The Small Business Spotlight series features small businesses and their owners, to get a feel for what truly makes Southwest Raleigh a great place to live, work, learn, and play: the people.
This edition of the Small Business Spotlight features two New York City gents, Mike and Rich, and their sweet small business, SweetWater Ices.
swral: Who are Mike and Rich, and where did SweetWater Ices come from?
The idea of SweetWater Ices started in 2011, when Mike Beggen and I (Rich Conroy) came down from New York to visit our two best friends that we’ve known since middle school. One friend’s wife who was pregnant at the time, sent us out to feed her craving for Italian Ice, and with our New York state of minds we thought it would be a piece of cake considering in New York Italian ice is easy to find. We were wrong.
Three hours later we ended up getting her fake, frozen Italian Ice from Harris Teeter. So as a joke we said, “We should start our own REAL Italian Ice Co.”
That night at The Oxford in Raleigh we planned out most of the key parts to this (at the time) imaginary company. We wanted to do it the right way, REAL Italian Ice. No corn syrup, just real fruit, water, and sugar. And, if we were going to do this, we were going to do it with style. We went back to New York with this idea still in our minds. Back to our regular jobs. Back to our regular lives.
Then a couple of months later, Mike was laid off from his job as a history teacher and approached me with the idea of actually going through with SweetWater Ices. I said yes, and being a freelance graphic designer had already been creating the logo and look on my computer. So I got Mike a job where I was currently working so we could save our pennies to start making SweetWater a reality.
swral: The theme and branding of SweetWater is great. Where did you find such unique bikes?
We knew that we were going to go with a retro 50’s theme so we decided on old school ice cream tricycles. We discovered that the original makers of these bikes were still in business and right in our backyard. Worksman Cycles in Queens, NY has been in business since 1898 and mass produced these tricycles for the Good Humor Co. in the 1920’s. we special ordered our tricycles and customized the look to our design.
swral: Where does the Italian Ice come from?
SweetWater Ices is a true New York company. We’re from New York, the bikes are from New York, and the ice is from New York. The ice is made by two little Italian guys in Queens, NY with an 80 year old recipe. This is how we’ve always have had our Italian Ice growing up, super smooth, not frozen hard as a rock. Just real fruit, water, and sugar. No corn syrup.
swral: And it’s delicious. Tell us your favorite spot to park.
Our favorite place to sell is out on the streets of Downtown Raleigh, right on Fayetteville Street outside of Wells Fargo and Ray’s Hair Shop. We are there Monday through Thursday, from 11am to 4pm (weather permitting). On Wednesdays we offer coupons for our Facebook followers. (www.facebook.com/swaterices)
swral: Any future plans for SweetWater Ices?
In the future we hope to open up a store. We not only want our shop to be the source for the best ice in North Carolina, but also a great place to chill.
Big thanks to Mike and Rich for chatting with Southwest Raleigh! Check out their Facebook page or give them a follow on Twitter for coupons and details.