Chocolate makers prepare for Easter rush amid global challenges

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Updated: 6:23 PM EDT Mar 30, 2026

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Yunier Martinez

Reporter

Easter is just days away, and chocolate shops across Vermont are working at full speed to keep up with demand.

At Snowflake Chocolates, preparations for Easter begin well before spring.

“It starts right after Valentine’s Day,” said Shelly Dionne, production manager and a third-generation candy maker.

From there, the work is nonstop. Dionne says the team hand-wraps about 15,000 chocolate eggs and stocks shelves across two locations in the weeks leading up to the holiday.

But getting the ingredients hasn’t been easy.

“The chocolate that we needed was a little tough,” Dionne said. “We had to preview a lot of it and kind of stockpiled, and when it was available, we just kind of jumped on it and made sure we had enough in stock.”

Dionne says global cocoa shortages and tariffs have driven up costs, forcing the business to plan and secure supplies early.

Over at Vermont Nut Free Chocolates, the Easter rush looks different, but just as busy.

The company, which specializes in allergen-free chocolate, relies heavily on online sales, shipping hundreds of orders each day during peak season.

“We’re shipping about 600 orders a day,” said co-founder Mark Elvidge.

But getting those orders to customers is becoming more expensive.

“Some of our transportation partners are implementing a 29 or 30% fuel surcharge because of the gas prices and the war in Iran,” Elvidge said.

Despite the challenges, both businesses say demand remains strong. Instead of passing higher costs on to customers, they’re working behind the scenes to absorb the impact.

“We did pay a little bit extra, but we made the decision not to push it on to our consumer,” Dionne said.

The busiest days for both businesses are expected later this week, just ahead of Easter Sunday.