A Northeast Ohio business is putting a sweet twist on love in the fast lane this Valentine’s Day.
Malley’s Chocolates is selling its popular chocolate-covered strawberries and grapes at a drive-through window today at its newest location, in Medina Township.
The store, which opened last week, is housed in a former bank on Pearl Road.
Self-proclaimed “chocolate czar” Dan Malley, president and chief executive of the third-generation Cleveland chocolate maker, expects to sell more than half a million of the coveted chocolate-dipped strawberries at Malley’s 22 locations in Northeast Ohio.
The chocolate-covered berries are sold in boxes of 10 for $19.95 or two for $35. (Boxes of chocolate-covered, ruby red seedless grapes carry the same price tag.)
Malley’s began drive-through sales of the dipped berries at its main location off Brook Park Road in 1997 to meet demand for the limited-edition treats, Malley said. Customers are directed into eight lanes to buy the confections every Valentine’s Day and the day prior.
“The whole purpose of the drive-through is to make it convenient for customers so they don’t have to get in and out of the car,” Malley said. “A lot of our Valentine’s traffic is lunch hour or people on their way home.”
Drive-through sales for only the chocolate-drenched fruits also are available at the Brook Park and North Royalton stores, beginning at noon.
For chocolate makers, there’s a lot to love about Valentine’s Day. It’s typically the fourth-biggest holiday for candy sales, behind Halloween, Easter and Christmas, according to the National Confectioners Association.
“All your sales are really the 13th and 14th,” Malley said. “It’s a huge influx.”
Cheryl Powell can be reached at 330-996-3902 or cpowell@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow Powell on Twitter at twitter.com/abjcherylpowell.