Factoid: chocolate barsmiths -- by their very nature & the nature of the task at hand -- geek over the machinery & mechanics of chocolate making. The industry tends to attract engineers, a testosterone-heavy industry itself, which perhaps explains why craft practitioners are mostly male. (That's changing as women, trans, + non-binaries join the ranks.)

Take Maverick Chocolate's Paul Picton. A mechanical engineer by training, he spent his prior career in aviation. Since rotating drums & other gear used in making chocolate resemble jet engines, his skills prove handy in both creating & modifying chocolate-making equipment.

Beyond that they prove even crucial.

Examples:

a) A Southwest plane recently blew a jet engine, in the process a window cracked wide open, sucked a passenger —RIP— out the aircraft before the pilots, & a traumatized cabin, landed safely. Maybe airlines need to (re-)read Atul Gawande's Checklist Manifesto &/or (re-)hire certain chocolate makers to go over their pre-flight manifest.

b) Years ago, a cocoa factory worker fell into a vat of chocolate & was churned to death.

Picton's meticulous aptitude should prevent such unhappy mishaps.

He & his wife, Marlene, started making chocolate at home, invested time mastering their skills before leaving his aviation job.

Along the way, the Pictons realized their newly developed wares have an impact in the world – via the direct trade model. Shocked by labor problems in West Africa, for instance, they resolved to make a difference, even if on a small scale. So they source cocoa, pay up for it, then bring the fruits of everyone's labor back to Maverick's shop in downtown Cincinnati, OH. Sold-out stock means hiring additional staff to keep up with demand. The business now includes shipping (or flying!) their chocolate across the country. Already the company snagged some ribbons & medals for good taste.

Happy landing indeed, & flavor that lingers long after... in this chocolate version of 'happy endings'.

Nothing like wholesome satisfaction.