Though there are a lot of great wholesale Italian ice products out there on the market, nothing compares to being able to produce your Italian ice in your shop. For starters, homemade Italian ice has a freshness component to it. The fresher the ice, the more flavorful the product, and the more of a taste pop for the customer. Whereas the wholesale product is made in a factory, frozen, then shipped and delivered to your store. This is a huge time lag and always affects the taste and freshness of the product. If you make your own product you literally take it out of the machine and serve it to the customer with no lag time what so ever.

Another factor in making your own Italian ice vs buying wholesale is the cost factor. Making your own will cost anywhere between 1/4 and 1/3 less than buying wholesale. This lower cost in producing the product ultimately means higher profit for you. The only question you need to ask yourself is whether or not you're selling enough product to warrant the upfront investment into the equipment. Remember all you need is a batch freezer and dipping cabinet.

We mentioned the time lag with buying wholesale so what about the time to make your Italian ice. Well, it takes about 12 minutes to make your own batch of Italian ice, and can make around a whole tub of product at once (depending on the size of your machine). As Rob explains in the video above there is tremendous profit in making your own Italian water ice products.

But let's talk about one of the best reasons to make your own product. Complete control over your brand. When you buy wholesale Italian water ice you're at the mercy of what they put in their mix. When you buy your own equipment and start making your own product, you control everything that goes into the finished product. You control the ingredients, the flavor and the costs. All that might seem a little daunting at first but that's why Sentry Equipment stands buy you when it comes to creating your product and developing your store concepts. We have the recipes and industry know-how to get your store up and running and can help you with continued growth. 

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