Total experiences by ice cream parlour Guba – with ice cream at the core

Ice cream parlour Guba in Meerhout has its sights set on creating experiences 100%. With a large garden, a children's playground, a bouncy castle and a go-kart ring, owners Gunther and Bart have been providing a true family environment since May 2020. After two years - and many a scoop of ice cream - they consider their goal achieved. But they’re hungry for more, owed to their main motivation. "We are incredibly happy to be out among people ourselves." This is the story of ice cream makers Bart Vandeweyer and Petra Boons.

From cream cart to renown ice cream parlour

Guba Ijs got its name from Gunther and Bart: two brothers whose parents once drove around the area with ice cream cart Guba. The apple does not fall far from the tree, which was reason enough to adopt the Guba name. Obtaining the traditional family ice cream recipe was a different matter entirely, according to Bart: "I remember asking for the recipe, but my parents never gave it to me and my brother. They told me we had to develop it for ourselves. That’s exactly what we did.”

Today, the renown Meerhout ice cream parlor is no longer operated by both brothers. At one point, Bart turned towards the ideal business partner to realize his dream with: his wife Petra. She happily accepted the challenge. Having been in hospitality for many years, she knew better than anyone how to successfully tackle the catering business.

An expansion covering up to 14 flavours

Right now, ice cream parlour Guba has 11 flavours on offer, including fan favorites chocolate, stracciatella, mocha and speculaas. Vanilla ice cream will never be lacking either, according to Bart, with good reason: "An ice cream shop without vanilla is like a friterie without fries." Despite the relatively large selection, Bart and Petra look towards the next expansion. Think sorbet ice cream, but lactose or gluten-free ice cream just as well. A very real need Bart and Petra want to be able to answer.

Innovation through Colac

The perfect companion for Guba on that road towards innovation: Colac - offering a helping hand in the process. Like co-creating Guba's Christmas stumps, for example. It makes imagination the biggest gift Colac has to offer Guba. "Sometimes, all we need is creativity and open-mindedness. Lesley from Colac acts as our own architect in this regard. Be it his take on improving scoopability or when it’s about combining the right ingredients, he does all the refining and takes care of the finishing touches. And besides, he’s just a cream of a guy – a worthy title.”

Colac’s input proved beneficial all around, not in the least in terms of cost-effectiveness. "Working with Colac has taken our flavours to the next level. Based on their advice, we bought next-level equipment and adapted our recipes accordingly - together. Because of these new pieces of machinery, we now produce ice cream more efficiently. Colac is always first in line to think along with us, about the yield for example. This is just one relevant piece of added value we look for in a partner.”