Actually I like a thick chili and I am always adding that mexican flour stuff or just plain flour in my mix so it will be thick. My DH does not really care for it as thick as I do so sometimes I use those big big cans of tomato juice and because the rotel is sometimes too hot, I just use Hunts diced tomatoes. And we DO NOT like beans in our chili.
My favorite packaged chilli mix is Williams Chilli Mix. I add a little sugar to this and I'm off and running. We use 80%/20% ground meat (chuck). This is browned with a lot of onions and garlic. The fat is drained off after we've gotten it browned. I think that using the tomato juice and diced tomatoes with out adding anything to thicken will yield a good soupy chili.
I was introduced to Williams Chili Mix by a co-worker years and years ago and thought it was the best chili I had ever eaten. At the beginning of Winter she and her son made up LARGE batches and put it up in the freezer. She had one of those HUGH roasting pans and she cooked her chili in the oven. I think this eliminated the need to watch it really close.