Food Truck Spotlight
Happy Ice is delivering way more than a unique tasty treat
Lemeir Mitchell learned early on there is no good reason to wait on making a dream come true. That dream, initially, was to become a famous tattoo artist and so he left Philadelphia and headed to Los Angeles. He had no idea how the move would alter his dream completely.
September 7, 2020 by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com
Many food truck operators have a very similar story when it comes to going into the food truck business.
In contrast, Lemeir Mitchell has a very unique story (for one thing he initially planned on being a successful and well known tattoo artist) and his business focus for his truck, Happy Ice, goes way beyond making a living and offering customers a unique water ice product – made from a secret recipe that hails from Philadelphia. Happy Ice boasts the smooth, rich creamy texture of ice cream along with the light, fruity taste of a sorbet. No eggs or any dairy product are in the mix.
Happy Ice has two food trucks on roads of Los Angeles (one at 3200 W Century Boulevard in Inglewood; second at 2175 W Rosecrans Avenue in Compton), and a retail store on Melrose Avenue.
Q. What prompted you to start a food truck?
A. My father was incarcerated with a life-sentence in prison and my brother passed away unexpectedly — these events made me realize that tomorrow is promised for no one, and I left my hometown Philadelphia to pursue my dream of becoming a leading tattoo artist in LA. I fell in love with the LA food truck culture, and the idea for Happy Ice was born. I was missing Philadelphia water ice so I created Happy Ice to share my childhood experience with California & soon to be the world. After the first Happy Ice truck opened in late 2017, the concept blew up in a way I never would have imagined — celebrities like Angelina Jolie and Post Malone stopped by. In 2019 I partnered with Ted Foxman. He invested in our food trucks and the store front and it has been with his help that we have been able to expand our operations and provide Happy Ice to a larger number of people, and in more areas.
Q. Why did you choose the cuisine?
A I started this company because it's true to my roots. This wasn't just a business opportunity but an opportunity to spread the Philadelphia culture. I wanted to bring happiness to people's lives, a place where parents, their kids and everyone can enjoy a treat during summer and for a long time to come.
Q. Do you make the ice on the truck or do you use home-based kitchen or commissary space?
A. We create the water ice in our store on Melrose Avenue and we use freezers in our trucks to keep the product frozen for when we travel around the town.
Q. How did you come up with the name?
A. I had a sense of immense happiness when eating the product growing up and wanted to share that feeling with everyone, so I decided to call it Happy Ice.
Q. What's the best part of being a food truck operator?
A. I would say being able to travel around the town and sharing happiness with people all around. For example we are in the middle of our first Happiness Tour and we are traveling to various places in LA but also in O.C. and in Las Vegas. It's amazing to bring the product to all the communities.
Q. What's the worst part of operating a food truck?
A. Nothing I can think of.
A. What lessons have you learned since launching the truck?
Q. We just recently had to overcome a major challenge when we were opening the store front on Melrose Avenue in June during the pandemic. We had to postpone the opening due to everything that was happening in the world but also in our community and I definitely became stronger at this time. I had much more time to think about the brand, its operations and also the overall experience we wanted to offer to our customers both in the store, but also at the trucks. The world did not give us much to be happy about but Happy Ice is definitely a shining light for me right now and hopefully for everyone who experiences it with us. Now is time to be inspired. Our purpose and our mission is to bring happiness to people and create a space for unity and community — that's become more important now than ever.
Q. Is there anything you would have done differently at the start?:
A. I have all faith in GOD and I believe everything is happening the way it should. Mistakes are great for growth.
Q. Any tips/advice to others thinking of launching a food truck
A. When launching a food truck, focus a lot of your training tactics to create the most effective way to train new staff. This will save you the biggest headache when starting a food business.
Q. Do you have any anecdotes about running a food truck – any unique interactions or special events you've been booked at?
A. We have done so many catering events for well-known celebrities including Heidi Klum, Anthony Anderson, Big Boy, Google, Guess Jeans & so many more.
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About Judy Mottl
