Former teacher David Yim, 39, is co-owner of ice-cream joint Udders. The dad of two and a partner opened their first Udders outlet at Novena in December 2007, and it has done a roaring trade since.
Its speciality is 'adult-rated' liqueur ice cream. Udders is expanding: A new outlet opened last month and another will open this Friday.
'We're probably one of the few businesses that welcome the scorching weather. Ice cream offers a respite from the heat.
We have been very busy, and have not been affected by the recession so far.
Sales are still on an uptrend. Figures in May are double what they were in January. This is all thanks to supportive customers and dedicated staff.
We're also realising our ambitions to expand. Our second cafe opened in West Mall at Bukit Batok in mid-May. Sales so far have been encouraging.
Our third cafe in Lorong Kilat will be launched this Friday near Beauty World Plaza in the Jalan Jurong Kechil area.
We heard there is a sizeable Korean community there and are toying with offering Kimchi ice cream.
Since January, we've come up with five new flavours, from Earl Grey to even Choya Lime Umeshu.
In the pipeline are efforts to ramp up marketing for our new outlets and to seal an overseas franchise deal by the end of this year. Hopefully, we'll be the first home-grown Singapore ice-cream brand to venture overseas.
And what about a fourth outlet here? Definitely, if we can find a good location by the end of this year.
I'm now working 12 to 14 hours daily the whole week. My wife and kids understand that this is the tough stretch so we manage as best as we can. I hope to 'chiong' (persevere) for this short period, and then get some rest when the business is more settled.
It's a learning journey every day as we seek to grow and yet still retain the soul and life of the business. We don't want to become just another impersonal corporate brand.'
