Thomas Haas is opening a second location of Thomas Haas Fine Chocolates next to Lumiere and DB Bistro Moderne on West Broadway (as if that neighbourhood needed more awesomeness!)…
The 1400 sqft space was retail, so the renovations will be substantial. He’s only just taken possession. Here’s a quick exchange with Thomas on his new baby:

Why a second location?

When sen5es in downtown had to move out from the Georgia Hotel because of renovations we did get a lot of grief from a lot of customers crossing one or two bridges to get to us! [sen5es wasn’t a Thomas Haas business, but they carried TH products with the TH branding on them] We enjoy the retail aspect of our business and we enjoy being a neighbourhood destination sourcing from a very loyal clientele. The relationships we have built with our customers also require a commitment of serving them properly. Since our vision remains the same in providing quality rather than quantity we decided that it suits us to shift energies to where it matters most and to what we do best: being in control over our products from the making to the final experience, handing it to our customer – the end consumer. I think we are to finicky when it comes to wholesale in the way we believe our products have to be served and sold , so with this exciting project it will open new oppurtunities for our long-term staff to grow with us and share more responsibilities. We are a family business and each of our staff means a lot to us. So….there is some pressure! 😉

Will there be anything new/different from the North Vancouver location?

Well, a similar concept. Our main production is and always will be on the North Shore. The kitchen will be smaller, but everything will be baked fresh on site every morning. I hope the retail will be a little bit bigger and a few more seats. However, on a good day we can seat 35 in our tiny store on the North Shore, inside and outside! We most likely will have a designated showcase of daily specials…this allows our regular customers to always get something new on top of our classic or regular selection.

The projected opening date? September 2009