A Short Story About Chocolate

This past Sunday as I was making myself a salad for dinner at Whole Foods, a sudden desire to eat something sweet came over me. Although I didn’t know what I was going to buy yet, I knew it was going to be a treat involving chocolate. After I finished creating my healthy portion of the meal, I made my way to the candy aisle. As I’m scouring the shelves, something catches my eye – Bark Thins. I recognized the package because just last week my sister sent me a photo of her hugging Costco bags of Bark Thins. Since she doesn’t typically eat a lot of sweets, I knew there must be something special about this product.

Okay, now the hard part – which type should I get? They had almond, blueberry, pumpkin seeds, and coconut; but the one that caught my eye was pretzel (mainly because the other options seemed way too healthy).

Once I got home, I knew I had to eat my vegetables first, but the presence of the chocolate was very hard to resist. After finally finishing my salad, it was time – the moment of truth – are Bark Thins good?

The first thought that crosses my mind is whether or not this chocolate is actually healthy like the name of the product implies. Whole Foods in general portrays a very natural and organic persona, so I expect the majority of the food they sell to follow the same image. As I start to inspect the package, the first thing I notice is the bolded “Non-GMO” and “Fair Trade” labels on the top of the bag. Next, I turn the bag over to face the dreaded nutrition facts and ingredient list. I am happy to find that the ingredients are simple – dark chocolate (which has five ingredients), pretzels (which consists of four ingredients), and sea salt.

However, my favorite parts of this product are the hashtags and copy located on the bottom and back of the package. Not only do Bark Thins make me feel that this chocolate will make my “Snacking Elevated” and that I should “Break Up with Boring.” I love that. These two lines alone make me want to post about this chocolate, and I never share my opinions about products online.

So, how does it taste? Delicious! I’m sad to say that I finished half of the bag in one sitting (not my proudest moment).

In the end, I believe that Bark Thins wants to remind consumers that eating chocolate is fun and an indulgent experience. Therefore, people should buy chocolate that’s exciting, yummy, and special. Although I think Bark Thins is doing a great job with packaging, they need to improve their promotion because I am their ideal consumer and would have never heard of this product if my sister hadn’t discovered it at her friend’s house. Bark Thins needs to start associating itself with people and brands that embody “Breaking Up with Boring.” By doing this, Bark Thins can become a bright spot in a consumers social media feed.

As I’m staring into a now empty bag, I know what chocolate I’ll buy to treat myself.