Candy, sweets and chocolate fill the inside of The Chocolate Company located at 895 SW Rimrock Way in Redmond.

The smell of warm chocolate, sugar and caramel wafted out of The Chocolate Company on Nov. 4 as the Redmond Chamber of Commerce and members of the community welcomed new owners Stephani Falcone and Stephanie Hinkle to the city’s business community.

Falcone, a former personal trainer and fitness instructor, said she and Hinkle were looking to buy a restaurant or cafe. Instead, they found The Chocolate Company after it went on the market in May and thought about how fun it would be to run a confectionary shop.

Falcone’s family was involved in restaurants growing up in Newberg. Her family owned J’s Restaurant and Lounge and said she had a hankering to get back into the food industry. And chocolate fit her just fine.

“I have a big time sweet tooth,” Falcone said.

The duo moved from the outskirts of Portland for Redmond’s chocolate company and its sunshine. They said it was a smooth transition with the help of the previous owners.

Falcone said she feels like the community has taken them in as one of their own.

“I’ve been really thankful and surprised,” she said. “We’ve been floored with how much we love Redmond.”

Hinkle said she likes it better down here and the small-town feel.

“We just see the same people everywhere,” she said.

Aside from creams from a local distributor, nearly everything in the store is made from scratch, Falcone said, adding that they use all-natural ingredients and no chemicals.

“The ganache is this perfect moist (inside) of the harder chocolate shell,” she said. “The perfect softness.”

Falcone said their truffles are fantastic and that all their caramels are made in-house as well, boasting that they have the best caramel apples around.

The gooey, warm and buttery chocolate chip cookies are Hinkle’s mother’s recipe and are baked fresh every Friday.

Falcone said it’s been a lot of fun since they took over the business last month. They’ve been eating a lot of chocolate, since they have to taste test new recipes. She added that mess-ups are tough — that means they have to eat them, too.

“I’m just excited to do this,” Falcone said.

The store is located at 895 SW Rimrock Way in Redmond and is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.