Days like that are few and far between for Ben, who since founding Van Leeuwen in 2008 has grown it into a nationwide brand. Van Leeuwen has nearly 50 scoop shops in seven states across the country, and its pints are sold at nearly 10,000 grocery stores including Walmart and Whole Foods.
"That allowed me to save enough money to not go back to college and [instead] travel the world for nine months, which was a super formative experience," he says. "That's when subconsciously and consciously everything clicked," he tells Make It."I was like 'Huh, I'm really into good food, but I want that food to be normal and accessible.'"
With a recipe in hand, Ben, Laura and Pete set about creating a business plan. They determined that they would need $250,000 to get their business off the ground. The quarter million would allow them to buy and renovate a truck, find a factory and create a website.Despite their best efforts, they were only able to raise a total of $60,000 from 15 friends and family members.
This ice cream would then be delivered to a freezer in the Bronx, at which point Ben would load it into the back of his Subaru Impreza, crank the AC and rush it to the trucks — a process he says"completely destroyed" his car's suspension. By the end of that first summer, Van Leeuwen had three trucks operating in New York City. Fans couldn't get enough of flavors like Honeycomb and Sicilian Pistachio, and by 2010 Van Leeuwen hit $1 million in revenue.
These days, Van Leeuwen is known for more than its high-end artisanal flavors. It has made waves on social media for limited edition ice creams made in collaboration with brands like Kraft Mac & Cheese andThese flavors help bring more people to the brand, with the idea being that they will then try some of Van Leeuwen's less adventurous offerings.
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