FedEx Features Honesdale Based Business In National Campaign
In April 2019, Moka was among 12 small US businesses to be awarded by FedEx through their Small Business Grant Contest.
Candidates were selected based on their mission, website design, environmental sustainability, and uniqueness of brand and products. For more information about our impact, check out this FedEx Interview.
Later that year our co-founder Jeff Abella was invited to sit on the FedEx Entrepreneur Advisory Board.
National Marketing Campaign
On top of it all, our brand was selected to be featured in a FedEx national marketing campaign. This included flyers and posters in all FedEx stores nationwide, as well as a few video commercials… our renovated Dairy Barn was about to become a full-blown movie set.
The next few months were spent preparing for the biggest video shoot we’ve ever had. We painted all our walls, painted and ceilings, hung new lights, and even painted the floors. We somehow managed all this, while still keeping up with our chocolate and coffee production. Especially during the first year launch our Camp Service Program, our summer was busier than ever!
The day before our first video shoot was the quiet before the storm. We had done all the preparation we could, and you could tell the excitement in the air. The next day was going to fill our space with lighting and photo equipment, design staff, video monitors, camera crews and make-up artists. A few members from the film crew greeted us towards the end of the day and walked us through the schedule for the next 3 days to come.
Morning came quickly and the crew arrived before 7 am. Buses and vans had arrived and immediately started unloading into our factory. Soon, our spacious warehouse was packed with action.
Make-up and wardrobes were amongst the first things to do that day. But as the team set up their equipment, we enjoyed catered breakfast from one of our favorite local cafes named The Mustard Seed. Thanks, Laurie!
The next few days were filled with filming, adjusting, filming, and more filming. The talent and the thoroughness from the filming teams were impressive — no detail was left undiscussed. Lighting was always manipulated, background shots were perfectly staged, walking routes rehearsed and measured, and talking points precisely articulated.
During the whole experience, we got to know some incredible people (Well, they were all incredible), and we made some new friends along the way. We took the time to give everyone a new experience as well and taught them the entire chocolate making process from Farm to Bar.
On the last day as everyone was packing up their things, we knew this experience was going to stay with us for a long time.
Thanks to FedEx for the support! You can now find our advertisements in FedEx locations around the United States and can see our videos here.
