IamAlan

Vending Ice Cream Sandwiches, Choco Tacos, etc., from a trike, anyone tried it?

I know a couple of food truck guys who tell me that as long as Im just using dry ice and selling prepackaged novelties, a license shouldn't be too hard to get. I could ride the neighborhoods and maybe the festivals in Uptown Westerville.
Workman Cycles sells trikes for a little over 2 G's, Icicle Tricycles has new and used, and I've seen a few used for sale on Craigslist.
Buy it for a quarter, sell it for a dollar.
Is there money to be made or will it be more bother than it's worth?

Thanks.

fietsbob

A Christiania type trike would be Ideal... cold box in front turning with it's 2 wheels..

A friend worked a filming location, where the locals filled the bleachers within the shot background. so they loved the Ice Cream

mstateglfr 

Stick to the comics.

rumrunn6

nope. my buddies & I sold from trucks a long time ago (late '70s) after they loosened the uniform requirement this is my late friend Jimmy. still can't believe he's gone & I'm an old fart

indyfabz

Asking the question you have in the forum you have chosen strongly suggests that you have put little or no effort into developing a business plan, which, in turn, strongly suggests that you should do so you can answer your own question.


I mean, what are the chances that someone here will have things like demographic information about your neighborhood and the number and types of festivals in Westerville, OH, and average attendances?.


Or is this just a troll?

02Giant 

Check local ordinances first.

tagaproject6

You want to be a pedaling ice cream peddler?

FBOATSB

I would suggest you try riding one for while before deciding. I had one of those Worksman delivery trikes given to me for free. I spent some time and money on a restoration and then discovered that I couldn't stand to ride around on that thing for more than a few minutes, forget all day. I was happy to sell it at a break even price.

rumrunn6

FYI jackpot sales were at flea markets. but it was rare that we were sent there. usually we were just driving regular routes

Flip Flop Rider

do it

bikejrff

I had a friend that did this for a few years. Problem was city ordinance requiring ice cream inventory to be stored in commercial approved freezer while not selling on tricycle along with some other nonsense regulations. I know the neighborhoods he served really missed him when he gave it up.

Doctor Morbius

I can't think of ice cream trucks without thinking of this ...

PdalPowr

Ah Clint Howard,Ron Howards brother is doing well I see.

Doctor Morbius

Yep. Definitely an "A" lister.

Machka 

That's how it used to be done back in the 70s and maybe even into the 80s.

But these days it's all done by truck.

PdalPowr

I am wondering if you couldn't make a decent cooler knapsack.
Something oversized with lots of insulation.
An attractive reflective exterior that both
advertises and reflects sunlight. You could also have panniers carrying more supplies and or ice.
That way the only thing the bike has to carry that isn't standard
is some kind of advertisement by loudspeaker and a sign.
If you adopt this you owe me free popsicles as long as I can still ride a bicycle.

FBinNY 

It's impossible to answer because success depends on the details.

Obviously, you can make a living peddling ice cream, because so many do. But after that it gets complicated.

Is this to be a living or a 2nd income?
How many events are there per year, and what potential is there besides events?
How much and what kind of competition?
Do you have to pay for a vendor slot at these events?
How much dry ice is needed for a day,or a weekend, and how do you store your leftover stock on off days?
How far from home, are your supplies and market. I assume (though this may not be true) that you can stock up by car, then ride to the sales venue, but how far and what kind of traffic and terrain?

and so on.

Those are just some of the questions that need to explored before you can decide.

dedhed

I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be a year round gig in Ohio

jon c. 

Whether on a bike or in a truck, you need to have high concentrations of potential customers. As others have noted, festivals and other such large public gatherings are where you can make money. And places where many workers will pass by during the week. Many years ago I sold ice cream to longshoremen working the docks. Pedaling in neighborhoods isn't likely to yield the sales volume necessary to make it worthwhile.

Machka 

Remember these ... you'd be playing in the front yard, and hear the jingling bells. You'd have just enough time to rush inside, beg mom for 10 cents for an ice cream, and rush back out again to flag the ice cream bicycle down.

IamAlan

[QUOTE=Machka;20170276]Remember these ... you'd be playing in the front yard, and hear the jingling bells. You'd have just enough time to rush inside, beg mom for 10 cents for an ice cream, and rush back out again to flag the ice cream bicycle down.

Thats where I'm coming from. I grew up with similar memories. Only it was a quarter.
I now live in suburbia and as a retired person, am always looking for ways to supplement my fixed income. Even though it's teeming with kids, I've lived in this neighborhood for many years and haven't seen the first ice cream truck.

If this is a viable pursuit, I can combine two of my favorite things (1) Cycling and (2) Ice Cream, and maybe make a buck in the process.

Then again, the whole concept may simply be a thing of the past. Just thought I'd put it out there and see if anyone has gone down this path before I put a lot of effort into it. Thanks everyone, for your input.

joesch

Pedaling ice creams or nice dreams

indyfabz

Ding ding. Home dels gelats.

hillyman

I thought the Van Halen song Ice Cream Man pretty much described the job

Stadjer

I think nostalgia and ice cream go great together. It's a luxury item with quite a margin, a bike may go where cars can't like parks.