Mindo Chocolate: Emily Meza-Wilson’s Sweet Victory
When two generations of a family run a business that spans two continents and over 3,000 miles, coordination becomes both an art and a science. For Emily Meza-Wilson, the second-generation leader of Mindo Chocolate Makers, mastering this complexity while preserving the family’s values and vision has led to recognition she never expected: Earning first place in the Michigan SBDC’s Business Plan Training and Competition and receiving a $3,000 reimbursement grant through Small Business Support from Ann Arbor SPARK.
From Retirement to Revolution
The Mindo Chocolate Makers story begins with a retirement plan that evolved into a mission. In 2008, Barbara Wilson and José Meza headed to Ecuador seeking a peaceful retreat. When they discovered the locals in the cloud forest town of Mindo needed reliable internet access, these serial entrepreneurs opened an internet café featuring Barbara’s expertly roasted coffee and famously delicious brownies.
Barbara couldn’t find quality chocolate in Ecuador for her brownies despite the country being renowned for exceptional cacao. Her decision to experiment with local Nacional cacao beans led to a revelation: “This is the best chocolate I’ve ever tasted in my life.” That moment launched what would become a force for positive change in the chocolate industry, creating better outcomes for ecosystems, farmers, and chocolate lovers alike.
Sister Act: Collaboration Across 3,000 Miles
Today’s operation showcases extraordinary family collaboration across vast distances. Emily, armed with biology and chemistry degrees from the University of Michigan, oversees operations from Ecuador, working directly with farmers and managing quality control. Her sister Alicia runs the Ann Arbor retail location, bringing the family’s chocolate directly to Michigan consumers.
This sister partnership embodies the family’s commitment to controlling every aspect of their “tree-to-bar” process. Emily’s scientific background proves invaluable as she performs rigorous “cut tests” on every bag of cacao beans, examining 30 to 100 beans to ensure optimal fermentation.
“The fermentation is a really important part of the chocolate-making process,” Emily explains. “When you’re working with fine aroma cacao, you have to do fermentation really well to get the best flavor profiles.”
Choosing Ethics Over Easy Profits
What sets Mindo apart isn’t just geography but philosophy. Emily has witnessed the chocolate industry’s darker side: child labor, deforestation, and extensive pesticide use. The family’s response? Pay farmers above market rates, ensure fair wages, and source exclusively from chemical-free farms. They work with a cooperative of 54 families growing the rare Nacional cacao variety.
“We’re moving away from cutting costs to boost margins,” Emily says, challenging conventional business wisdom. “This overlooks the human cost in the supply chain.” The family even invests in biodegradable packaging despite premium costs, based on research showing consumers willingly pay more for environmentally responsible products.
Breaking Through Limiting Beliefs
Despite her deep expertise in chocolate production and sustainable agriculture, Emily faced a challenge that threatened the business’s growth potential: translating her complex, values-driven vision into language that investors, partners, and stakeholders could immediately grasp. How do you explain a business model that spans two countries, involves direct farmer relationships, and prioritizes impact over pure profit?
Emily found her solution through the Michigan SBDC, a Small Business Support from Ann Arbor SPARK partner. Already connected with the Michigan SBDC through a business consultant and regular newsletters, she discovered the eight-week Business Plan Training and Competition, designed by Michigan SBDC contractor and Program Lead, Millie Chu, offered exactly what she needed to take Mindo Chocolate Makers to the next level.
Working closely with business coach T.Rose Malone, Emily embarked on the most transformative period of her business leadership. The program pushed her to map out every operational detail, something she initially worried might overwhelm audiences. Instead, she discovered the power of comprehensive planning. “She really motivated me and understood the vision I have, then helped me transform it into something solid to communicate,” Emily recalls.
The process did more than improve her presentation skills. It helped Emily overcome limiting beliefs about how she should describe her business. “I was able to better communicate my vision by expanding beyond what I thought would be traditionally acceptable in a business plan,” she explains. Through three intensive one-on-one mentoring sessions, she learned to articulate not just what Mindo does, but why it matters and how it creates sustainable value.
Most importantly, the detailed planning exercise revealed new insights about her own operation. “I learned so much about my own business and about how to organize things in the most efficient way,” Emily says. The program helped her see possibilities for growth and efficiency that had been hidden beneath the complexity of their cross-continental operations.
Victory and Validation
When Emily’s comprehensive business plan earned first place, the surprise was genuine. “I felt really proud of myself and proud of our team,” she says. For her parents, who had been encouraging her leadership for eight years, the victory provided external validation of what they already knew. Emily had proven herself capable of managing the intricate supply chain that forms their operation’s backbone.
“It was confirmation that I’m really on the right track and that there is a lot of potential for this business.”
Scaling Without Losing Soul
Today, Mindo Chocolate Makers serves 209 wholesale customers with 54 different products and has won 11 awards for chocolate quality. From the cloud forests where José continues working with farmers to the production facility in Barbara’s Dexter home to Alicia’s Ann Arbor retail location, the family has created something rare: a genuinely sustainable chocolate business measuring success in community and environmental impact, not just profits.
Emily’s advice for other entrepreneurs considering Small Business Support from Ann Arbor SPARK reflects her collaborative spirit: “Take as much advantage as you can of the programs available. Even hearing from other people in the program and bouncing ideas off each other provides insight you wouldn’t get otherwise.”
With her refined business plan and $3,000 grant funding her next growth phase, Emily Meza-Wilson represents the best of family business leadership: honoring the past while fearlessly innovating for the future, one ethically sourced, expertly crafted chocolate bar at a time.
About Small Business Support
Small Business Support from Ann Arbor SPARK provides no-cost coaching, mentorship, workshops, and resources to help entrepreneurs in Livingston, Monroe, and Washtenaw Counties start and grow their businesses. Through a collaborative network of Business Support Partners, we offer expert guidance, technical assistance, and tools designed to strengthen local entrepreneurship, fuel innovation, and build long-term business success. Meet our partners and explore the organizations working together to make this possible here.