Local Chocolate Shop Not Spared by Effects of Government Shutdown

The deal to temporarily end the government shutdown provides temporary relief for a local chocolate shop, of all places. Sugar Love Chocolates, located in The Basement in downtown Reno saw unprecedented delays during the shutdown. 

The shop gets all of its chocolate from overseas, including Belgium, France and Colombia. Owner Krysta Bea Jackson says she's been waiting on an order of chocolate for two weeks, when usually it arrives by the next day. 

Jackson explains, "A lot of my suppliers are just saying that it's Customs having problems getting things through the ports. I don't know if that's necessarily because they're sitting there--the chocolate's sitting on a barge somewhere. I'm hoping not, because it is affected by heat." 

Jackson also added that her packaging, called chipboard, is something she can only get imported from China. She says that supplier told her they were having issues, as well. 

Sugar Love Chocolates recently grew to offer more than just the sweet stuff, though. In fact, they offer plenty of lunch options. However, Jackson says that a large number of her regulars were government workers from the federal building down the block. 

She added that The Basement in general has seen a decrease in those number of customers during the shutdown. 

Now that the government is finally reopened, at least temporarily, Jackson says her staff will be working extra hard when they finally get that chocolate in, to make up for lost time.