One bite and Kay Thibodeaux was hooked.
As a jewelry salesperson, Kay had never considered working in the food industry, but after attending a chocolate festival in Wisconsin – everything changed.
Upon trying a delicious chocolate sample created by the premiere chocolate maker Dove, Kay felt inspired to take action. She inquired about the company’s home sales program, and thought perhaps she could grow her sales experience by offering sweets to her jewelry customers.
A year and many brownie sales later, Kay decided to attend Dove’s annual conference.
“I came home from the Dove chocolate conference, put the jewelry in a closet and never sold it again,” said Kay.
After falling in love with the desserts and employee culture at Dove, Kay got to work. She earned every incentive trip the company offered, rose to management positions and brushed shoulders with some of the world's best master chocolatiers.
Exposed to the ins and outs of chocolate by Dove’s experts, Kay realized she wanted to take her confectionary career to the next level. In 2017, She decided to make a lifetime commitment to chocolate, and earned her professional chocolatier certification.
Pairing her artisan status with the inevitable decline of home sale programs, Kay started her own business from her home, making treats and teaching chocolate-making classes.
By 2020, she became a regular at farmers markets and despite the pandemic, continued to thrive. Her coveted hot chocolate bombs served as the perfect product amidst viral food trends.
Bolstered by her cocoa bombs, Kay opened her first store front. After several years of business, Kay has recently moved her store to the Lakeside community in Flower Mound, and has brought with her global flavor.
Largely inspired by her chocolate enthusiast trips to the cocoa farms of the Hawaiian islands, The Touring Chocolatier offers truffles and custom painted chocolates made with Kay’s own recipes.
With a true traveler’s palette, Kay places an emphasis on flavor development, creating unique combinations like passion fruit, orange and guava, or “Aztec” a lively mixture of cocoa and cayenne pepper.
“The chocolate just speaks to me,” said Kay.
Maintaining an individual relationship with each of her vendors, Kay strives for quality in every bite. She focuses on craft makers who control the entire process – from cocoa bean to chocolate bar, and often visits and works on the cocoa farms herself.
Other than Kay’s creations, the Touring Chocolatier offers baked goods, a variety of giftable items, and group classes including truffle making and wine and chocolate pairing.
Beyond her passion for chocolate making, Kay’s biggest joy comes from cultivating community. She greets each patron with a smile and even invites them to share prayer requests or gratitude reports on a bulletin board near the shop's register.
Now tucked into the walkable community at Lakeside, Kay feels that her and her chocolates are being embraced now more than ever. “This community has really come together,” said Kay, “I think we are going to work well together.”
With a true traveler’s palette, Kay places an emphasis on flavor