Why is My Brand Unique?

Let me start by saying, let’s churn up everyone.  Do you know how the churn name came to life?  How that one little word has turned into so much more, not just for me, but for so many others?  Let’s take a small detour, and revisit the very thought of churn.  It was Thanksgiving 2014, and my family typically has a large audience for the holidays.  I had been contemplating for awhile starting a new ice cream and coffee concept, and decided to run it past some of my aunts and uncles to get their reactions.  If you want me to lie and say everyone was supportive and excited, sure, we can say that.  Truth was, a couple moved on quickly from the conversation, some ignored me, and then a lucky few stayed at the table to continue the thought process with me.  I knew I wanted the name to be one word, and I wanted it to be as explanatory as possible, in one word.  Scoops seemed to be leading the conversation, with Marie’s Ice Cream (my grandmother) right behind, but I did not fully think that embodied the homemade aspect of my brand, and I love Marie, but she was very traditional and I knew I wanted to push the envelope with our creations.  The night ended leaving us at a draw, but then I got an email from my aunt about a week later, suggesting churn, and that was the day it was born.  It was an immediate love for me, a love I still carry strong today.  Our original logo was even drawn by my cousin, so the start of it all was a true family assist. 

I wanted my brand to be quality above all else.  I also knew I wanted my brand to be able to adapt, change with trends, and keep people coming back for more.  I strive to keep the brand relevant.  Ice cream is quite simply in my blood and has always been a warm and happy time in my life.  Ice cream after ballgames, ice cream for good report cards, ice cream as a special treat…ice cream and smiles were synonymous.  For the entirety of my adult life, I have been building my brand and running my business. I have been lucky enough to enjoy success over the years in more ways than one, and I cannot be more thankful for where I am today and the people who helped me get there. 

Hard work, perseverance, and a little luck brought me here.  I work for my brand daily and personally participate in all decisions and ideas that swirl around churn.  I have no issue going out of my way for customers, and pride myself on our retention levels.  A large part of that  is due to our variety, and my constant strive to try new things.  If you can think of a flavor, or read about one, bring it to us to make it.  A rare talent that I have and also have no idea how you even figure out you have, is creating ice cream.  I pride myself on recreating discontinued flavors such as teaberry or black licorice, to crazy ones like ketchup or chocolate covered potato chips or mango jalapeno.  I can capture the flavor, and often make it enticing enough for you to want again.  Some of our flavors have been unique enough to get the attention of local newspapers and social media, aiding our ability to diversify and grow.  When we recreated teaberry, the customer stated how the flavor was a favorite of his and his grandfather, and he has not had it since he passed.  It is crazy to think the ability to create a food can have such an emotional toll on a person.  I personally get it though, for my grandmother always had strawberry ice cream in her freezer.  I was over her house often, she was never without.  When we created our first batch of strawberry ice cream at churn, I could not wait to take her a pint.  She loved her sweets, and the smile and look she gave me that day, will never leave my soul.  Currently our ice cream is made on site at our locations daily.  We have ten staple flavors that never change, but the rest, you never know.  A recent request came in for Honey, which we are making this week, and Cookie Monster holds the title for the  most requested flavor, ever.  Two years ago we were asked to cater a wedding, very Italian.  They had an elaborate cookie table, and brought us samples and wanted us to create ice cream to pair with them.  I catered the wedding myself to see the response, and it was overwhelming.  People were amazed how close we got the ice creams to the actual cookie taste.  The median age of the wedding was over sixty, and it was an unforgettable experience to hear so many reflect on different ice cream stories, their times and favorites, and how our efforts would not be forgotten.  

If our brand is not unique to you, I challenge you to challenge us.  We love requests, so figure out your absolute favorite, or create one all your own, and send it our way to see what we can churn up.

Let’s chat again next Thursday!

Xoxo,

Kelley