Page 34 - 2020 Westchester Economic Development Guide

Manufacturing Sweet Success
Artisan ice cream maker Ellen Sledge shares how Westchester provides the ideal backdrop for her growing business.
A New Vision
When it came to my next career move, I let fate intervene. I always want- ed my own small busi- ness. I was a pastry chef by trade and had attended Rutgers and the French Culinary Institute (now ICC). I had nar- rowed it down to either candy making or ice cream. I flipped a coin and it was tails – ice cream.
I founded Penny Lick Ice Cream in 2013, and serve as the CEO. We produce all-natural, old-fashioned, custard-based ice cream using fresh and locally sourced heavy cream, milk, eggs and sugar from local Hudson Valley farms. Our ice cream uses clean ingredients and is both peanut and tree nut free. Those qualities make us a bit of a unicorn in this industry.
I live in Hastings and got my start at the local farmers market. I needed to stay local to be near my three kids. Then the business started to grow.
Today, I’m running two ice cream businesses. There’s my Hastings store, and our pushcarts for events at zoos, kids’ birthday parties, weddings and bar mitzvahs. I’m also thrilled to open a factory in Port Chester’s manufactur- ing neighborhood, so that I can sell in other retail settings. Manufacturing will begin in early 2020.
I’m currently in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program and working on a five-year growth plan for my business. My long-term goal is to work with institutions – including nut-free and sesame-free camps and schools – so parents don’t have to worry about their kids being exposed to cross contaminants.
The Business Council of Westchester has been very support- ive to my business. They offer quite a bit of advocacy. I also obtained a great business loan with Community Capital New York and the Empire State Development Fund.
It’s never easy to start a business, and I was told there was a high price point for entry in Westchester. But I’ve found that not to be the case. There’s a tremendous amount of re- sources locally, and I’ve made a lot of friends. The nearby villages and the Hastings community all rally around small town business. They’ve been insanely supportive.
Above: Ellen Sledge, outside her Hastings store Lower Left: Penny Lick Ice Cream Company was founded in 2013 with the mission of bringing back old-fashioned, custard-based ice cream.
Bantam Tools
In fall 2019, Bre Pettis, CEO of Bantam Tools and former CEO-founder of popular 3D printing manufacturer MakerBot, cut the ribbon at his new East Coast headquarters and production center in Peekskill.
“This really marks our first step in creating a sustainable tech hub here in the Hudson Valley,” Pettis said at the ceremony.
Bantam produces CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machines, which mill and manufacture individual custom pieces from metal and other materials. The company will employ more than 50 people.
In early 2018, Pettis bought several properties along the Peekskill waterfront at a cost of $1.6 million. The spaces are being repurposed into co-working, maker and manufacturing spaces for local entrepreneurs.
“The Business Council of Westchester has been very supportive to my business. They offer quite a bit of advocacy.” —Ellen Sledge, Penny Lick Ice Cream
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WESTCHESTER COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
© Anna Grace Nimmo
© Anna Grace Nimmo