Matt’s creations can be found across San Antonio, from the Pullman Market and Hotel Emma to the Pearl, Sunset Ridge and Fredericksburg vineyards.
SAN ANTONIO — The sweet aroma of sugar, caramel, and cocoa fills the 4,000-square-foot Swiss Chocolate Shoppe as Matthew Willis crafts his truffles.
For most people, chocolate is a simple treat; for Matt, it’s become an integral part of his life.
From 3 a.m. to nearly midnight, Matt lives and breathes chocolate. But that wasn’t always the case. He had a career in IT and spent 13 years as a professional obstacle course racer before the decadent treat took over.
“It just doesn’t make any sense really,” he said with a laugh, reflecting on what inspired him to open a chocolate artisan business.
In October 2019, Matt and his wife found themselves traveling through Europe as Matt prepared for an obstacle course event. The couple had some time to spare in Switzerland before making the journey to London for the races.
Matt’s wife, a dedicated planner, booked a chocolate making class for fun, not realizing she had somehow unlocked a special skill within Matt that he never knew existed.
Matt said the teacher kept praising him during the class, impressed by his natural talent.
“And after an hour of being told, ‘hey you’re okay at this.’ I think maybe I could do this,” Matt said. So, he came home and researched everything he needed to know from importing to determining which ingredients work best as a chocolate-maker.
“I just poked my head out of the kitchen and just said, ‘hey, babe, I’m going to drop a little bit of money on this and if it works, cool. If not, we’ll have 90 pounds of Swiss chocolate to eat,’” Matt said while chuckling at the memory.
“I figured that was a good way to kind of sweeten the pot.”
And instead of opening a huge storefront, Matt opted for a humble setup in his own cottage kitchen in 2020 – a difficult time for anyone to start a business.
“So, we had a 2,000 square-foot house with a moderate sized kitchen and after a year or so, we ended up building a bigger house with a bigger kitchen because I couldn’t work out of that anymore,” he said.
After two moves, including a bigger house and a 2,000-square-foot commercial kitchen, Matt landed at his current Whirlwind Drive facility.
“It’s been an interesting kind of a hockey stick ride,” Matt said.
Because at first it was just weekends at the Peal market – a way to make some extra money.
“Now I have a 4,000 square-foot production facility and multiple employees. It makes no sense, but it’s been awesome,” he said.
Despite being born in the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia, Willis considers himself a through-and-through San Antonian. He moved to the Alamo City at 8 years old in October 1992 and attended both Clark and Churchill High Schools – joking that it gives him dual citizenship for the Gucci Bowl.
“And San Antonio, just as a city and a culture, my entire life has just been awesome because it’s one of the largest cities that still feels like a small town, because everyone supports each other. It doesn’t matter if you’re a stranger that someone hasn’t met before, or if it’s one of your best friends. Everyone likes making sure that other San Antonians are taken care of,” Matt said.
And for a small, independent business owner that kind of support matters.
“I honestly don’t know that if I did this in Austin, that I would have the relationships that I have with my customers and the community around me,” he said.
Matt admitted one of the biggest obstacles was working on his presentation skills, something he says he personally struggles with.
“I am an I.T. guy by standard career and trade. My job is to make things work, not make them pretty, so I can make the product look amazing by doing everything correctly with all of my tools. But, things like packaging and design, I to this day struggle with. So, I definitely lean on my network of friends and other professionals who are good at that,” he said.
But despite what Matt calls his lackluster presentation skills, the Swiss Chocolate Shoppe menu has only grown bigger since its original inception.
“I followed my customer’s instructions. I feel that that’s the most important part of it, is listening to them and hearing what they like,” he said.
And Matt tries to keep the prices fair for everyone because even though his products may seem luxurious, he wants everyone to have the opportunity to taste his unique creations.
“I don’t want to charge the same as everyone else, because I want everyone to be able to experience what I make. And if I’m going to make a luxury product, I still want it to be accessible,” he said.
Now, his lovely creations can be seen all over the Alamo City including at the Pullman Market, all the rooms of Hotel Emma, the Pearl Farmer’s Market, Sunset Ridge, and even in vineyards in Fredericksburg and Stonewall.
But the expansion and success hasn’t changed Matt’s priorities – to make sure his ingredients are ethically sourced and produced.
“We have direct contracts with family farms, indigenous tribes and co-ops throughout the world. And doing that costs more money than just buying straight cacao that you can get from anywhere. But, I would rather have a product that is a little bit more expensive rather than having a cheaper product that would be sourced in an unethical manner or even a questionable manner,” he said.
As he reflects on his day-to-day life, Matt admits the work is constant and the hours are tough, but it’s worth it. And it tastes delicious.
“A typical day for me is I wake up around three in the morning, and I live almost to Boerne, and my shop is here by Cowboys Dance Hall, so it’s a little bit of a drive. I get here around 4 a.m. – 4:15 a.m. in the morning and I am here making chocolate, packaging everything, taking care of orders, shipping things out for all of our online stuff.”
“And I’m here until anywhere from 10 p.m. to midnight most days. And then I head home from there and rinse and repeat with about two or maybe three hours of sleep – if I’m lucky,” he added.
But despite the grueling hours and little REM sleep, Matt is grateful that a fleeting chocolate-making class became something that’s thrived, and hopefully will for years to come.
“It feels awesome to be a recognized small business owner because not only do I get to build these relationships with locals from all around town, but also friends, family members, people that I went to high school, college, and other jobs have seen me grow through the years and supported me as well too. So, it’s kind of like just a feedback loop of awesome, to be honest,” he said while laughing.
That support is written all over Matt’s face as he crafts and creates. And as the day winds down, his red chef’s coat is noticeably splattered with stickily sweet ingredients, proof that growth, like chocolate-making, can be messy and rewarding all at once.
“I want to continue to be known as the person who makes something great and does it in the best way.”
