Just for Fun

I found this interesting little video a few weeks ago. Whoever put it together is very creative. It’s amazing the things people can create. I wonder if the cotton candy it makes is any good?! I thought it would be fun to share with everyone. So, if you get a chance, take a moment and watch this video (I think it’s about 3 minutes long).

This is the last post for 2007. I hope that you all have found the articles here on ConcessionCentral.com interesting and informative. I am looking forward to 2008. I hope to continue bringing articles and information to all of you that directly relates to the concessions business. If you have any suggestions, questions, or comments please feel free to share them! I’d appreciate the feedback.

So, have a safe and happy New Year! I hope that 2008 brings everyone much success in their personal and business endeavors!

Save Money, Build Up your Inventory, and Increase your Profits!

Even though winter is considered the ‘down time’ for most concessions business owners, you can still use this time wisely and to your advantage. One of the prominent issues faced by most small business owners is cash flow. Big expenses are cash killers for most businesses.

One tip that we have is to use the next couple of months to your advantage by getting your concessions business well stocked ahead of time. Instead of having to purchase everything within the weeks prior to starting up your sales season, why not purchase your supplies over a two or three month period. Use January, February, March, and possibly April (depending on your location geographically) to purchase your supplies. Spreading out your expenses over a three or four month period will eliminate the big bill you would typically have if you ordered everything just prior to the beginning of your season.



As an added incentive to use this suggestion…all equipment and supplies are on sale at 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com and CottonCandyExpress.com right now. Order now and save even more! This is just another way to increase the profitability of your concessions business!

These are a Must Have for Busy Concession Locations!

Sometimes it’s the simple things that allow you to work more efficiently. This is the case with take out trays. These will make your life much easier when you are dealing with large orders. Yes, they are an added expense to factor into your overall costs. But, their long term benefits far outweigh the purchase price!

Take out trays are one of those little things that ‘complete’ your business. A customer who comes up and orders three or four cups of shaved ice or slush drinks will always ask for a take out tray. If you have them, it plants a seed in their mind. It goes something like this, “Hmm…they really know what they’re doing.” Isn’t this what you want all of your customers to think? Again, little things such as take out trays are simple tools to elevate the level of professionalism that is so important to establish with your business. Order your take out trays today! They’re on sale right now at 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com!

Enjoy the Holiday Season!

From all of us at 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com, HawaiianShavedIce.com, and CottonCandyExpress.com, we hope that everyone will have a safe and happy holiday season! Hopefully all of you will be getting together with family and friends during this festive season and enjoy the time spent together. We also want to thank all of our faithful customers for a great year. We wish you the best for 2008! Here's to a warm spring and a long, hot summer which hopefully will bring a myriad of customers to your shaved ice and/or snow cone locations looking for some delicious, icy refreshment!

How to get that Tasty Treat onto a Floss Cone!

As with anything else, practice makes perfect. The more you practice making cotton candy, the better your product will be for your customers in the end. If you follow these simple and easy directions, you should not have any problems making it. We suggest that you practice making the cotton candy prior to serving it at your next get-together, fundraiser event or first foray into concession sales so that you can get the feel of how to make it. After practicing, you may realize that you need other supplies along with learning the “do’s and don’ts” that will allow you to make a better product.



If you do not own a machine, your first step is to purchase one. The knowledgeable staff at CottonCandyExpress.com will be more than happy to assist you in choosing the machine that is right for your needs. We strongly suggest that you use the following steps to help make your cotton candy a hit!

1. Use a clean, damp cloth to moisten the inner part of the floss pan, which enables the floss to stick to the pan.
2. Observe the direction that the floss is spinning off of the floss head.
3. Alter the floaters which are located on top of the spinner head.

-Up for more lift
-Down for less lift

4. Grab a candy cone at the pointed end and hold it an inch or two between your thumb and two fingers.
5. Use a light, flicking motion to break into the web of floss.
6. Hold up the cone, which should now have a ring of floss attached to it and wind the floss onto the cone. Use a clean, damp sponge to brush the cone if the floss does not appear to be sticking to the cone.
7. Important: Only roll floss on outside of pan
8. In order to make a larger web, use a “figure-8” motion to turn the ring of floss onto the cone; once you have become an expert, you might want to lift the ring of the floss out of the pan with just a flick of your wrist.
9. At last, enjoy eating or selling your mouth-watering treat!





Remember, practice, practice, practice. By doing so, you will gain confidence in your abilities which will pay off greatly when your concessions stand is busy!

Most Expensive Cotton Candy Around?

This may just be the most expensive serving of cotton candy in the United States. It's interesting that an upscale restaurant is serving cotton candy on their dessert menu. It just goes to show how popular cotton candy is with everyone! Enjoy the article!

Christmas is only TWO WEEKS Away!

Are you finished with your Christmas shopping? Of course not! Are you tired of fighting traffic, circling the parking lot, and weaving your way through the mobs of people at the mall? Well, we have a solution for you!

Check out all of the great gift ideas found at HawaiianShavedIce.com. We have complete shaved ice packages that the whole family can enjoy along with individual items. Come visit our Shaved Ice and Snow Cone Gift Center for more ideas.

Avoid the hassles! Avoid having to put more of that $3.00 per gallon fuel in your car! You can order as late as December 17th, ship your order by UPS Ground and still get it in time for Christmas! Come visit us at HawaiianShavedIce.com...we're sure you'll find some great gifts for your friends, family, and coworkers.

Location, Location, Location

We have discussed the importance of the actual location of your business in previous posts. High traffic areas that have convenient access are very helpful. However, a suitable location can often cost you quite a bit in rent.

Rent prices may range from $50 to over $500 a month. The price you pay will all depend upon the arrangement that you make with your landowner. Usually, the better the location, the higher the rent. As always, shop around to get your best price. When discussing a location of interest with the owner, make sure you point out the fact that you will be attracting more potential customers onto his property for him as well. This is a fact that you need to use to your advantage. Owners of small, local strip malls or other locally owned businesses will see the advantage of having your stand set up at their location.

At our busiest location, we paid $200 a month from May to October. Our landlord did not ask for rent during the winter months when we were closed. In reality, we would have paid $300 a month year round if needed. We had great business and were located right in the middle of town. Nearby there were nine baseball fields, a community college, neighborhoods, shopping centers, and restaurants. The daily traffic count on the highway in front of our business was about 28,000 vehicles in a 24 hour period. At this particular location, we averaged $300 to $500 dollars in sales a day.

Whatever arrangements you work out with your landlord, be certain to have a contract or agreement in writing. If possible, agree to a fixed number years for your lease. Try to get at least a one year lease with the option to renew for one to two years. This option will give you the opportunity to get a feel for the location before committing to a longer term lease. Before you sign an agreement, make sure that you can adequately cover the monthly amount based on your projected sales volume. Do your homework, research, and then move forward with confidence! If you should ever have any questions regarding space rental or other concessions related business questions, please feel free to post your question here or contact us through our website at 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com.

Customer Service is Priority One!

As a service oriented company, customer service is of utmost importance to us at 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com. We welcome feedback from our customers. It helps us build a better company! Here are some comments made about our customer service.

“Great Customer Service! Could not be more pleased! They were wonderful and I'll continue to do business with them. A great company! Fabulous! Wish more companies had this type of customer service."
Martha, WA

"My experience with this company has been very positive in every way. I have placed orders via their website and have always received exactly what I ordered and in a very timely manner. I have placed phone orders with several different customer service people and I have always received very friendly, courteous and helpful conversations and the same accuracy and speed of shipment. My experience with this company could not be more satisfactory. Great selection, service, attitude, and prices!"
Roger, IA

If you every have any questions or comments about our company or our products, please contact us via Customer Care at 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com.

A Great Looking Concessions Cart!

Are you looking for a great cart for your concessions business? This is the best snack cart available! This is an attractive, stainless steel cart designed to sell both popcorn and cotton candy. The cart has a recessed cutout where your cotton candy machine may be installed. In addition, the cart comes with a power strip outlet located inside of the cabinet, and it also has locking doors. The shelves of the cart are adjustable so they can be customized for the serving sizes of the cotton candy and popcorn you may be selling. The easy rolling casters enable this cart to be moved to any location, making it a great choice for mobile vendors. This is a great looking cart designed to sell both of these great, tasty, profitable products! Check it out today at Cotton Candy Express.

Inspiration

Occasionally we will feature an article here about a concessions business to function as ‘inspiration’ for our readers. David Ogilvy, who is widely considered the father of modern advertising, collected ideas and tidbits of knowledge. He categorized them and called them “magic lanterns.”

It’s always helpful to see how someone else works and operates their business. Every little tidbit of knowledge and information can serve as assistance to you in the operation of your own business. The article here discusses a cotton candy vendor in New Mexico. Apparently he has been in the same location for many years and has maintained consistency in his product (extremely important).

Take a moment and read the article…”you learn something new everyday.”

Block Ice or Cube Ice? What's the Best for your Business?

**This is an excerpt from our Shaved Ice Business Manual. If you'd like to read more information about using cube ice or block ice, please go to 1-800-Shaved-Ice.com and request our business manual.

Regular cube ice, also called bag ice, should be readily available in your area. Look in your local yellow pages for ice suppliers. Your local ice wholesaler may deliver the ice directly to you. At first you may have to use your own freezer for storage but as your business builds and your ice volume increases, your ice supplier may provide an outdoor ice merchandiser for storage.

While cube ice is fairly consistent throughout the country, block ice comes in two very different forms. There is compressed block ice and solid block ice. DO NOT USE COMPRESSED BLOCK ICE FOR SHAVED ICE MACHINES. Compressed block ice is made at ice plants by forcing large chunks of ice or crushed ice into compression molds. This type of block ice does not provide a smooth shaving surface for your block shaver. Compressed block ice usually is filled with air spaces and will not produce good shaved ice.



Solid block ice is the preferred form of block ice for use in the shaved ice industry. This type of block ice produces the best snow for shaved ice. However, solid block ice may not be readily available in all parts of the country. Where available, block ice can usually be purchased in 12 - 15 lb or 300 lb blocks. We suggest the 12 lb blocks for easy handling and storage. If needed, your local ice house can often cut down the 300 lb blocks for you.

If your business continues to grow or if block ice is not available in your area, you may find that you can make your own ice at a fraction of the cost. You can freeze your own ice blocks in our specially made ice block tubs. Simply fill the tubs with water and place into a deep freezer for 2 to 3 days. When freezing your own ice blocks, make sure not to freeze your ice too fast. We suggest setting your freezer to around 10 degrees Fahrenheit. This will allow the ice to freeze slower and will produce a better ice block. Ice frozen too fast will crack when shaved. This is extremely important!

You can also make your own cube ice by purchasing your own ice maker. Look in your local yellow pages under restaurant equipment or ice making equipment for more information on cube ice makers in your area. You may also wish to search out local distributors by using the Internet as well.

Whatever type of ice you use please be sure that you understand the advantages and disadvantages of using cube ice over block ice. Find out more about cube ice and block ice by requesting our Shaved Ice Business Manual. It is full of great, useful information for anyone in the shaved ice or snow cone business.