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Everybody's Business

New shop dips into ice cream market

By MICHAEL CANNING
Published January 26, 2007

South Tampa remains snowed in with ice cream parlors. But that hasn't kept the new Dippin' Dots from opening just a few minutes up the street from two other S MacDill freezeries, Old Meeting House Ice Cream and Yogurt Naturally. Franchise co-owner Ann Kelly still thinks her location at 3215-L S MacDill Ave., inside Bayshore Plaza, is a winner. Besides the neighborhood demographics, the shop is just a cone's toss from Academy of the Holy Names, where her daughter is a sophomore.

But don't look for cones at Dippin' Dots. As the name suggests, the ice cream here comes in the form of tiny balls about the size of packing Styrofoam, and is therefore served in cups. Dippin' Dots uses a proprietary flash-freezing process that allows the ice cream to form and retain its bead-like consistency.

Frozen yogurt, sherbet, and no-sugar-added ice cream varieties are also offered in the dot form, along with Dippin Dots milkshakes, ice cream cakes, frozen smoothies and ice cream sandwiches.

Kelly's shop, which she co-owns with business partner Nicole Reinhart, is the first full-fledged Dippin' Dots store in Tampa. Many of the company's 1,462 locations across the country are concession stands at venues, malls, fairs and festivals. In Tampa these include Raymond James Stadium, Busch Gardens, the St. Pete Times Forum, the Florida Aquarium and the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

Kelly said she is considering other store locations in Town 'N Country and Westchase.

The MacDill store, which opened Jan. 19, is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and closed Sunday.

A broad name for a broad business

So there's this new business that opened Jan. 15 in a blighted, drab part of Southeast Seminole Heights. Urban Design, says the red sign on the vividly painted black-and-orange building.

Must be an architecture firm that's reinvigorated the old 1920 building at 4011 N Nebraska Ave., right? Or perhaps a hip new urban planning group?

No. Try a graphic arts, Web design, casual clothing, music and recording studio business. Oh, and it offers medical uniforms, too.

"Believe it or not, these industries are so connected," said Urban Design co-owner Joseph Licari. Perhaps with most of that stuff. But medical uniforms?

"Well, that just happens to be a real moneymaker for us," Licari said.

Urban Design happens to be an honest reflection of the backgrounds of its four owners. Licari comes from the Web design and signmaking industry. Karolyn Findley is the graphic artist, and Peter McPherson is an event and music promoter. Their friend Mike Desamouras just happens to have an established medical uniform and scrubs business. He also runs the music shop, which consists mostly of local hip hop and rhythm and blues titles.

Licaris said the music and casual streetwear portions of the business are coming soon. Right now the priority is to recoup some of the $40,000 he and his partners have poured into the renovation of the building, which was previously used for storage for the neighboring Tampa Door.

As for why this location was chosen, Licari said, "This whole corner has been dead for years. We don't care about the Riverwalk, we don't care about 20 more high-rises downtown. We want our neighborhood to look better. The people need this kind of progress so they don't feel left behind by all the progress that's happening downtown."

Urban Design's Web site isn't up yet, but its phone is: 231-2536.

Hammering out a place of his own

John Hammer knows he'll be expected to put a big hammer somewhere on the sign of his business, Hammer Title. But he balked at one design proposed by a sign company that featured a really big hammer.

Too gaudy, he figured, for his business' new address, 4006 S MacDill Ave., at the Tambay Avenue intersection. Having grown up in nearby Golfview, Hammer thinks that a more subdued hammer on his sign would be more appropriate for the neighborhood.

Nonetheless, Hammer chose the new location for better visibility. Especially when you consider that his business is currently tucked away inside the building of another business, Devonshire Properties on Bay to Bay Boulevard.

Hammer said construction on his new MacDill building should finish in late February. He hopes to move in about March 1. He and his staff of five will occupy 2,500 square feet. The remaining 1,300 will be rented out as executive suites, Hammer said.

The site was formerly home to Rosemary Cottage tearoom and boutique, which moved to Kennedy Boulevard in January 2005.

Do you know something that should be everybody's business? Call 226-3394, or e-mail mikecanning@hotmail.com.

. the find

Pirate lunch pail

Pack some snacks, mateys, or stow your beads for the Gasparilla parade tomorrow. This skull and crossbones metal lunch pail, $18.50, brings pirate practicality from Serendipity Accents & Gifts, 231 E Davis Blvd. Call 254-1535.

Amy Scherzer

[Last modified January 25, 2007, 09:06:14]