THELASTWORD
GUEST COLUMNISTS : PHIL & VERA HARRISON
REIMAGINING BEARS ICE CREAM in Kent
THIS SUMMER , BEARS ICE CREAM IMAGINARIUM MOVED THEIR FLAGSHIP STORE AND PRODUCTION FACILITY DOWN TO WHITSTABLE . THE OWNERS OF THE FAMILY RUN BUSINESS , PHIL AND VERA , TALK ABOUT HOW THE PRODUCE OF THE GARDEN OF ENGLAND INSPIRED THEIR MOVE AND THEIR AMBITION TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER THROUGH THE JOY OF CREATIVE ICE CREAM ALONGSIDE THE DEVELOPMENT OF A FARM-TO-TUB BRAND .
© Bears Ice Cream
VERA , PHIL AND FAMILY OUTSIDE THE SHOP
© Bears Ice Cream Imaginarium
We founded Bears Ice Cream in 2016 with the ambition of introducing high quality , well-made soft serve to the London ice cream market . The shop quickly became a cult phenomenon , and our little side project grew to the size where Phil left his head chef position at a recognised West London gastropub and took a seat at the helm at the company . This is when our product development accelerated and we introduced our delicious Scoop Club range , a creative range of ice cream flavours made by Phil from the freshest ingredients .
The big day arrived last August . For six years we had been contemplating making the move from London to Whitstable , and finally we took the leap .
We said goodbye to our West London neighbourhood and friends and hello to our new seaside community . Originally , our plans were to live by the sea and commute into London to run our ice cream business . But , leaving our seaside home every day proved to be harder than anticipated , so , naturally , we opened a new ice cream parlour , Bears Ice Cream Imaginarium , in the middle of Whitstable High Street and established this as our flagship store .
The freshest and highest quality ingredients have always been a staple in our ice creams , but after spending the winter exploring the Kent countryside and meeting with food-led business initiatives , we fell in love with the produce of The Garden of
England . To create our product from this incredible local produce and be a farm-to-tub led company is an exciting new journey . We have already laid the groundwork for our farm-to-tub initiative with a collaboration with Castle Farm . As of July , our Blueberry and Lavender Meringue Swirl ice cream is solely made from their local Lavender .
We look forward to starting further collaborations and bringing The Garden of England to the world through Bears Ice Cream !
www . bearsicecream . co . uk
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