February 9,
1998
							Contact:
Elizabeth Ford
								  (804)
963-9940 or
								  ebf4f@virginia.edu

Valentines Can Enjoy Sweet Success in Building Relationships,
Thanks to U.Va. Student's Yummy Creations

	It's easy to make a monumental statement this Valentine's Day
with a product created by University of Virginia medical student
Elizabeth Ford.
	Ford and her mother produce mouth-watering, authentically
detailed chocolate miniatures of famous buildings.  Ford cooked up
this sweet business idea with her mother, Kathryn Ford, and together
they started the Historical Chocolate Company.
	They sell milk-, dark- and white chocolate- small scale
versions of famous buildings such as the White House, the Capitol, the
Governor's Palace in Williamsburg and U.Va.'s Rotunda.  The
delectables, packaged with an accompanying card that notes interesting
architectural tidbits about the buildings, are sold in gift shops in
Alexandria, Charlottesville, Richmond, Colonial Williamsburg and
Washington, D.C., as well as the U.Va. Bookstore.
	The Fords' product line of about 15 items includes a six-piece
gift box of architectural sites in Washington, D.C., and a six-piece
gift box of buildings in Chautauqua, N.Y., where the first creations
were made.
	Sizes range from the Mount Vernon, which is roughly 6 1/2 " X
3 1/2 ", to the Lincoln Memorial, which is about1" X 2".  Prices range
from about $.40 to around $15.00 for the boxed sets.
	 A professed chocolate lover, Ford helped start the business
after completing her undergraduate degree in biology at Yale
University in 1994 and before starting U.Va. Medical School in 1996.
She and her mother, a clinical psychologist whom Ford describes as an
"idea entrepreneur," were tossing around some business possibilities,
and they landed on the idea of chocolate buildings.
	In the summer of 1996, Elizabeth Ford drew six buildings of
historical importance in Chautauqua, a popular tourist area where the
family spent time.  The mother-and-daughter team turned the drawings
into chocolate molds, packaged the edible buildings with notes
describing their architectural highlights and sold them in specialty
gift shops in New York.
	"After that, the company sort of snowballed," Ford, 25,
remembers.

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	Now a second-year med student, Ford finds time between her
studying and reading to serve an "artistic/financial" role in the
Merrifield, Va.-based operation.  She investigates and photographs
possible buildings for future chocolate molds, helps design the
packaging that accompanies the chocolates, assists her mother in
writing the architectural histories and handles the bookkeeping.
	The Fords, who have incorporated and own the copyrights to
their designs, packaging and written materials, have recently started
producing small Rotundas that are available by request for wedding
receptions and conventions.  Inquiries can be directed to the company
at (703) 573-8260.
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