Tickleberry’s ice cream shop in Okanagan Falls, which has been serving ice cream, fudge and other goodies to hundreds of thousands of tourists and locals for three decades, is expanding.

The iconic ice cream parlour, situated in a nondescript building on Hwy. 97 on the south end of Okanagan Falls, is set to undergo an 1,100 square foot expansion, with plans to have construction completed by March 1 next spring, said owner Kelsey Hoy.

Tickleberry’s was created in 1987 by her parents Dale and Jeanette Hoy, who decided to move from the Yukon to the South Okanagan after spending holiday time in the region.

The expansion will include constructing new public washrooms, but also adding 16 new flavours of ice cream and creating more space for customers, said Kelsey, in a phone interview Wednesday.

“We grew up living in the store … the gift shop and place where we sell fudge was part of our house,” she said.

The fact a small, family-based business “not really in the middle of nowhere, but certainly off the beaten path” could enjoy such great success for three decades is incredible, she said.

Photo Credit: Facebook Tickleberry's

“It’s actually mind-blowing to even think about far it’s come,” she said. “My parents originally wanted a country consignment store and they made jam and actually had this old oven that’s still in the store that was functioning at the time and made scones. That’s the direction they wanted to go.

“They only offered ice cream to keep the kids occupied while the parents looked around and it kind of took off and they just went with it. It was never the intention to become an ice cream store, so it’s definitely cool to see how far we’ve come.”

The current location has simply outgrown itself for the number of customers Tickleberry's attracts during the summer months, which is often in excess of 3,000 per day, said Kelsey.

Photo Credit: Facebook Tickleberry's

“The main thing about all of this is just to have better flow for our customers and staff,” she said. “We’ve definitely outgrown our building.

“The current washrooms are the same ones that we used in our house growing up. They’re not commercial bathrooms, so the main thing in the renovation is three new washrooms, which includes a handicapped washroom, which we don’t have now and is so important.”

There will also be interior renovations to double the square footage of the gift shop area.

“There’s going to be a lot more open space, which is going to be amazing,” she said.

Photo Credit: Facebook Tickleberry's

The expansion many customers will be most happy with is adding another large space that will allow the introduction of 16 new flavours of “home made” ice cream, adding to the eight they currently produce, she said.

The company’s homemade ice cream flavours “have just taken off” and they want to add more, she said.

Tickleberry’s will soon be able to offer more than 100 flavours, including close to 70 at one time, and she’s confident customers are going to be excited to try new flavours that haven’t been offered before.

The new flavours will be produced at the “ice cream laboratory” set up inside the Okanagan Falls facility several years ago, she said.

Photo Credit: Facebook Tickleberry's

“There’s a big window customers can look through watching us make the ice cream,” she said. “Three years ago, we built the ice cream lab. My brother and I went to Ice Cream University at Penn State, so we learned how to do everything from cow to cone and built our little lab.

“We don’t do it all, but we can do a lot of the work right there on site.”

In order to undergo the renovation project, the gift shop in Okanagan Falls has been shut down and moved to a space in the Cherry Lane Mall in Penticton, where they will operate from this week until the end of December, she said.

For the past three years, Tickleberry’s has also operated three ice cream concession shops in Penticton the are only open during the busy tourist season from June until early September, she said.

The decision to expand wasn’t an easy one, but she and her parents believe it’s the right one, she said.

“It was a huge decision more than a year in the making,” she said. “People think because we are busy and think we’re doing so well, which we are, but we only make money during two or three months of the year and we have to make that last.

“Doing a big renovation project like this was a tough decision, but we’re excited we’re doing it and we hope our customers like it.”

If construction goes as scheduled, the new and improved Tickleberry’s will open next March.

“When we open March 1, it will look like a bit of a different store … a better store,” she said.

Photo Credit: Facebook Tickleberry's

While she is spearheading the renovation project, her parents remain involved in this decision and operations of the business, she said.

“I feel like they will never retire,” she said. “They definitely travel a lot and aren’t part of the day-to-day business any longer, but I run every idea past them and they will always be part of the company.”

For more information Tickleberry’s, click here.