Geldhof Chocolates Factory Shop is pumping out stock at a frantic pace to meet the Easter weekend demand.
Factory staff worker, Gertrude Sibeko, who is on the morning shift – says they have been working since the end of Valentine’s Day to make sure they are ready.
“From the end of February, that’s when we started preparing for Easter. We were just out of Valentines and that during that time we deal with ‘Hearts’, so after there hearts we went straight into Easter where we make bunnies, Easter eggs, and various chocolates. That’s how we work,” she says.
In-house graphic designer, Liam Meyer, says it’s all hands on deck, as he has to assume the manager role on top of his responsibility of designing this year’s packaging visual theme.
He describes the factory floor as “crazy”, filled with a chocolate ‘army’.
“During this period, we really get quite a lot of foot traffic in our stores. Sometimes the line is going outside of the door because there’s so many people. And then on the factory side, it’s crazy. We just – everybody’s running back and forth, we’re pumping bunnies out. It’s insane. So it’s actually quite amazing to see because sometimes you go downstairs and it’s just a whole bunch of Easter bunnies lined up. It looks like a bunny army,” he says.
For first time grandmother, veteran customer at Geldhof, Deidre Berry says she wishes her 8-month old grandson could eat chocolate now, but looks forward to when she can share an Easter hunt with him when he’s older.
Berry also notes how the factory’s prices differ so much from regular and popular chain stores, who are also ramping their Easter specialties to attract more traffic.
“It’s such a delicious chocolate. It also is a treat. So that is why I come here. And being a factory shop, they’ve got a huge range of bunnies and eggs and for everyone. So. And also, the prices are reasonable as well, because sweets and chocolate have gone up so much in price,” she says
Many people across the globe will observe the weekend, either though church or some form of religious ritual; some will mark the occasion through food and family gatherings…while others look forward to tucking away as many chocolate treats for their loved ones to find.