Launching a frozen dessert business can be an extremely lucrative and rewarding venture. It’s no secret that every business owner operating within the food and beverage industry had to undergo an extensive process before getting their brand up and running. Hopefully, you’ll find this article to be a valuable resource on how to do just that! But first, let’s take a quick look at some of the most popular frozen desserts that you can sell via wholesale distribution channels.
What Are Some Popular Frozen Desserts?
It doesn’t require having a sweet tooth to be familiar with various frozen desserts. In fact, most consumers come in contact with them more than they might think. From the dessert menu at your favorite restaurant to stocked freezers in nearby grocery stores, frozen desserts are everywhere. Some of the most popular options include:
- Sorbet
- Frozen yogurt
- Frozen cakes
- Frozen pies
- Tubs of ice cream
- Ice cream sandwiches
- Ice cream bars and popsicles
Are one of these products something that you want to build a business around? What about something entirely new to implement product differentiation? If so, check out the following section to learn which steps you’ll need to take to do so.
How to Launch a Frozen Dessert Business In 9 Steps
Are you ready to kickstart a frozen dessert business? If so, let us assist you! The following steps will help you bring your business plans to fruition. See below:
1. Write a Frozen Dessert Business Plan
Before you can make any moves, you need to create a plan. In an extensive outline of your goals and roadmap, detail how you’re going to launch your frozen dessert business and sustain profits. This document will cover everything from a SWOT analysis featuring technical competitive research to a creative marketing plan. Not only will your business plan be a source of guidance as you bring your visions to life, but it’ll be reviewed by every investor you speak to. In fact, there’s little to no chance of receiving financial assistance for a new venture without a thorough business plan.
2. Conduct Market Research
Before launching a frozen dessert business, you should be familiar with similar products on the market. What are competitors doing? Which marketing strategies seem to attract the most customers? By gaining a clear understanding of the frozen dessert sector, you’ll be able to better position your brand upon releasing your first slew of products.
3. Obtain All Necessary Licenses and Permits
There are licenses and permits that every business owner must acquire before selling wholesale products. First, you’ll need to figure out how to get a wholesale license. Then, you must obtain any documentation needed for your geographic area. These details can vary depending on your state and municipality, so it’s also wise to double-check with local officials.
4. Employ Staff to Operate the Business
Every business requires some amount of labor. From quality control professionals to warehouse staff members who will ship your products, it’s important to have a team in place. While you may not need too many employees in the beginning, it’s a smart idea to prepare what a more extensive operational structure might look like in the future.
5. Source All ingredients
Some frozen dessert business models purchase all of their products directly from a white label brand. If you go this route, you won’t have to source individual ingredients.
However, if you prepare all your own recipes, you’ll have to acquire sufficient ingredients from various suppliers. From wholesale flour to packages of eggs in bulk, you’ll need to determine your product line and each product’s ingredient list before completing this step. As you can probably imagine, the complexities of this step are why so many brands opt for white label products.
6. Undergo Product Development
Running a frozen dessert business will require you to prepare various recipes in bulk. Therefore, you need to invest in food production facilities that can conduct this step in record speed. Then, once you purchase dessert packaging wholesale, you can package all your products and keep it in storage until each order’s shipment.
A frozen dessert business will need to store products in warehouses that abide by cold chain logistics. In other words, they need to be suitable for temperature-controlled products. So, we recommend researching production and warehousing facilities that the best frozen dinner brands use. The best frozen lunches and the best packaged lunch meat also need to stay in a cold environment. So, you might even be using the same facilities as suppliers of similar categories.
7. Determine a Pricing Strategy
Consider the expenses associated with running your frozen dessert business and set prices for each product accordingly. You want to make sure that your prices will allow you to sustain a profitable business in the short term as well as years down the road. However, you also need to ensure that your prices don’t surpass competitors by a landslide. A premium pricing strategy is one thing, but charging way more than competing companies with similar products will only be detrimental to your brand in the long run.
8. Set Up Sales Channels
How will customers be able to purchase your products? There are two popular ways that food and beverage companies sell to their clientele. The first method is through an eCommerce site. Whether you’re selling direct to consumer (D2C) or business to business (B2B), you can do so through a digital storefront.
The second way you can sell frozen desserts in bulk is to integrate your product catalog with a wholesale directory. Take BlueCart as an example. By becoming a seller on the platform, over 100,000 businesses will have access to your product line. That’s a lot of potential for new business!
9. Market Your Frozen Desserts
Once all your products are available for purchase, it’s time to market them to the masses. There are several ways you can do this. Many wholesalers leverage the power of paid advertisements to draw a targeted group of customers. Then, once you have enough customer data, you can implement an email marketing strategy. Don’t forget that with wholesale distribution platforms, you might be able to implement banner ads that are shown to potential shoppers.
Frozen Dessert Business Ideas
Now that you know how to launch a successful frozen dessert business, which type of company will you pursue? Thanks to the popularity of desserts and the potential for new recipes, there are a handful of options. Take a look at the frozen dessert business ideas below for some inspiration.
Wholesale Frozen Dessert Distribution Business
Grocery stores constantly purchase frozen desserts in bulk to sell to their customers. It’s also common for casual dining establishments, such as diners and quick service restaurants to purchase frozen desserts as well. In doing so, they have to purchase wholesale products from a food and beverage distribution company.
Consumer goods companies can acquire everything they need from wholesale frozen dessert distributors. The best part? Everything they buy will cost a fairly reasonable price. Then, their markup will allow them to make a lucrative profit (learn more: markup vs margin).
Frozen Dessert eCommerce Store
Consumers and businesses can buy practically anything online. Various types of eCommerce businesses thrive from the benefits of selling through a digital platform. For example, by setting up a digital storefront, your frozen dessert business will incur minimal costs.
Without the geographic restrictions associated with a brick and mortar retail store, an eCommerce frozen dessert business can reach more people. Between flexible shipping options and targeted ad campaigns, your reach can be through the roof.
Sell Dairy-Free Frozen Desserts
When you take a look at frozen dessert trends, many ideas use dairy replacements. In fact, some of the best non dairy frozen desserts can probably be found in your local grocery store. Between vegan milk and frozen fruit recipes, there is so much room for culinary inspiration. Plus, you’ll be catering to a massive market.
Many consumers nowadays ditch animal products for ethical reasons. Meanwhile, others do so for health concerns. Then, there are consumers who don’t care too much about ingredient lists as long as the products taste good. So, there are countless people who might buy your non-dairy frozen dessert items.
Frequently Asked Questions About a Frozen Dessert Business
Starting a business can be pretty complex. Want to learn more about the frozen dessert sector of the food and beverage ecosystem? Read on!
Can a Frozen Dessert Business Be Profitable?
Yes, a frozen dessert business can be a very profitable venture! Whether you sell packaged goods to retailers or homemade ice cream flavors at a mom-and-pop ice cream shop, desserts will always be some of the top-selling products in any market. Therefore, it’s a safe option for new business owners.
Is Running a Frozen Dessert Business Difficult?
Running a frozen dessert business can be challenging at times. However, as long as you have the proper team members, systems, and business plan in place, you should be equipped with the resources to overcome any obstacles.
What Are Some Good Products for a Frozen Dessert Business?
Some of the best product ideas for a frozen dessert business are:
- Ice cream
- Frozen yogurt
- Sorbet
- Popsicles
Which Is the Most Popular Distributor of Frozen Desserts?
The most popular frozen dessert distributor is either US Foods or Sysco Corporation. Both companies are leaders in the food and beverage distribution space and offer a wide variety of other products, such as some of the best frozen dinner options.
Which Is the Most Popular Frozen Dessert?
The most popular frozen dessert has to be ice cream. It’s on every menu and in every grocery store. Plus, brick and mortar eateries that only sell ice cream have the potential to thrive.
Ready to Launch Your Frozen Dessert Business?
BlueCart has all the tools you need to grow your frozen dessert business. By using our platform, you’ll have the ability to connect with tens of thousands of potential buyers. Meanwhile, an advanced suite of solutions will streamline all order management processes from beginning to end. Book a demo with us today to view the platform in action and learn more!