After months of preparation,
Love's Ice Cream is now open in the Downtown Market. The artisan ice cream maker that features hand crafted ice cream made from organic, grass-fed dairy is located in stall 123.
In the early stages of what founder Chris McKellar hopes is long and successful journey, McKellar describes the first few steps as a "work in progress" as he settles into the marketplace and waits for the larger dairy production facility at the market to be finished. "Right now, being in week four, we are trying to figure out what the demand is. We are trying to figure out the demand in production. We are cooking everything over a stove in our booth. We are making 13-gallon batches of ice cream base daily. This then gets broken out into 2.5 gallons of ice cream that we churn. Once the dairy plant is built out, I can do 100-gallon batches and turn out flavors one after the other."
Other operational discoveries for McKellar have been identifying the staffing needs for his artisanal process. "I just went out to the market and bought corn and pumpkins. They are in the cooler now and then we will be roasting them in preparation to go into our ice cream. We do it all by hand. We can control the quality, but it takes more work."
Currently McKellar says they employ 10 individuals, but will be reviewing staffing needs as the business settles into a routine. "We are putting the final touches on our team, figuring out what the traffic patterns are and what hands are needed in scooping and at the cash register."
To follow the progress of Love's, McKellar suggests you "like' their
Facebook page. Love's is open during standard market hours; Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Writer: John Rumery, Innovation and Jobs News Editor
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