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The Daily Scoop
For this entrepreneur, buying a store in Stoneham was just the
tip of the ice cream
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| Owner
Kevin Noonan makes sure everyone knows how to find The
Daily Scoop. |
Okay,
here’s the “scoop”…. ever since he was
a nine-year-old selling Push-Ups and Drumsticks out of his father’s
ice cream truck on the streets of Everett, Kevin Noonan pretty
much knew that ice cream was going to be a big part of his life.
Now 38 years old, and already commanding a small fleet of trucks
selling ice cream, fried dough and slush at town events throughout
the summer, Kevin has taken the next step in opening his own
ice cream shop.
Along with his partner and brother-in-law John Amentola, a local
mortgage specialist, Kevin purchased The Daily Scoop at 232
Main Street in Stoneham, MA in May of 2007, a local favorite
that had been there for many years. But along with buying a
name and a reputation, there was still a lot of work to do.
“We brought in all new equipment,” says Kevin. “In
addition to freezers and refrigerators, we also invested in
a new machine that disperses flavor bursts, which has become
very popular.”
They upgraded the inventory, too. “Along with 16 flavors
of Richie’s Slush, we started serving Richardson’s
Ice Cream,” he adds. “The people who own the company
took us on a tour of their facility in Middleton, MA, and gave
us some tips. They were exceptionally nice people and our customers
love their ice cream.”
The Daily Scoop isn’t a large establishment, made up of
long counters where folks can choose their favorite dairy delectable,
and only a few tables inside and outside. But you can’t
miss it from busy Main Street, with its front windows adorned
with murals of Red Sox players.
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Co-owners
Kevin Noonan and John Amentola show off their latest
ice cream cake creation. |
With their first summer just behind them, Kevin and his crew
have made a name for themselves as a local newspaper reader
poll recently picked them “Best Ice Cream in Stoneham.”
But it’s more than just ice cream (34 flavors in all)
that assure The Daily Scoop is a success.
“We are starting to get well-known for our large selection
of ice cream cakes,” says Kevin. “We have a lot
of different ones, but the most popular are the sports teams—like
the Red Sox and Patriots—and characters like Sponge Bob.
We’ve also created a Cone Cake, which is two layers of
cake and ice cream with six cones sticking up that can hold
any flavor of ice cream you want.”
Ask him what the three most popular flavors of ice cream he
sells are, and he’s quick to cite “vanilla, chocolate
and chocolate chip.” What, no strawberry? “A close
fourth,” he adds with a laugh.
For Kevin Noonan and The Daily Scoop, there are still challenges
ahead. Can an ice cream shop do business year round? Kevin thinks
it can, and he has evidence to back up his assertion. “I
went to a convention in Florida recently and they had statistics
showing that in New England we buy more ice cream in the winter
than we do in the summer,” he says. “So we’ll
be ready for those folks.”
Kevin has 20 part-time and full-time employees, his wife Maria
doing the books, and even his mother and father, now retired,
stopping by every now and then to help out.
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Julia
Smith and her friend Ava Rowe enjoy their dessert at
The Daily Scoop |
The Daily Scoop is the place to go for your favorite ice cream,
even if it’s the family dog that has a craving. The Daily
Scoop sells “Frosty Paws,” Hoodsie-shaped ice cream
treats for dogs. “They’re very popular,” he
says. “We have a veterinarian’s office nearby with
a kennel, and they always drop by.”
Kevin also keeps busy by taking his services on the road, setting
up sundae parties for local businesses, and recently distributing
close to 3,000 ice creams to patients and staff at New England
Medical Center in Boston.
But for now his focus is on the new business, and working hard
on creating an atmosphere of fun and friendliness that customers
will find appealing when they have that sudden craving for a
four-scoop banana split with three different toppings, whipped
cream, marshmallow, nuts, slices of banana, and a big ol’
cherry on top.
“We see all ages coming in; kids, families, older people,
and we are starting to see our regulars,” points out Kevin.
“I have one woman who comes in every day. She visits her
mother in a local nursing home, and always stops by on her way
to visit to buy two slushes.”
Federal Heating is pleased to have Kevin Noonan and family and
John Amentola as customers.
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