3 Scoops Ice Cream has been a staple in the community for the past nine years, and owner Cheryl Leblond says it's been refreshing to see so many visit her stand in the downtown core.
Leblond says she always wanted to own her own business and when the opportunity arose, she purchased the store from the previous owners when it was under the name 'Upper Canada Ice Cream'.
Her favourite part of her job?
"Interacting with the public and putting a smile on everyone!" she said.
The shop sells Kawartha Dairy ice cream and says her most popular flavours are Moose Tracks, Salty Caramel, Pistacio and Coconut for adults, and Cotton Candy, Cookies and Cream, and Blue Bubblegum for kids.
Leblond is thankful for her customers' loyalty over the years, especially during the pandemic.
"Covid was a challenge," she told BradfordToday. "I installed a window and a shelf, I have to say this helped my business grow. All my customers love the window it reminds them of the old style of walking up to the window to order."
Due to the pandemic, she says she has had an increase of customers, and even added additional freezers to keep up with the demand.
Last week, Halibut House Fish and Chips on the west side of town officially held its grand opening for its new ice cream shop addition that also serves Kawartha Dairy ice cream.
Despite some initial worries regarding the situation, Leblond has realized, just like with ice cream, in business, 'there's always room for more'.
“Many businesses have suffered from the pandemic, and I appreciate that this other business may have had to get creative to recover,” she said. "I have faith in this town and the community I serve, Bradford has been loyal to my business, and I feel that people will continue to support my small seasonal business.”
Knowing local residents love coming to her store and seeing her community-driven approach, Leblond is hopeful the uniqueness of what she does will continue to have residents in the area flocking to her shop for tasty treats.
“Customer feedback is that coming to 3 Scoops for ice cream is an experience, there is a summer ‘feel’ to it and I plan on continuing to provide that for people,” she explained. “We don’t just serve Kawartha Dairy ice cream and milkshakes; our menu has a lot of variety of options including ice cream sandwiches using Sweet B’s cookies, banana splits, frozen yogurt, among other items.
"I will continue to support the other small businesses in Bradford as well as continuing to support the community with fundraisers, donations of ice cream such as the Bradford church’s annual festival and local sports teams.”
3 Scoops Ice Cream shop is located at 11 Barrie St. in downtown Bradford.
