Chelsea Champions League winner Salomon Kalou reveals surprising new business after retirement from football
EX-CHELSEA forward Salomon Kalou, 39, has stunned fans by revealing his new venture - running a chocolate business.
The former Ivory Coast international, best known for helping the Blues lift the Champions League in 2012, has traded boots for sweet treats.
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Salomon Kalou (right) spent seven seasons at Chelsea
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He was part of a Chelsea side that conquered Europe for the first time
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The Ivorian has always had a thing for unusual hairstyles
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His brand is called Oume, named after his birthplace in the Ivory Coast with Kalou keen to emphasise the importance of his homeland in the chocolate world.
He told The
"
My uncle had a cocoa farm, and I grew up around the farm.
"We went to school and at the weekend we would be helping him.
"Growing up, I don't remember eating chocolate and didn't know what it was.
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"It was expensive more of a privilege for people who can afford to buy it.
"People don't know that what they produce on their farms is used for chocolate.
"But we (Ivory Coast) contribute a big percentage of the world's production. We also have great footballers.
"
The surprise career move has raised a few eyebrows among fans who remember the pacy winger's dazzling runs down the Stamford Bridge flanks - not cocoa beans and hand-tempered truffles.
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Kalou, who also enjoyed spells at Lille, Hertha Berlin and Botafogo, says he hopes to one day see his chocolate in some of the UK's most prestigious shops.
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He added:
'
One day I'd like to see Oume in Waitrose, Selfridges, or Harrods. That would be a proud moment.
"It is a tough market with the price of cocoa increasing due to extreme weather and under-investment.'
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