Isabella’s Ice Cream, once a local food truck and catering business, debuted this week in 110 Arizona Safeway stores and an additional 36 Whole Foods stores across the southwest. That’s a total of 15,000 pints shipped just last week.
After Safeway’s ice cream category manager discovered Isabella’s at a Whole Foods in Phoenix, Safeway approached the Tucson based ice creamery about offering the product at its retail stores.
“We were requested to fly out to Safeway’s headquarters in the Bay Area for an official presentation of our product to the national team,” said Isabella’s Ice Cream owner Kristel Johnson. “They notified us officially in November of product placement throughout Arizona.”
Gearing up for production was no simple task. Isabella’s expanded their facility to include a separate packaging room and a large freezer capable of holding up to six pallets of product.
With the improved space and an amazing team, three weeks of 12-15 hour days was required to hit the 15,000 pint mark.
But, Isabella’s has no plans of slowing down.
“We have purchased more machines to help automate our process, including a much larger batch freezer and conveyor belts,” said Johnson. “This will allow Isabella’s to be able to continue to increase production.
In addition to ramping up production for Safeway and Whole Foods, Isabella’s launched “mini containers” for folks that haven’t tried their product yet, as well as for resorts and restaurants .
“It’s a 7-ounce single serve package,” said Dominic Johnson. “It is almost a half pint. I actually think it’s a perfect size because you always hear someone say they bought a pint of ice cream, ate the whole thing, and feel bad about it. You can feel less guilty.”
Isabella’s Ice Cream is currently sold at Maynard’s Market, Whole Foods Markets, Rincon Market, Food Conspiracy Co-Op, Tucson Tamale, Renee’s Organic Oven, The Loft Cinema, Lerua’s Mexican Food, Saffron Indian Bistro, 1702, Seis Kitchen, and custom made Bon Bons at the Phoenician resort in Scottsdale.
For more information, visit isabellasicecream.com.
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