Schakolad Birmingham Chocolate partners with worthy non-profits.

Schakolad Birmingham Chocolate owner Douglas Cale believes very strongly in the power of being a good neighbor and contributing within the community. So much so, in fact, that he directs his business every month to support an appropriate local non-profit through special chocolate sales, sending a share of sales to the organization and promoting its mission among his clientele. In turn, the charity’s stakeholders are introduced to some of the best chocolate around.

“Our mission is to make Michigan sweeter one bite at a time,” says Cale, who retired from a C-suite career several years ago to become a competitive cross-country skier, before he opened his Birmingham chocolate boutique. “When we can pursue our mission in partnership with non-profits that help to make Michigan better for all of us, it is a win-win. There are many wonderful local causes and we enjoy creating promotions that have synergies with events and happenings within their organizations.”

Cale meets with leaders of each non-profit partner to find the best way to promote their mission. Some creative approaches have included creating 60^th anniversary chocolates for FAR, musical chocolates to benefit Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings, a 36-inch pink-ribbon-adorned Easter bunny raffle for The Pink Fund and chocolate space shuttles for an educational directive related to NASA and the Birmingham Schools.

For the rest of this year, these are the non-profit partners Schakolad Birmingham Chocolate has chosen:

June: Supporting Urban Farming, this month’s initiative will involve making chocolates using fresh garden ingredients, such as basil. (Schakolad partners with vendors from local farmers markets to source fresh, local produce.) Urban Farming establishes community gardens on unused urban land to grow food for those in need. http://www.urbanfarming.org/.

July:  Birmingham/Bloomfield Community Coalition: Preventing abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs within the community. http://www.bbcoalition.org/

August:  Baldwin Center: Providing food, clothing, education, and empowerment for individuals in Pontiac. http://baldwincenter.org/

September:  Angel’s Place: Sixteen houses in Wayne, Macomb, and Oakland counties that support individuals with developmental disabilities. http://www.angelsplace.com/

October: The Oakland Literacy Council: Educating Oakland County adults with basic reading and English language instruction. http://www.oaklandliteracy.net/

November:  Alzheimer’s Association: Funding research to ultimately eliminate Alzheimer’s disease. http://www.alz.org/

December:  Birmingham/Bloomfield Art Center: Provides arts education. http://bbartcenter.org

Having relocated to Maple Road just west of downtown, Birmingham Chocolate has become a neighborhood hangout with ample parking, artisan chocolates, French pastries, teas, fresh roasted coffees, energy smoothies and handmade Italian gelato. In the summer, there is outdoor seating to relax and enjoy cool treats.

Birmingham Chocolate’s chocolates, coffees and teas are certified kosher by Kosher Michigan.  Preservatives are not added.  Vegan, sugar-free and gluten-free selections are available.

Schakolad Birmingham Chocolate is a gifting outlet as well as a chocolateria, serving the gifting needs of its customers, including the business world, by creating custom branded boxes and baskets. It is a partner in wedding and event planning, creating unique favors, desserts and other chocolate items for weddings and other events, and Cale partners with niche industries like florists and event planners to offer unique and creative opportunities for added-value to their customers.