Enter a deep red velvety everything, with a front and center case full of luscious delights and warmer than warm service, we welcome you to Lulu’s. The only lounge in Sedona, where all is served with the sweetest of intentions, it becomes clear after you taste the best raw paleo brownie of your life served alongside a high vibe tonic to match that you’ve indeed hit the jackpot. The hand-crafted chocolates are the first to greet you, stunningly beautiful to look at and unbelievably decadent, each raw bite better than the last. Behind the lounge sits an actual chocolate factory, viewable from the couch you can rest on as you enjoy the process and the finished products simultaneously. "You’re in for a treat" doesn’t even begin to explain it.
It all began with my love of chocolate and my desire to find the best. This led me to find specialty chocolate shops where I could buy bars from all over the world, always looking for something extra special. While teaching yoga in Portland, Oregon, I discovered I was sensitive to sugar and needed to give it up. For me, the tragedy of this was that it meant going without chocolate!
I travelled to Hawaii, to do a cleanse, and it was on this journey that I discov- ered my first cacao tree. Experiencing cacao in its’ raw, pure form filled me with bliss and ecstasy! I was truly blown away and my life changed. I began making my own raw chocolate creations and shared them with everyone around. When I found coconut sugar, I knew it was my mission to create a chocolate line that didn’t compromise taste for health. Chocolate that has it all.
Turns out people LOVE my creations and a business was born out of my passion for sharing what I consider the best chocolate in the world. This raw chocolate wants to be shared and I am so happy to co-create with its magical energy. I feel blessed to sell Lulu’s Chocolate to hundreds of retail markets and now to have our very own Chocolate Lounge in beautiful Sedona, Arizona.
Dreaming of a world covered in Lulu’s Chocolate...
What inspired the lounge concept?
The Chocolate Lounge came to be because A) I needed a creative outlet and B) It is so fun to interact with people as they are experiencing Lulu's Chocolate! Our wholesale business demands the kitchen to be a bit of an assembly line in the way that we make the same flavors over and over again. The Lounge allows me to experiment with new ideas and flavors as they come to mind. It gives me a venue to share them with the public without having to commit to marketing them. Marketing a flavor is very expensive and time consuming as there are packaging minimums and new item submission forms to take into account.
What is your favorite creation?
I love it deep, dark & pure. Midnight Velvet, our 88% cacao bar, is my daily breakfast each morning. Our most popular bar however is Smoked Sea Salt Almond. I love them all or they wouldn't exist!
Where do you get your inspiration for your new unique flavors?
I get cravings and then realize I have to create what I crave. I recently decided we needed to add some fruit to our product line and we are launching our Raspberry Rapture this week! I also love caramel but choose not to eat sugar. I am perfecting a Salted Caramel recipe that we will launch this Autumn!
What is your ultimate vision?
I have fallen in love with the Chocolate Lounge! I aim to open more of these around the country. Meanwhile, our wholesale business continues to expand so that people all across the country, maybe the globe, will have access to buy Lulu's Chocolate at their favorite stores. Our website also does really well and is always growing. I love seeing new fans as well as our devoted return customers purchasing online.
If you had one hour to spend in Sedona, what would you do?
I would share some tea and a Midnight Velvet bar with my husband, get on our motorcycle and go to an epic hiking spot so we can get lost together in the deep magic of Mother Nature!
What are your spirtiual practices?
I think this is something most people deal with and I am certainly not immune. I have spent most of my life reprogramming myself! Awareness of bad habits and self limiting patterns leads to being able to bust them down as they are happening. Anything one can do to practice presence will help end the power that unconscious patterns hold over us. I am a big fan of yoga, meditation, mantra, dancing & all creative activities. Choose the higher thought until you don't even have to choose! It WILL happen naturally with practice.
Lulus's chocolate oozes sensuality...tell us more?
Sensuality. One of my best friends always says, "Lulu, you put the sexy back in healthy chocolate!" I am a big fan of not compromising. My mission is to offer a product that truly bridges the gap between healthy and gourmet. I want to help people realize that they can have it all. They can enjoy things that make them feel alive & amazing, while also enjoying the sensual experience of deliciousness! I'm afraid that alternative foods, such as raw chocolate, have somewhat gotten a bad rap in the mainstream due to there being some products out there that aren't great. I want to change that! I have gotten the most beautiful fan mail from people who say they quit eating chocolate completely due to how ingredients like milk, soy and sugar made them feel. Then they tried healthy chocolate that didn't taste like chocolate to them, so they just gave it up till they found Lulu's. They are so grateful and so am I!
Who inspires you?
I just got to meet India Aire and share chocolate with her in our Lounge after going to her live show of Songversations: I Am Light. It was very deeply inspiring to be so moved by experiencing her story on stage. Then to find out that she is also a fan of mine was the cherry on top! I LOVE Danielle LaPorte and her Desire Map work. She led me to Marie Forleo, and I am now enrolled in her online B School. Saida Desilets is the most sensually inspiring person I know and I am now taking her Jade Egg Mastery workshop.
What is one question you are asking yourself these days?
What choices can I make today to nourish & grow my "Core Desired Feelings?" This is part of the Desire Map work. My CDFs are: Inspired, Passionate, Creative, Abundant, Grateful, Playful, Sensual & Present!
