Venchi, an Italian chocolatier with retail stores in just a handful of states, will soon open its only Florida locations in Town Center at Boca Raton and the Aventura Mall.

The store traces its origins back to 1878, according to its website, when 20-year-old Silviano Venchi spent all his savings on two bronze cauldrons and began experimenting with chocolate in a small shop in Vanchiglia, Turin.

Within a few years, Venchi had opened his own shop in Piedmont and created the Nougatine, a sweet containing chopped and caramelized hazelnuts coated in extra-dark chocolate.

Today, with 180 locations around the world, Venchi boasts of 250 chocolate recipes and 90 flavors of gelato.

Premium-quality chocolate is Venchi’s stock in trade, with gift boxes, chocolate bars, chocolate spreads, chocolate cigars and even sweetened and unsweetened cocoa powder available for cooking, sprinkling on fruit or yogurt, stirring into oatmeal or simply enjoying as a cup of hot chocolate.

It’s not cheap: A 3.5-ounce gift box of nine assorted pralines will set you back $26 and a 35-ounce “large baroque chocoviar” gift box runs $149. Both are available through the company’s website, us.venchi.com.

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The retail stores, known as ChocoGelaterias, will serve a variety of Italian-made chocolates, as well as fresh-made gelato, hazelnut and chocolate spread crepes, hot chocolate, European style coffee and more, according to a Town Center news release.

The Boca Raton location is scheduled to open in January, while the Aventura Mall store will open sometime in the first quarter of the year, a spokeswoman for Simon, owner of the two malls, said by email.

Prior to the chain’s expansion into South Florida, Venchi operated in the United States only in New York, New Jersey, Virginia and Pennsylvania, according to its website. International locations are in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, England, and (of course) Italy.

Other new retail stores that recently opened at Town Center include:

• Beach Bunny — If you enjoy the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, check out this chain’s website at beachbunnyswimwear.com. The chain offers swimwear, dresses, loungewear and lingerie made with European fabrics, plus hats, bags, sunglasses, jewelry, sandals and towels.

• Marni — An Italian brand known for its luxury ready-to-wear collections reflecting the vision of creative director Francesco Risso, the chain operates 97 stores, mostly in Europe, Asia and the United States. The Town Center location is one of just two in Florida, along with one at the Bal Harbour Shops.

• Mango — A fashion chain founded in Barcelona, Spain, Mango features high-quality Mediterranean-style attire at affordable prices. The store offers clothing for men, women, kids and teens, plus a wide variety of home goods like blankets, comforters, towels and curtains.

• Karma and Luck — Now this sounds hopeful: “Each piece of timeless jewelry and home decor is carefully designed to bring shoppers’ homes more happiness, health and prosperity,” the release says. Featured products include sage smudge sticks, ceramic mushrooms, feng shui trees, and red protection bracelets. The Boca location is the 13th for the brand, which features six stores in the Las Vegas area, where luck is most welcomed. Two others in South Florida are at Aventura Mall and Miami International Mall in Doral.

• Eres — Billed as a “chic, French style brand known for its abundant color palette,” Eres features swimwear, lingerie, and activewear, including sports bras, leggings, T-shirts, leotards and jumpsuits.

Oaklyn in Oakland Park announces three retail tenants

Recently opened on Federal Highway in Oakland Park, Oaklyn is a 10-story mixed-use apartment community with 274 residential units and a swimming pool deck on the roof.

There are also more than 19,000 square feet of retail space on the ground, and developers Newrock Partners announced three businesses scheduled to open by summer:

Monkee’s — A “fashion forward” boutique, the location will be a one-stop destination for clothing to fit any occasion, from resort wear to black tie galas. According to its website, all Monkee’s locations are independently owned and operated franchises. And they only sell women’s clothing and accessories. This one will occupy 1,700 square feet when it opens in spring.

Pure Barre — Slated to open in January, Purre Barre is known for “transformative fitness experiences.” It delivers low-impact, high-intensity full-body workouts to achieve a broad range of strength and ability levels, plus self-focused time “to transform the body and mind through empowering regiments.” The franchise will occupy 2,100 square feet within Oaklyn.

Pause Studio — And on the days that you aren’t working out, you can stop in to Pause studio, “a sanctuary for holistic practices to boost immunity and support physical and mental recovery,” according to an Oaklyn news release. The studio will offer numerous services to “nurture both mind and body,” the release says, including yoga, meditation, floatation therapy, infrared sauna, cyrotherapy, vitamin therapy, LED light therapy and compression therapy.

Kendra Scott opens retail store in Pembroke Pines

Women’s accessory brand Kendra Scott is holding a grand opening celebration on Jan. 5 for its 13th Florida store.

Located at the Pembroke Gardens shopping center at 406 SW 145th Terrace, the chain offers jewelry, watches, engagement rings, home accessories and a men’s collection.

The grand opening event runs from 5 to 8 p.m. on Jan. 5, and from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Jan. 6 to Jan. 7. The store will donate 20% of proceeds to a different service organization each day, plus provide a free gift to everyone who spends at least $100.

Ron Hurtibise covers business and consumer issues for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Send him your retail news at rhurtibise@sun-sentinel.com. Make sure to type Retail Roundup in the subject line of your email.