Lluc Crusellas: "The worst investment is saving."

Master chocolatier Lluc Crusellas (Santa Eulàlia de Riuprimer, 1996) entered the world of gastronomy at a very young age. At 17, he completed an internship at Can Jubany: "There I saw that desserts, when they arrive at the table, generate emotions; they represent family; they are a symbol of celebration. And I thought, 'I want to do this all my life; I want to make something that inspires people.'"

He studied pastry making in Barcelona and, as quickly as he could, returned to Osona and joined the El Carme pastry shop, where he worked when in 2022 he won the title of best master chocolatier in the world at the international World Chocolate Masters competition: "Every day I like to have goals that I have to overcome, not be complacent and not be complacent. competition."

First, you had to pass a state preliminary phase: "It has no economic or media return, but there is an expense: our expenditure on the preselection was 30,000 euros. If you don't win that preselection, those 30,000 euros literally go to waste." "Direct is minimal, the prize was 10,000 euros," explains Crusellas in theCompaniesBut the reward comes later, and depends on how the winner exploits it. In his case, he created a personal chocolate brand, Eukarya: "We want to bring our product to people, so they can buy it and experience the culinary experience."

Product-focused

The pastry chef was clear from the start that he wanted to undertake the project jointly with his boss: "There was a financial aspect that was impossible for me to assume," he says, referring to the investment in machinery and appliances. "Joining together was also a good way to focus all my efforts on what I'm truly proficient in, which isn't the business side, although I'm obviously learning. I had to dedicate 100% of my efforts to product quality, communication, and image, and I couldn't waste three hours a day doing the same kind of shepherding they've done in tandem with the partner."

He asserts that owning a business is also a personal challenge: "Although it's not easy in this country, it's motivating. Owning something makes it much more rewarding. It's like a child; you want to take care of it and help it grow up healthy." In fact, he's been curious about making things since he was little: "I used to buy large quantities of clothing and sell them to friends and family. I earned two, three, or five euros per product—I made peanuts. But it was what excited me; it was my first source of income."

On the other hand, the chocolatier asserts that his sector is undervalued: "We should take coffee as a reference: fifteen years ago people drank coffee, and quite a lot, and now people drink either specialty or single-origin coffee, fruitier, more acidic... With chocolate, we're going down this path because it's based on sugar and poor processing. With chocolate, you can create notes of caramel, red fruits, citrus, acidic..."

Crusellas believes his profession is poorly paid: "Both the hours and the work days are completely different from what a normal person expects. Night shifts, holidays, weekends..." he lists. "And you can't sell the final product for more, because people don't understand that it takes ten different steps or that the mold we've developed also has a cost. Until the buyer understands this, professionals won't be able to earn a good living," he says.

As for his personal finances, he doesn't consider himself a saver: "For me, the worst investment is saving, because you wait months, years, or decades for something you don't even know if it's going to happen, or if when it does, you'll be as excited about as when you started saving." On the other hand, he says he's spent the best money invested on seeing a psychologist and focusing on his well-being. He's also thinking about buying a home in the coming years: "If you're renting, you're burning the same amount of money each month as with a mortgage, but you're throwing it away. The problem with property is buying it. Not only because of the price, but because of the initial down payment and the collateral they ask for."