What happens if you give a young man a unique birthday present? Well, the answer is simple. He starts experimenting until he gets the mixtures just right and paves his way to success.
We introduce Paul Ballen, founder of Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream. Reserved, almost shy and constantly on the go he sure is a difficult man to pin down, but we finally caught up with him at his flagship outlet in Parkhurst.
The saying that the proof is in the pudding is equally true to Paul’s ice cream – the proof of success sure is in the taste of the oh-so-many flavours to choose from.
But where did it all start?
‘It’s a story that has been told way too many times’ Paul said. ‘In 2011 I got an ice cream machine as a birthday present. At that point in time, I had no idea how ice cream was made. After extensive experimentation in my parent’s kitchen and some posts online, I was soon known as the Joburg Ice Cream King.
‘Friends, family and online followers placed their orders online, and I slaved away making 1L batches at a time to fulfil their orders.
‘In 2014, my university friend, Josh and I, registered the business, and since then the business has grown from strength to strength, not without its challenges.’
One can’t help to ask if he still has the ‘famous’ first ice cream maker? ‘Sadly not, but surprisingly they still make them. I always suggest them to those who want to start experimenting in their home kitchens.’
Today, being famous for his ice cream he is quite frank about the fact that during his childhood and after school, he was not one of those who had a strong idea of what he wanted to do with his life or where he wanted to end up career wise.
‘So to answer your question if I ever thought I would end up as an owner / founder of a brand this successful, no not really. A lot in life is unknown but today we are reaping the success of those first experimental batches of ice cream.
‘Over the past few years, we have focused on expanding our retail footprint through franchising. Currently we have 13 Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream Stores, of these five are company stores and the balance franchises. Our Parkhurst store is definitely our flagship store – we are busy with constructing an outdoor area that will make this the perfect summer hangout.
‘We have also recently launched our first Paul’s Homemade Soft Serve concept which is opening at the newly renovated Thrupps Centre in Illovo.
‘Besides our Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream stores, we have a large number of retailers and independents that stock our product, from restaurants, to forecourts to fruit and vegetable stores,’ he continued.
Something new
Looking at the flavours on offer, you are clearly not scared of trying new and unusual things. Is this something that just comes naturally and when and where do you normally have those light bulb moments that say: ‘Ah, these flavours will go well together’?
‘We spend a large amount of time and energy coming up with new concepts and ideas for our flavours. We generally pair together flavours for a particular theme. For example, at the moment our flavour theme is Journey Through Asia. We have developed eight new flavours including Five Chocolate Five Spice, Gulab Jamun, Chinese Candy, Yuzu Toasted Marshmallow, Vegan Coconut Caramel, Dirty Chai Latte, Cotton Cheesecake and Thai Pina Colada. These flavours not only pair well together, but would also be a delicious combination with some of our classic flavours that are always on offer.
So called side hustles
In his shops you will find something else, sitting subtle on a shelf yet with packaging bold enough to draw the eye in, inviting you to a must taste, especially if you love a good coffee. And yes, the coffee is just as good as the ice cream.
But when did coffee come into play and why?
‘Coffee and ice cream are always a perfect combination. However, we always noticed that our customers only recognised us for our ice cream and not our coffee.
‘During Covid, we acquired a well-established coffee company that was well-entrenched in the corporate space. Along with a company re-branding and redeveloping the infrastructure, we introduced a new brand within our retail stores, Killer Coffee. By doing this, we would create an association with a strong sister brand, whose focus was only coffee and that could exist as stand-alone coffee sites.’
Into the future
With surprise upon surprise, there surely must be other ventures and future plans? ‘Yes, we have some epic new projects in the pipeline – but I have to keep these a secret for now.
‘We have big ambitions! We have a lot of interest in the franchise space – so will be expanding our retail footprint significantly in the next few years locally and, hopefully, eventually internationally. Along with this, we will continue to grow our retail footprint to ensure that more and more people have access to our product.’
Any last thoughts for those out there who want to start up something?
‘Make sure you have grit, passion and perseverance and surround yourself with the right people.’
On a personal note
With business chats out of the way we also get to know a little bit more about Paul.
He grew up in Saxonwold in Johannesburg and attended school at King David Victory Park Primary and High School.
‘I have a twin sister and went to Wits University for my Undergrad, Honours and Wits Business School for my PDM.’
Life on the run does not allow for too much time to relax and a typical day in his life is waking up at around 5.30am, off to the gym at around 6.30am and being at the office before 9am. ‘Then my days are typically filled with meetings till around midday and then spending the rest of the day in our retail stores.’
There is one special relationship in his life at this time and that is with his Persian cat, Sunshine.
Being a nature lover he likes to spend time either in Delta Park or Emmerentia Dam during weekends. ‘I’m generally in Parkhurst or Rosebank and have a long list of favourite restaurants.’
Apart from escaping into nature (he generally finds his quiet space in the Drakensberg or Western Cape), he also sees exercise and cooking as a form of relaxation.
OFF THE CUFF:
- Do you prefer summer or winter?
Summer, obviously! Its ice cream time.
- Which do you prefer – sweet treats or salty snacks?
I’m around sweet treats all day – so salty/savoury snacks
- Do you stand by the saying: ‘Ice cream is cheaper than therapy’?
It definitely is.
- Your favourite flavour of ice cream?
That question gets asked very frequently. I would say it depends on how I’m feeling on the day – for classics, I would probably go for scoop of Vietnamese coffee and then one of our seasonal flavours
- Which do like most – art, music, food or travel?
Can one love them all equally?
- If you could change one thing in your life, what would that be?
Add more time in the day.
Text: CARINA VAN DER WALT. Photo: SJOWCASE
