Filament Business Advisors is proud to list this unique business for sale in the super-cool luxury ice cream café space. The founders re-envisioned milkshakes, ice cream sandwiches and other desserts from a pastry chef perspective, with gourmet ice cream and scratch toppings.
After opening four years ago to a line out the door, business only grew through the pandemic as people got their fixes to go. In 2021, the owners added another, larger location with a commissary pastry kitchen that allowed production to rise to meet demand. In addition to over-the-top milkshakes, pastries and other ice cream-based desserts, these cafes offer the entire range of coffee and espresso drinks, including those featuring their exclusive ice creams, syrups and other unique flavors.
A new owner could easily increase top line sales along with margins by adding a liquor license and adult-oriented hard milk shakes to their already popular lineup. An ideal strategic buyer would be familiar with the pastry and ice cream worlds, and ideally have multi-unit experience. This could be an existing restaurant group that would like to not only diversify their holdings into pandemic-proof concepts, but also to outsource and centralize their pastry production into a profitable operation. An existing pastry business could expand its reach to prime neighborhoods while gaining economies of scale in their own production. Other growth opportunities could include adding to days of service and, with alcohol, later nights at higher prices. With the commissary kitchen, the right buyer could easily increase offerings to include more ways to move ice cream in sundaes, floats, cannoli and pre-packaged formats.
The current owners are selling to attend to family matters, but are happy to help train buyers. They have developed solid teams at both locations who would likely stay on as they love the product and the customers they serve.
The Ice Cream Market is hot! Americans rank it as the most popular dessert, year in and year out. 90% of us enjoy it – and not just after a meal, but after school, in the middle of the day, and for a late night date. From $13.3b in 2020, this well developed market is projected to reach $15.8b by 2027, and as we all just experienced, during economic uncertainty comfort foods rule. If you’re interested in a proven business that optimizes a popular form and sells it at a premium price in two prime markets, please give us a call.
Detailed Information
Location: Henrico County, VA
Real Estate: Leased
Building SF: N/A
Lease Expiration: N/A
Support & Training: The seller is willing to stay on board to train a buyer
Reason for Selling: Family Issues
