LOVELAND, Ohio — By the time of our interview at 11:45 a.m., the new owner of the Loveland Dairy Whip admitted he’d already had “two and a half” hot fudge sundaes.
“I’ve got a sweet tooth for sure,” said Luke Wiley, the shop's new owner. “I’ve got a vested interest in this, because I’m eating all the product so far.”
Since 1955, the plum-colored awning along Loveland Avenue has signaled high-quality ice cream to generations of customers. Wiley has no plans to make any changes.
“We have twice the butter in our vanilla, and because of that, it costs me more,” he said. “But it’s the right thing.”
Wiley said he has dreamed of owning a family business for decades. After initially inquiring about purchasing the Dairy Whip, he never got a return call and saw on the internet it had sold.
A few months later, he called to see what happened and learned the deal fell apart.
“Then it became real,” Wiley said. “You’re brainstorming, you’re thinking about it, you’re envisioning it.”
Wiley said that as three of his four children live out of the house, he wanted a new challenge as he turned 50.
“I think in life, all of us have seen a business that we wish we would own,” he said. “The more I dug into it, I was like, this is right.”
Watch Wiley's soft serve swirling skills:
On Nov. 25, the ownership changed hands. Wiley takes over for Teresa and Rick Morgan, who owned the family business for 31 years.
Last summer, the couple decided to sell the business and retire. Kind of.
“Technically, April 1 is [when] I’m saying we’re retired,” Rick said with a laugh in front of the store he owned for 31 years.
It was important to the couple that the Wileys kept the tradition of the product’s quality, the former owner said: “It makes us really happy.”
Four longtime staffers are sticking around to help carry out the operations, Wiley said. They are also teaching Wiley, a financial advisor by day, the ice cream basics.
His family and general manager attended a food expo in Sandusky earlier in the year to learn about the quality ingredients.
“We’re very, very grateful [for] how hands-on they’ve been with us,” Wiley said.
There will be some changes at the Dairy Whip: Dole Whip is now available, and for the first time, credit cards will be accepted.
The business will still be a family business. Wiley said his children plan to spend the summer working there full-time in various capacities.
The classic favorites will still be available: The Chocolate Mountain, the PBK, the E.T. Parfait. the Hot Fudge Brownie, the Clown Sundae and the Gummy Monster.
Wiley said an additional surprise option will be announced Friday.
As for a barometer of success this season, Wiley said he doesn’t have a sales target in mind (“I don’t really even know what the cost per cone is.”), but he said earning the trust of established customers will be top of mind: “It’s really just satisfaction.”
The Loveland Dairy Whip opens for the season at 2 p.m. Feb. 28.
