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The at recently re-opened under new ownership after being
The new owners, Stacy & Rick Gierczak, have years of small business experience and now own and operate three Cold Stone locations around San Diego County.
Cold Stone is a customizable small town ice cream store- choose from about 15 flavors and add in any of around 20 different toppings and candies. The ice cream and cones are made in house.
Santee Patch asked Stacey five questions about the shop:
1. Who are the new owners?
We are a family of four. My husband is originally from Michigan and I am from Colorado. We met in San Diego and after we got married decided to become small business owners. We owned and operated a small bar called Zak's pub in La Mesa for two years and then decided that it wasn't the best business to run when raising a family, so we sold it and when we looked into other businesses to own, we came across Cold Stone and thought that would be a great family business to own.
We first took over the PB location and 18 months later we purchased the IB location. Seven years later, we are now in the Santee store and looking forward to making it a place where families and friends can go to enjoy some quality time and wonderful ice cream together.
2. How did you come about re-opening the shop?
I had just mentioned to my husband that there was a store in Santee that had closed down and he started inquiring and after six months of negotiations, we finally came to an decision to re-open it. I am not sure why it closed down before, but I know that with some hard work and dedication, we can be successful.
3. Are you a Santee resident, what do you like about the area?
We live in Mission Valley, so it isn't that far for us to get to Santee. Before purchasing the store, we had frequented the area to do some shopping. I really like Santee, because it has a small town feel to it. The people are really friendly and it makes me feel like I am part of a community of people who care about each other and their "town."
4. What's your favorite Cold Stone treat?
It's funny, people ask me all the time if I get sick of ice cream. I don't ever get sick of it! There are so many options of different things to eat and drink at Cold Stone that you can mix it up and never get bored. My favorite ice cream creations would have to be Coffee House Crunch - Coffee ice Cream, roasted almonds & Carmel or Birthday Cake Remix - Cake batter ice cream, sprinkles and fudge. I also like the smoothies and shakes too.
5. What is unique about Cold Stone that sets it apart from other ice cream shops?
We make all of our ice cream in the store, fresh everyday. We use a special sweet cream product that is only sold to Cold Stone Creamery and it makes more creamy and smooth then all of our competitors. We also offer a unique way of creating our ice cream by mixing in any type of candy, fruit or nuts into your ice cream on a frozen slab of granite, hence the name Cold Stone. We also offer friendly customer service and strive to give the best customer service around.
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