, Casey — a Hillsboro native who now serves as Euphoria’s chief operating officer and previously worked for Nike and Columbia Sportswear.
Shane Meisel grew up in Eugene, where he indulged in Euphoria truffles as a kid and recalled running miles through Alton Baker Park in the rain for a free truffle during the company’s former Truffle Trot, which it hosted for 15 years before retiring the event.
The deal closed two months later. Meisel declined to discuss the terms, though he said it was “way cheaper” than one might expect.
The business has changed hands before. Founders Bob Bury and Sue Subbott retired and sold the company in 2014 to the Glasses.
The Glasses recently sold the business to retire, Shane Meisel said, adding that the couple plans to spend more time traveling. Bonnie Glass didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
“After 11 incredible years at the helm of Euphoria Chocolate Company, the time has come for me to step aside and let someone else take the reins of this sweet adventure,” Glass wrote on Instagram in July. “Words cannot fully capture the gratitude and joy I feel for having the privilege of working alongside such an amazing team.”
Shane Meisel said the company has retained all but one of its 28 employees and is currently hiring eight more — six part-time and two full-time employees.
“People say, ‘Oh, I used to work at Euphoria Chocolate, I work for Euphoria Chocolate,’” Meisel said. “This is a place that they want to work, they want to be a part of. Everyone grows and succeeds together … that’s what I want, but we can’t do that without the community’s help.”
To start, the Meisels are focusing on three goals, written on a whiteboard in a factory office: focusing on the customers, making it easy to do business, and starting with yes.
They are retraining staff on basic retail salesmanship — how to talk to customers, handle lines and offer samples.
“We have a lot of historic customers that come in because of tradition, but I don’t know that it’s been the most pleasant experience for the last few years,” Meisel said.
For now, the Meisels plan to maintain Euphoria’s current product lineup. Meisel said they have discontinued the previous owners’ popcorn line but plan to revisit it after the holidays.
Meisel said the company’s focus will remain on chocolate, with plans to grow through wholesale and online sales instead of developing new products. He also hopes to restore the quality ingredients that he remembers from his childhood.
“What we’re trying to do is make sure we reestablish the roots and what made the brand beloved within the community,” he said.
The company has been operating on tighter margins in recent years due to rising cocoa prices, though costs have recently eased following rainfall in West Africa, which produces most of the world’s cocoa. Tariff fluctuations on countries in the region have added to the volatility.
“Luckily, our suppliers have been pretty fair with us,” Meisel said. “When the tariffs are on, we get that price increase.”
Down the road, the new owners hope to expand Euphoria’s physical footprint. They want to reopen the company’s original storefront at 17th Avenue and Willamette Street and are exploring a possible move of Euphoria’s west Eugene factory to the riverfront steam plant, which the city is redeveloping with deChase Miksis Development into a mixed-use center.
Meisel, name-dropping Willy Wonka, said he envisions the factory offering tours and becoming a tourist destination. The couple is also reviving the Truffle Trot — which has since been renamed the Truffle Shuffle — under new name Cupid’s Chocolate Chase on Feb. 7.
Bury, Euphoria’s founder, told The Register-Guard in 2014 that he had not been aggressive about expansion, which gave the business more freedom to determine its course.
Meisel recalled a recent conversation between his wife and an old friend, who jokingly compared the couple’s purchase of Euphoria Chocolate to buying the University of Oregon, given the brand’s local prominence.
“That’s kind of what it feels like,” Meisel said. “It’s a Eugene landmark. I think it belongs to the community.”
