Icecream remains an all time and all season favourite of every age group. Incase you are planning to start an icecream franchise, all you need is startup cost, ready business model, equipments and love for icecreams. Read through to start your own icecream parlour...
Ice-cream is known to be a seasonal product with immense demand in summer season but in recent years, consumption of ice-cream and other frozen desserts in winters has been on the rise. Consumer has very well accepted and enjoyed icecream during winters too. Also, festive season and great promotions and schemes like BOGO (Buy One Get One) attract patrons even more. Decide firstly, whether you want to open your own shop or go for franchise model. In a franchise model, you will have a ready setup for your icecream business. Franchisors also provide the store layout and design, equipments support, sauces, flavours, staff training and much more.
India is the fastest growing ice-cream consumption market in the world followed by Vietnam and Indonesia. According to a report released by market research agency Mintel, India's ice-cream market has registered a compounded annual growth rate of 13 % in the last five years. In 2017, volume sales in India are set to overtake those of more established markets, including the UK. Ice cream sales in India according to the report, is expected to reach 381.8 million litres in 2017 and as much as 657.2 million litres in 2021.
Know your customer’s choice
It is very important to know what your patrons want. You must research on the flavours and add them very carefully to your menu. You can do a research by visiting other ice cream parlors in your city. Know what special you are going to offer that no one else is offering. Also, make points on the presentation. Gone are the days of plan waffle and thin cones. Try and experiment with looks of your products. Make it funky, delicious, and tempting with its looks. Drizzle some sauce to make it worth every bite and penny. Kunal Pabrai, Partner, Pabrai’s Fresh & Naturelle ice creams says: ‘My biggest advice to any ice cream franchisee is to follow the systems and controls set by your franchisor. A franchisor usually has a ton of experience in running a successful business. There is no need to reinvent the wheel. Most Indian franchisees struggle with this issue. Despite having everything laid out in black and white, most Indian franchisees are unable to follow the basics.’
Find out!
Do a lot of market research and decide what kind of product you really want to sell at your shop. Do you want to sell just icecreams or gelatos and frozen yogurt too? Know how to advertise your products. Talk to seniors who can guide you. Franchisor can also help you in lot many ways. Also, know about your TG. You want to sell your flavours to youngsters or kids? Figure all about your suppliers too. An icecream shop needs a lot of stuff like cones, napkins, cups, sauces etc.
There are numerous leading names like Top ‘N’ Town, Dinshaw’s, Kwality walls, Havmor, Amul etc. You can always get franchise rights for such brands and get ready to enter the market.
Location
An Icecream shop can be opened anywhere but you should always first check on visibility. The fashion of sit and eat has made icecream corners popular and people are even opening shops in small colonies and areas. Malls are also a great proposition for continuous traffic of icecream lovers.
