After 15 years of making chocolate, Mary Jane’s Chocolates officially closed its doors on Saturday, April 19.
Gary Meszaros, co-owner of Mary Jane’s Chocolates, said the reason for closing was due to the lease expiring at the end of April. Meszaros said he and his wife who is also a co-owner, Mary Jane Meszaros, are at retirement age and were ready to retire from the store. After three different brick-and-mortar store locations, it was finally time, he said.
“My wife and I, we have a lot of faithful customers,” Meszaros said. “It was a hard decision, but it is time for us to retire. We don’t want to have to go through moving to another store or renewing our lease.”
Meszaros said that he and his wife had moved to Bowling Green from Cleveland for his job. He said that when they moved here, they were searching for a chocolate store.
“It was Easter time, and we were looking for Easter bunnies for our daughter,” Meszaros said. “We said, ‘Where is a good chocolate store here in Bowling Green?’ We looked around and we couldn’t find one because there wasn’t one.”
Meszaros said that he and his wife were used to having fine chocolates in Cleveland. He said they would always buy from a store called Malley’s Chocolates. Meszaros said that his wife was a nurse at the time, ten years had passed, and there were still no local chocolate shops in Bowling Green. Meszaros said this is when his wife decided she was going to try making her own chocolates.
With the help of the internet, Meszaro said his wife was able to start taking confectionery courses through Retail Confectioners International. Meszaros said his wife went to Pennsylvania for a week and spent another in Wisconsin studying food safety in both states. Afterwards, she became a certified chocolatier.
Karen Fisher worked at Mary Jane’s Chocolate shop and said she had worked for the married couple for over two years. Fisher, who originally retired from teaching, said she hates to see the store close, but she is happy for them and wishes them well on their new journey in life.
“Everybody comes in happy, and they leave happy, which makes us happy.” Fisher said, “We had a boy who comes in often, he was so sad, but you know what he said? ‘At least the bell is happy, ’ the little bell on the door.”
Lacey Hickey and Kyle Hickey have been married for six years. Kyle Hickey said they have been sharing the tradition of Mary Jane’s chocolates for nearly 15 years.
“It’s a tradition for us; it’s just something that he got us for our very first Valentine’s Day,” Lacey Hickey said. “I don’t think we have ever had a Valentine’s Day where that’s not what he got me. I am disappointed that it won’t be an option next year.”
Kyle Hickey said it means a lot to them to follow a tradition, especially such a longstanding one. Lacey Hickey said the fact that Mary Jane’s is local was important to them. When Lacey Hickey saw the Facebook post that Mary Jane’s Chocolates was closing, she said she knew they had to stock up on chocolates.
“The chocolate was very unique,” Lacey Hickey said. “One of the things I am most concerned about is being able to find the types of chocolates that they had there at other places.”
Kyle Hickey said the chocolate shop was unique, especially when it came to the display cases. He said he enjoyed being able to pick whatever chocolates his wife likes.
“Usually, you get a box of chocolates, and you don’t control what’s in it,” Kyle Hickey said. “You just get whatever they give you. What’s nice about the store is there’s big display cases and you get to pick your own chocolates.”
Kit Tolbert said she has been working at Mary Jane’s Chocolates for five years. Tolbert said once she retired from WKU as a Housing and Residence Life director, she started working for the Meszaros’, especially around busy holidays.
“The thing about working in a chocolate shop is you have regulars and it’s just nice seeing them, catching up with them and just getting to know them,” Tolbert said.
Tolbert said that everyone who has come in has been sad about the shop closing and said the customers are going to miss it. She said she feels the same way that the customers do.
“I feel like it has been such a great addition to the community,” Tolbert said. “There are no chocolate shops. A lot of people have come to rely on it.”
Although the store is permanently closed, Meszaros said this is not the end of the chocolate business. Meszaros said he has had over 15 people inquire about the business. He said one family even tried to get a loan but couldn’t. So, they were unable to follow through with their plan of taking over the chocolate business.
“We are moving the equipment back to our basement where we have a commercial kitchen set up,” Meszaros said. “She might make some chocolate on the side and take chocolate boxes to be sold at local businesses. That is if she wants to keep going.”
Meszaros said the chocolate might make appearances in stores like Barbara Stewart if they want them. Meszaros said that Candle Makers on the Square has already sought interest in selling the chocolates.
“There are just so many memories,” Meszaros said. “It’s just the appreciation of the customers. They come in and they come back. People from different states travel through and they really enjoy good service and chocolates.”