Virginia Family Ice Cream Business Gives People a Reason to Stop
The Fields of Dreams slogan, ‘Build it and they will come,’ rings true for Virginia dairy farmer Ken Smith. But he would also add, ‘Give them a reason to stop by.’ The fourth-generation dairy farmer was referring to his quickly growing ice cream business that he and his wife, Pam, and their daughter, Amy, built in 2010 at a one-stoplight location off Route 29 that is near their family dairy. A true family affair, their daughter, Taylor, makes all of Moo Thru’s ice cream.
In 2006, the family purchased an old truck stop property nearby the family dairy farm and began building their ice cream business, Moo Thru. Ken shares that the opening week, they ran out of ice cream.
“We sold 15,000 cones in the first three weeks,” he says. “People asked if we’d franchise this, and we’d only been open 60 days.”
The Smiths sold the family dairy, Cool Lawn Holsteins, a 1,000-cow dairy with a 30,000-lbs. plus herd average to their son, Ben, so their attention could go towards their ice cream endeavor.
A Little Vision
Moo Thru started as an antique building that was modified to resemble a barn. Ken shares that the idea for this all began on a hot Saturday afternoon when he was sitting at an intersection with a load of haylage.
“I was miserable,” he recalls, sharing that others driving by were smiling and seemed happy.
“They have weekends to spend money,” he says, and his ah-ha moment went off.
The idea was born to start construction on Moo Thru, although Ken says neighbors thought he was crazy to tackle this new adventure.
“Everyone thought I was nuts and that no one was going to come to this. That there are no other stores and no other conveniences nearby,” he says. “Nothing is out here. Why would they stop?”
It’s a good thing that Ken possessed a bubbly personality and the ability to think differently than most. He says if you give people a reason to stop, they’ll stop.
“They’ve got money in their pockets. They’re going somewhere to spend that money,” he says.
Fast forward to today and Moo Thru has been recognized as the best ice cream place in Virginia, an accolade that the Smith family is proud of.
Continued Success
“We do the promotion, and we eat ice cream and we have tested our product against everyone else,” Ken shares. “The only way I can keep selling my product is knowing how I compare to the rest.”
Today, Moo Thru has a drive-through, which Ken says grew their business, especially during Covid.
“Nobody could go anywhere, but they could go through a drive-thru and people would sit and wait for ice cream,” he shares. “There would be 50 to 60 cars deep and people would wait in line for over an hour.”
This caused a backup that blocked the intersection which eventually led to the Smith family hiring local deputies to help control traffic.
While Route 29 still only has one stoplight today, those traveling 60 mph on the two-lane road can see the hopping attraction that causes many to make the turn and stop in and enjoy what the Smith family has built.
“They don’t have to wait for the light to turn red to notice,” Ken notes. “They make the turn.”
Moo Thru now has a food truck that can be utilized at events, as well as four additional Virginia locations in Charlottesville, Hillsboro, Winchester and Warrenton. All locations serve ice cream made from the family herd at Cool Lawn Farm.
