How three sisters in their 20s came together to save a beloved ice cream company in Ontario

When a local ice cream factory was slated to close over 20 years ago, three young sisters stepped in to save it and make it their own.

The Shaw’s Ice Cream manufacturing facility was supposed to close in 2001, but it was bought by sisters Kim McCutchen, Kristine Hayes and Kelly Heleniak (all formerly McLaughlin). The trio had been scooping Shaw’s Ice Cream since they were kids, and were determined to carry on the local company’s legacy.

It all started in 1993 when Kristine was 14 and Kim and Kelly were 12, and they ambitiously took over an ice cream parlour in their hometown of Tillsonburg called Dad’s Ice Cream, which served Shaw’s.

The three sisters that bought Shaw’s aren’t the only girls in the family: they actually have three other sisters too, making for a powerhouse sisterhood of six women. Kim, Kelly and Kristine’s sisters Katie, Kari and Kassandra worked alongside them at the parlour in summers throughout school.

Shaw’s Ice Cream was originally founded by Carl Shaw in 1948, and changed ownership multiple times before the company that owned in 2001 decided it should close.

“To the residents of St. Thomas, Elgin County and surrounding areas, Shaw’s Ice Cream had become a landmark and customers were devastated to hear that their beloved ice cream brand would be no longer,” Heleniak tells YourCityWithIN.com.

Even though the McLaughlin sisters were only in university and had no manufacturing experience, they took a huge risk to buy Shaw’s so they could continue to service Dad’s Ice Cream.

When the sisters took the plant over, they all learned how to make ice cream together from the plant manager during a two-week transition period. From there, Kristine took on production and accounting, Kelly oversaw sales and the dairy bar operation, and Kim did deliveries.

“We soon learned that there were certainly challenges but because of determination, resilience and dedication, we were able to turn the business around,” says Heleniak. “We learned by doing, jumping in with both feet.”

Now, Shaw’s Ice Cream offers a variety of playful and unique flavours like Moose Tracks and Polar Eclipse (mint and chocolate ice cream with chocolate and cream cookies).

“We don’t have any crazy standard of how an ice cream comes together,” says McCutchen in a video on the Shaw’s site. “You see what’s up and coming and then you might put your own spin on how everything comes together.”

Their signature flavour is Grammy’s Cupboard (vanilla ice cream with peanut butter ripple, brownie pieces and cookie dough) which is inspired by their real Grammy, who even came to the manufacturing plant to help create the flavour.

“I just remember realizing that everything that was part of this flavour was all the things that we loved about Grammy when we went to her house,” says Hayes in the video.

By now, the sisters have renovated their dairy bar, opened a new upgraded manufacturing plant in Tillsonburg, secured national listings with Walmart and made other strides with Shaw’s Ice Cream.

“The obsession with making a premium quality product will remain at the core,” says Heleniak. “Introducing the Shaw’s Ice Cream brand to Canadians beyond Ontario is a new priority and focus.”