NEWBURYPORT — Chocolate lovers rejoice, gourmet chocolate store M. Cacao has set up shop in Market Square.
Michael Nichols and chef Delphin Gomes are the duo behind M. Cacao, which has been operating in Amesbury for five years.
Gomes, an experienced pastry chef and chocolatier, has been working in the industry since his early teenage years in his home country of France.
Nichols is an engineer by trade who met Gomes when attending his pastry school in Cambridge.
Years later, the pair joined forces and have been successfully operating in Amesbury since 2020.
The business offers a myriad of chocolates from sweet to salty to spicy, which are now displayed in their new storefront at 37 Market Square.
Nichols said his background in engineering and Gomes’ decades of expertise in creating chocolate make for the perfect combination.
“I view what we do as a collaboration that brings together expert chocolatiering and pastry as well as art and technology. So, our objective is to create a whole experience with everything we do,” he said.
Nichols said the pair previously intended to open in Newburyport years ago, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, their plans changed.
Years later, M. Cacao has officially moved into the Newburyport location, a decision Gomes said was driven by the desire to make the business more accessible to customers.
“We have a product and I think it’s unique, interesting and good quality, and we want to basically share it with as many people as we could,” he said.
The Amesbury location will remain open to produce the chocolate as well as for online order pickups and to purchase collections.
Nichols said he believes M. Cacao can provide unique offerings not already present in the Newburyport business community.
“I thought we had cool stuff to offer, and I felt like Newburyport would be receptive and that there wasn’t anybody else doing anything like what we were doing for quite a radius. So, I thought it was a good time to open,” he said.
Nichols said M. Cacao has enjoyed a warm welcome from the Newburyport business community thus far.
“It’s super exciting. I’ve gotten a great reception. I’ve gotten multiple other business owners who have come and approached us and are interested in doing collaborations,” he said.
M. Cacao joins downtown Newburyport candy shops Simply Sweet on Inn Street and the Candy Man on Pleasant Street. Richdale Convenience Store is also known for its wide selection of candy.
Newburyport Chamber of Commerce & Industry President Nancy Caswell said each store provides its own “different experience.”
“Simply Sweet, has nostalgic sweets, with incorporation of all varieties of candies, too, with ice cream. The Candy Man has its taffy and fudge. M. Cacao ramps up the gourmet experience with savory bonbons, hot chocolates and even incorporating savory cheese products in their chocolates. In my opinion, we have three amazing shops to support,” she said.
Now, as Nichols looks to the future of M. Cacao in Newburyport, he hopes to follow through on potential collaborations and engage with other local artisans.
“I want to do collaborations with our technology and our artwork. I want artists to say, ‘Hey, this is cool. Can we work with you?’ So, we’re super interested in collaborating with the businesses and artistic community around us. We’re super excited about that” he said.