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Julius Truffles: A Chocolate Obsession |
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Written by Winnie Choo
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Julius Truffles was started with the intent to create a space to dream. As HOOKED spoke to Julius Chen, a first year Arts student, he discussed what Julius Truffles means to him, and his passion for creating chocolates.
Julius Truffles is an online chocolate collection - for it isn't quite a shop, in the expected sense of the word. Most strikingly, he only sells to people he knows, to preserve the origin of the startup: a chocolate cult for friends, instead of something rendered soulless through mass marketing.
Once you get over the surprise, you will be able to see the intriguing idea behind Julius Truffles, which not only means a story to Julius, but also 'everyone's story and everyone's dream.'
Its significance lies in that it is the axis of a common 'network of chocolate-loving friends coming together to create and inspire,' and a 'message to the world that it is possible to be anything, at any age in any time'. There is, then, the underpinning basis that these chocolates are a form of shared expression.
When asked why the choice of chocolates, he reveals that it was an evolution away from caramel custards, which posed distribution challenges. Cakes were overdone, and so he decided on chocolates, as he felt that it had more social capital, being appreciated a lot more than, say, cup jelly.
As a platform for him to create art, he evokes the memory of why he created Julius Truffles in the first place: as a bastion of gourmet food handling and a thumbing of the nose at an increasingly technological life, when he creates his chocolates. He cites the Slow Food Movement in Italy, as an inspiration.
It is a tad idealistic, but he freely admits so.
Certainly, there will be some who will call a spade a spade, and chocolates, chocolates - gastronomical delights, but nothing more than something to be eaten, then lost.
To this chocolatier, however, his chocolates are 'eccentric, definitive and act as a social commentary of our time.'
There is almost a sneaky, subversive element in the webpage, where this endeavor is described as 'a Singapore Story where friends gather together and enjoy the best of chocolate-making without our parents' permission.'
Upon a little more prodding, Julius hints that he views his chocolatiering to be also an expression of independence, of creating something in his own way and going against societal norms, the times and an excess of pragmatism.
This ties in with his desire to give his chocolates a personal touch, as a contradiction to a fast-paced society. His other interests: design, writing, photography and being a curator, have also to some extent, made him think about more than simply following the beaten track, and to want more than what is expected.
He has not decided on his future plans yet as, '(being) a business driven by people, it will only expand or survive if somewhere somehow people start believing in a dream. Right now, it is good enough.' HOOKED
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