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About us
Welcome to Petit Philippe! We’re Mark Meissner and Casey Hickey – husband and wife, corporate refugee cum wine aficionado and pastry chef/chocolatier, and proprietors of Petit Philippe.
Petit Philippe is our brainchild. Our passion. Our business. The culmination of years of dreaming, what-iffing, and expounding on an idea hatched over a romantic dinner and too much wine in Strasbourg, France, just hours before we became engaged. It’s our leap of faith, and some may say evidence of our dwindling sanity. It’s the thing we decided we simply must do if we’re to look back in 20 years and have no regrets. As parents, it’s our way of truly living what we hope to teach our sons, Max and Michael, about finding meaning and joy through work. That life isn’t about what you do, but rather what you do with it. So we hope you’ll receive our invitation to share in our appreciation for the transcendent power of honest, delicious, soulful wine and food.
Our original location of Petit Philippe opened in Myers Park in 2010 and we continue to serve the community there. In 2022, we opened a satellite boutique in Charlotte's South End neighborhood. We also operate a concierge wine storage facility in Myers Park.
PROPRIETORS
Mark is a San Francisco Bay-area native and the son of German immigrants. Before launching Petit Philippe, his work in finance took him around the globe, including a two-year stint working in Grenoble, France. It was in Grenoble that Mark’s real passion for wine was stoked and, incidentally, where he befriended Philippe, our company’s namesake! Since returning to the States, Mark has learned the art and science of garage winemaking and furthered his passion for wine while living in San Francisco and Marin County – a quick drive to California’s famed wine country. He has achieved Level One Sommelier status through the Court of Master Sommeliers and is currently working on his Level Two preparations for the Court of Master Sommeliers exam. Mark also continues to hone his wine knowledge every day in the shop. His love of wine and his generous spirit really shine in the tasting room when he’s waxing poetic about a particular vintage or helping a customer find just the right bottle to mark an occasion or create a special memory.
Casey grew up in Greensboro, graduated from Carolina and lived in Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and finally San Francisco – where she met Mark. After years of living a double life – weekdays in an office working as a fundraiser, nights and weekends scouring cookbooks, hosting dinner parties and making wedding cakes – she had an ‘early mid-life epiphany.’ At the age of 35, she quit her job and, at Mark’s urging, moved to Paris to attend pastry school. After an intensive course of study at Le Cordon Bleu, she earned her Diplôme de Patisserie and later earned her Professional Chocolatier certification from Ecole Chocolat. For 12 years, until her retirement in 2022, Casey brought passion, joy and humor to her creations through our Twenty Degrees Chocolates brand. She retired and closed the chocolate business in July 2022 to allow her more time to support her and Mark's boys as they finish middle and high school. She is immensely grateful to have been able to do what she loved and to have received the incredible love and support from the Charlotte community and beyond.
Casey grew up in Greensboro, graduated from Carolina and lived in Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and finally San Francisco – where she met Mark. After years of living a double life – weekdays in an office working as a fundraiser, nights and weekends scouring cookbooks, hosting dinner parties and making wedding cakes – she had an ‘early mid-life epiphany.’ At the age of 35, she quit her job and, at Mark’s urging, moved to Paris to attend pastry school. After an intensive course of study at Le Cordon Bleu, she earned her Diplôme de Patisserie and later earned her Professional Chocolatier certification from Ecole Chocolat. For 12 years, until her retirement in 2022, Casey brought passion, joy and humor to her creations through our Twenty Degrees Chocolates brand. She retired and closed the chocolate business in July 2022 to allow her more time to support her and Mark's boys as they finish middle and high school. She is immensely grateful to have been able to do what she loved and to have received the incredible love and support from the Charlotte community and beyond.