When Gina Hardy met and fell in love with Trinidadian Simon Hardy in England, little did she know that she would become one of the few local chocolatiers in Trinidad and Tobago some years later.

Gina Hardy is the creator of Gina's Truffles.

A box of Gina's Truffles was given to every Head of State including US President Barack Obama and Queen Elizabeth II at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2009 when the event was held in Port of Spain.

Hardy, who is Singaporean by birth, never thought she would own a business, especially one involving chocolate.

She left Singapore after completing her first degree in history and philosophy at the National University of Singapore at age 21.

She went on to pursue a second degree in law at University College in London.

After completing her law degree, Hardy worked as an accountant at Barclays Bank in London where she met her husband who is now the chief operating officer of the Crew'sInn Hotel and Yachting Centre at Chaguaramas.

Hardy, 36, is the mother of a three-month-old baby girl. She came to Trinidad five years ago. She says she has no regrets coming here. One year later, she opened her business.

Hardy said in a recent interview, "Trinidad was a completely different and new experience for me. I was awe-struck by the number of different opportunities that I could pursue, starting my own business being very high up on the list.

"It has its challenges, just like every country, no matter how great, but it is warm and friendly with lots of opportunities as long as you keep an open mind and are willing to work hard, immerse yourself in the culture and make an effort to integrate."

She said her daughter was her motivation.

"She motivates me to work even harder. I work from home so I am with her all the time and we work together in my little studio, singing songs. She comes with me on errands and is used to being carted around with Mummy so for me, we have it set up so that while it is challenging at the best of times, I have made the choice to do both - be a full time mum and work. It is definitely a positive thing."

Hardy who was not employed in Trinidad before opening her business said she was always a chocoholic.

She said while growing up in Singapore, her pocket money would be spent on the best French and Belgian chocolates.

She loves dark chocolate and kept hearing that this country had the best cocoa in the world.

Hardy said, "It seemed very natural for me to think about doing something involving chocolate. I began experimenting with chocolate, starting off making desserts for dinner parties and then packing my chocolates in pretty boxes to give as gifts. All my boxes are handmade here in Trinidad and the pretty packaging is very much part of the Gina brand."

She said she was encouraged by a friend to start taking orders. In Christmas 2007, she made her first batch of chocolates to fill orders.

Veteran masman Brian MacFarlane loved the chocolates and told then Prime Minister Patrick Manning about them.

Hardy was asked to make chocolates for the Summit of the Americas which Trinidad and Tobago hosted in 2009 just before the CHOGM.

She said her business has grown since then.

"The intention from the start was always to create a wholly Trinidadian product, using Trinidadian cacao, coffee and rum. After a few years, I am finally at that point - having worked closely with the University of the West Indies (Cocoa Research Unit). I now have a source of wonderful Trinidadian chocolate, which is a blend of beans from Rancho Quemado and Brasso Seco."

She said her chocolates are handmade with no fancy machinery.

She also creates personalised flavours and packaging.

Most of her advertising is done by word of mouth, direct marketing at Christmas bazaars and corporate events, social networking sites, predominantly Facebook and placing her products at retail stores.

Her advice to women entrepreneurs?

"If you have a good idea, go out there and sell it. Do your homework; use the vast resources available out there, especially the Internet, to scope out similar ideas. Network with other like-minded people, learn from their experiences, find out about the challenges and remember that the devil is always in the detail. Having a great idea is only the beginning. Be prepared to get it right first time."

She said her greatest challenge was getting the cocoa to make her chocolates.

"Getting a source of Trinidadian cocoa-most of the cocoa in this country is exported and there was no one at that time refining cocoa in Trinidad," she said.

She believes the cocoa industry can be enhanced.

Hardy says greater publicity is needed, collaboration with the best chocolatiers to refine and enhance skills and encouragement and incentives for reviving the best plantations.

Also more collaboration with the Cocoa Research Unit is needed as well as education about cocoa.

Hardy said the country should keep a percentage of fine cocoa for local chocolate makers to refine instead of exporting most of it.

"We need to educate the public at large about the value of Trinidadian cocoa and the premium that it commands on the international market because it is fine flavour cocoa – a very small percentage of global cocoa supply. It is part of the rich history and heritage of Trinidad," she said.

Hardy said World Chocolate Day usually celebrated on September 4 should be celebrated in a big way locally.