By Karen M. Bullock
Correspondent
When Patricia Olson was a girl, one of her favorite things was going to the Buffalo Ice Cream Parlor in Chicago.
“The soda jerks would make fabulous creations with an American flag on top.” Olson said. When people asked her what she wanted to do when she grew up, she answered, “I want to have an ice cream parlor.”
In 1993, the Kilwins Chocolate Store in Lake Geneva had already been open for five years. The owners had another store in Chicago, which is where they spent most of their time. They found that in order for the store to be successful, they needed management on site. When they decided to sell, Olson made her dream come true by purchasing the “sleepy little business.”
At times, long days were necessary and it has all been a learning and growing experience. The franchise used to allow stores to make the ice cream themselves – it started as a soft serve product, which they would put in the blast freezer and then scoop. During the busy season, the store couldn’t keep up with the demand Olson would drive to Gurnee to pick up 30 five gallon tubs from the store to meet their demand.
Now the ice cream is made off site to ensure better quality control. This hot summer has been particularly good for the ice cream sales. The Lake Geneva facility can accommodate deliveries of 400 tubs of ice cream and since sales have been “off the wall,” there have been times throughout the summer that such a large delivery hasn’t lasted. Olson said, “I would say the business has grown!”
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Kilwins franchise. The Kilwins Chocolate Kitchen in Petoskey, Mich., makes some of the products, but one of the biggest features of the store is that some of the confections are made in-house. Depending upon the time of the year, the popular products change, but customers and people passing by can stop to watch them make pecan brittle, caramel apples, turtles and bear claws.
While sales are an important part of the mix, Olson spoke highly and fondly of her staff, “Numbers don’t make the difference, you have to dedicate yourself…(and) it is the personalities of the people that work there that help to make it special.”
One of Olson’s favorite things is to “hear kids when they come in the store and their oohs and ahhs.” Listening to people having a good time and making them happy is what makes it very rewarding.
