{"id":24293,"date":"2026-07-21T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.restroworks.com\/blog\/?p=24293"},"modified":"2026-08-03T08:22:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T08:22:37","slug":"how-to-start-an-ice-cream-shop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.restroworks.com\/blog\/how-to-start-an-ice-cream-shop\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Start an Ice Cream Shop: Your Complete US Startup Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Opening an ice cream shop feels like a dreamy, dreamy dream, doesn\u2019t it? Maybe that\u2019s why Jeni Britton Bauer, founder of Jeni\u2019s Splendid Ice Creams, <\/span>said<\/span><\/a>, \u201c<\/span>I was working in art, ice cream, and pastry. It was all crossing over for me. Once I figured that out, I had to start a little ice cream shop.<\/span><\/i>\u201d She now runs around 33 scoop shops across 10 cities and makes over $30 million in annual revenue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

We genuinely believe that every person who ends up opening an ice cream business has a story like \u201c<\/span>I love this thing, why am I not doing it too?<\/span><\/i>\u201d But loving ice cream and actually knowing how to start an ice cream shop are two very different things, and this guide focuses on the latter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The ice cream industry is projected to reach approximately $132.32 billion by 2032, demonstrating a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.65%, which means there\u2019s room for you to start and eventually make profits off your business, too, but you have to come in prepared.<\/span><\/p>

What You\u2019ll Learn<\/h3>
  1. Should you or should you not open an ice cream shop? If yes, is it the right time?<\/span><\/li>
  2. How to build a business plan, secure a location, funding, and licenses before you launch your shop?<\/span><\/li>
  3. What to do on the launch day and beyond?<\/span><\/li><\/ol>

    Is an Ice Cream Shop Actually Right for You?<\/h2>

    Do you think every ice cream business makes it big? According to <\/span>Limepack<\/span><\/a>, 20% of ice cream shops fail within their first year, and 50% fail within their first five years. Like, look at <\/span>this case study<\/span><\/a>:<\/span><\/p>

    In 2010, Brian Smith and Jackie Cuscuna opened Ample Hills Creamery, and with $10 million in annual revenue, 16 stores, a Disney partnership, and a $40 million valuation, it was going super strong. Yet, by 2020, the company had filed for bankruptcy.<\/span><\/p>

    Harvard Business School professor Thomas Eisenmann commented on this, “They did a lot of things incredibly well. But they tried to grow too fast.” + They chose investors with limited food and beverage expertise and hired teams that weren’t equipped to manage rapid growth.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

    Founder Brian Smith later admitted: “You could draw a straight line from those dizzying heights of dealing with Disney to all the troubles that befell us years later… It came from chasing that star and flying too close to the sun.”<\/span><\/p>

    What does this tell us? Yes, ice cream shops are profitable, but they do come with their own set of challenges, and if you aren\u2019t ready in advance to deal with them, failure is inevitable, especially because the seasonal nature of this business is brutal. Andrew Helfrich, former owner of Lansdowne Cone, puts it, “One of the biggest challenges in owning an ice cream shop is the fact that you only make money five or six months of the year, while paying rent the whole year round. That really does add up.”<\/span><\/p>

    So, if you\u2019re the type of person who can:<\/span><\/p>