An ice cream company in Montgomery County is licking its way into the Greater Baltimore market, with plans to open three stores in July.
Gifford's Ice Cream & Candy Co. also has it sights set on a fourth store at the Maryland House in Harford County's Aberdeen next year.
The Silver Spring company hopes to eventually become the dominant retail ice cream shop in Greater Baltimore.
The new stores in downtown Baltimore will open at the Charles Plaza food court at 222 N. Charles St. and apartment complex Horizon House at 1101 N. Calvert St. The third will open at Towson Town Center, 825 Dulaney Valley Rd. Each store will employ between eight and 10 workers.
"Baltimore no longer has a home grown ice cream brand," says Luke Cooper, managing director of Deal Metrics LLC, the venture capital firm that operates Gifford's. "We want to become that brand."
Cooper describes the Towson Town Center store as its flagship location. The company plans to carry its full line of flavors at the 600-square-foot shop. Cooper expects that the store will get steady foot traffic year-round and thus less prone to the seasonal dips that are typical for ice cream shops.
"Hopefully we won't have the dry months in the winter," Cooper says.
Cooper says the Charles Plaza food court was appealing because it attracts a wide cross-section of Baltimoreans � from doctors to lawyers to city workers and janitors.
"There's a great confluence of eclectic backgrounds and people eating there," Cooper says.
Gifford's invests between $300 to $500 per square foot on each store, Cooper says. So for a 600 square foot store, the company will spend between $180,000 to $300,000 for a 600-square-foot store. The Baltimore City stores will be smaller, at around 230 to 400 square feet.
While some other Baltimore ice cream companies have shrunk their retail presence in recent years, Gifford's executives think they can stay ahead by keeping their shops small � and expenses low � and getting the best prices from their suppliers.
In February, Gifford's opened an outlet at the Inn at Colonnade hotel in Charles Village. The company has four Washington, D.C.,-area locations.
Starting next year, the company could open stores in additional Maryland travel plazas, operated by concessionaire HMS Host Corp.
Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Luke Cooper, Gifford's