10 Successful Ice Cream Shops To Learn From

When accomplishing something, it is usually a good idea to look for references. To quote Gina Greenlee, “experience is a master teacher, even when it’s not our own.” So, learning the ways of successful ice cream shops is a wise choice. 

In this post, I’ve listed 10 successful ice cream shops that you can learn from. These stores can be used as inspiration for your ice cream shop. So, if you want your ice cream store to be successful, keep reading.

These are 10 successful ice cream shops to learn from:

1. Baskin Robbins
2. Cold Stone Creamery 
3. Braum’s
4. Dairy Queen 
5. Häagen-Dazs
6. Ben & Jerry’s
7. Edy’s
8. Carvel 
9. Dippin’ Dots 
10. Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream 

Baskin Robbins

Seize the Yay!

First on our list is Baskin Robbins. The ice cream shop perfectly embodies “seize the day.” It’s been in the industry for more than 75 years. And ever since, Baskin Robbins hasn’t wasted a single day. 

With its effective and unique concept of 31 flavors, it’s not surprising that Baskin Robbins has become the favorite destination to celebrate moments and share a scoop of ice cream. And currently, it has 7,700 shops scattered across the globe. 

Aside from having an exceptional concept of 31 flavors, Baskin Robbins is also a Guinness World Record holder. Baskin Robbins holds the Guinness World Record for the biggest cup of ice cream. It was created on September 13, 2005, to commemorate its 60th birthday.

One thing you can take away from this is the “need to be unique.” Baskin Robbins is a successful ice cream business with just its effort to stand out. The original 31 flavors concept and the Guinness World Record sets them apart from other ice cream shops.

Cold Stone Creamery 

I don’t know about you, but for me, Cold Stone Creamery has the best brand design. 

This ice cream shop has been in business since 1988. The first site opened in Tempe, Arizona, where they started serving their distinctive recipe which revolved around soft serve and hard-packed ice cream.  

What Cold Stone Creamery specializes in is fresh ice cream. For more than 30 years, they have served only the freshest ice cream made from the finest ingredients. Their ice cream is manufactured on-site every day and includes 12% to 14% butterfat, giving it a distinctively creamy consistency. 

Aside from its fresh ice cream, Cold Stone Creamery is also known for its milkshakes. In 2010 and 2011, their PB&C milkshake was ranked first on Men’s Health’s list of the “20 Worst Drinks in America.” Despite that ranking, people still loved their PB&C milkshake. 

All in all, Cold Stone Creamery is successful because it is consistent with its “fresh ice cream” concept. Additionally, they also upsell other great products like their unique milkshakes. 

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Braum’s

From Our Family To Yours.

That’s Braum’s slogan. This is fitting for the ice cream shop that was started by the family. It all started in the 1930s with Henry H. Braum and his son, Bill Braum. They started with a converted house and used it as a small butter processing plant. 

They expanded their business and entered the ice cream industry in the 1940s. Then later in the 1960s, Bill opened the first Braum’s store. And the rest is history. Now, Braum’s is one of the leading brands in the ice cream industry. 

Braum’s continues to serve quality ice cream. Their products are made from rich milk that comes from their cows. 

What makes Braum’s success is its owners. The owners have a real passion for ice cream, which led to the success of their business. 

Dairy Queen 

I’m sure you have seen the famous blizzard logo. That’s Dairy Queen’s signature product. 

In 1938, J.F. McCullough along with his son, Alex, created the delectable dairy delicacy known to millions as Dairy Queen soft serve. That was the beginning of their success. Today, Dairy Queen has over 6,000 stores around the world. 

As I’ve mentioned, DQ’s signature product is the iconic Blizzard that can be turned upside down. It’s perfect with many, unique toppings like Oreos, Kitkat, and brownies. When it was first released in 1985, it sold a whopping 175 million. 

That’s the key takeaway from this ice cream shop. If you want your ice cream business, you need to have a signature, unique ice cream brand. It can be a unique flavor, mix, or toppings. 

Häagen-Dazs

This ice cream business was founded in the 1960s by Reuben and Rose Mattus, who had a mission to transform the world of ice cream. Their smooth, silky ice cream developed a category entirely on its own by using only the highest quality ingredients.  With only vanilla, chocolate, and coffee as the starting flavors, the brand Häagen-Dazs was born. 

 In 1976, the first Häagen-Dazs store debuted in Brooklyn Heights, New York. It was opened by Reuben’s daughter, Doris. And as the business progressed, new products were introduced like their signature bars and new flavors like the Vanilla Milk Chocolate Almond flavor. 

This ice cream brand is now available in over 900 stores in over 50 countries. They continue to deliver high-quality, one-of-a-kind tastes inspired by the founders’ creative minds.

This ice cream business is a reminder to keep inventing and staying unique. That’s one of the traits of most successful ice cream businesses. 

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Ben & Jerry’s

Ben & Jerry’s are partners in CREAM.

It all began in 1978, when Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, who met in seventh school gym class on Long Island, launched their first ice cream business. With a $12,000 investment, they opened up shop at a remodeled petrol station in Burlington.

They launched more scoop shops in 1983. Then, they obtained a partnership to sell Ben & Jerry’s pints at retail stores across the Northeast. This helped Ben & Jerry’s increase its sales. 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough was Ben & Jerry’s debut flavor to reach retail shelves. This taste is a classic that has been done by nearly every ice cream company, but Ben & Jerry’s executes it, and all of its flavors, in its unique way. 

During Ben & Jerry’s early days, the competition was fierce. One of its main rivals even asked that retailers cease selling Ben & Jerry’s. In response, Ben & Jerry’s launched the “what’s the Doughboy afraid of?” campaign and persuaded their fans to join them.

The campaign was successful and the competition backs down and Ben & Jerry’s continued to be a successful ice cream business. And today, they are serving their ice cream all over the world. 

The lesson that we can get from Ben & Jerry’s is that competition in the ice cream industry is tough. You can’t expect that everything will go smoothly. And what you need to do is to think of effective and creative measures to help your business survive. 

Edy’s

This is yet another family-centered ice cream business. It has been around since 1928.

In 1929, founders William Dreyer and Joseph Edy introduced the Rocky Road flavor. It was a mix of tasty chocolate ice cream, almonds, and soft marshmallows. It was a revolutionary flavor during a time when the main flavors of ice cream were chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla. 

Since then, Edy’s continued to offer innovative flavors. In 1987, Edy’s introduced the first premium light ice cream, Grand Light Ice Cream. It is a 93% fat-free treat that was an immediate success with the health-conscious consumers of the 1980s.

In 2005, Edy’s introduced Slow Churned. This light ice cream was created with nonfat milk and a dab of cream. This results in a rich, creamy, and healthy delectable. And just like their earlier innovative flavors, this also became a huge success. 

Edy’s has consistently introduced new ice cream flavors, such as frozen custard and a rocky road collection, over the years. Today, Edy’s honors the brand’s tradition by serving more delicious concoctions.

From this, we can have a clear idea of how helpful having an inventive mind is in the ice cream industry. It helps the ice cream business to be at the top of the game. 

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Carvel 

Carvel is a real classic ice cream business. In 1929 Tom Carvel began serving ice cream from an ice cream truck 1929. Tom Carvel’s objective when he purchased his first ice cream truck was to make his customers happy. 

But, like with every commercial effort, there may be setbacks. For Carvel, the setback was a flat tire. Most people would have closed their doors, but Tom Carvel kept selling and discovered a rare opportunity.

People desired more of the softer, melting frozen sweets, rather than dislike them. They like the creamier, lighter flavor. As a result, soft serve ice cream was formed.

Tom not only created a new treat, but he also opened his first shop just where his vehicle had broken down. That store would be the first in a global chain.

Carvel’s ice cream company has continued to thrive since then. The business accomplished numerous firsts, including being the nation’s first retail ice cream company in 1934, the first to license a retail ice cream store in the United States in 1947, and selling ice cream at the first supermarket in 1956.

Those are some of Carvel’s feats. Today, this ice cream business continues to serve fresh and high-quality ice cream.

This ice cream business is a great example of turning challenges into opportunities. Carvel wouldn’t be successful if he backed down the moment his truck got flat tires.

Dippin’ Dots 

Dippin’ Dots has been in service for more than 30 years. It’s famous for its iconic beaded ice cream. 

Curt Jones, a microbiologist, founded beaded ice cream in 1988 when he combined his expertise in cryogenic technology with his passion for ice cream to create Dippin’ Dots, which has since become America’s number-one beaded ice cream brand. 

Dippin’ Dots became the pre-teen ideal of fun with buddies in malls and amusement parks around the country in the early 1990s as their popularity rose. 

Dippin’ Dots had its international premiere in Japan in 1995. This immediately helped spread the word about the ice cream of tomorrow. 

Dippin’ Dots Franchising, which has been operating an award-winning franchise business since 2000, now has over 100 store and shopping center sites around the country. Today, the franchise concept includes co-branding options with sister firm Doc Popcorn.

All in all, this ice cream business is the perfect example of innovative and unique ice cream. There’s no other like their beaded ice cream products. 

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Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream 

This ice cream business started from a passion for scent. Jeni, a 22-year-old art and art history student enamored with aroma, began creating ice cream in 1996. 

In her leisure time, she would make her oils and use basil oil in pasta and rose petal oil in creme brulee. On a whim, she mixed cayenne pepper into a container of chocolate ice cream. That was the beginning of Jeni’s ice cream journey.

Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream debuted in late November 2002. Jeni worked the counter for years, fine-tuning her recipes and scooping for long lines of customers. This is where classic tastes like Salty Caramel, Wildberry Lavender, and Brambleberry Crisp first emerged.

Today, Jeni’s still consistent with its ice cream products. They have more than 65 ice cream shops nationwide and an online shop that ships to 50 states. 

Jeni’s the ice cream shop that will tell you, “passion for ice cream is really important” in the ice cream industry. Jeni’s passion for scent and ice cream made it one of the most successful ice cream shops. 

Conclusion 

All in all, these are 10 successful ice cream shops where you can learn from:

1. Baskin Robbins – Has an outstanding 31 flavors concept and Guinness World Record which helps set up the shop from other ice cream shops.  
2. Cold Stone Creamery – Has a consistent brand design and concept of fresh ice cream.
3. Braum’s –  An ice cream shop that started from a family and a consistent passion for ice cream. 
4. Dairy Queen – Has an iconic Blizzard ice cream concept which helps the shop stand out. 
5. Häagen-Dazs – This ice cream shop serves as a reminder to keep creating and remaining distinct. That is one of the characteristics of the most successful ice cream shops.
6. Ben & Jerry’s – Ben & Jerry’s teaches us that competition in the ice cream market is quite fierce. And what you need to do is come up with efficient and inventive solutions to assist your company to thrive. 
7. Edy’s – This store exemplifies how crucial it is to have an imaginative mind in the ice cream industry.
8. Carvel – This ice cream shop is an excellent example of converting obstacles into possibilities. 
9. Dippin’ Dots – This ice cream shop exemplifies inventive and one-of-a-kind ice cream. There are no other goods like their beaded ice cream.
10. Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream – Jeni’s Ice Cream will tell you that “passion for ice cream is incredibly crucial” in the ice cream industry.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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This blog post is provided for informational purposes only. The information contained is not intended to constitute legal advice or to substitute for obtaining legal advice from a qualified attorney.