With Valentine’s Day just a few weeks away, one local chocolatier has felt the sting from the supply chain while another said they are facing little to no issues.

The owner and operator of Romolo Chocolates said their production process has been miserable, but the manager of Stefanelli’s Candies said their candy production is moving along.

To ensure their Valentine’s Day selection is available for customers, Tony Stefanelli of Romolo Chocolates said they are overstocking as a result of supply chain shortages.

“We’re not taking any chances with inventory so we’re over-ordering. What we’ve done is sort of wrecked our financials for last year, but if we don’t stockpile right now, we feel that we could face a shortage,” said Stefanelli.

Over at Stefanelli’s Candies, one manager said they have faced little to no issues…minus one problem.

“We are getting everything. Time frame, it’s taking a little bit longer than it did pre-COVID. We haven’t had a problem getting everything. We just have to wait a little bit longer for the items that we order,” said Stacy Kessler, manager, Stefanelli’s Candies.

Kessler added that her employees have tried different preparation methods during production.

“It hasn’t affected the quality or the taste of anything that we’re doing, but we absolutely have had to make substitutions,” Kessler said.

Stefanelli recalled previously being able to receive inventory easier, manage inventory, and keep costs down but the employees find the act of overstocking helpful.

“If we can pack stuff every day and we can produce stuff every day, that gives us a great opportunity to be able to supply this holiday correctly,” said Stefanelli.

Kessler said production has been going so well they’ve been able to get a jump on production for holidays like St. Patrick’s Day and Easter.

“The people back there are doing a good job. We were done early for Christmas, done early for Valentine’s Day and should be done early for Easter too, so kudos to our employees they’re doing a good job back there,” said Kessler.

Kessler added that their Buffalo Road location will be open on Feb. 6 for anyone looking to purchase more chocolate-covered strawberries for Valentine’s Day.