Trampoline Gelato reveals a gourmet twist in its menu

In this Q&A their CEO Amanda Walton tells QSR Media about some of the plans for the brand.

QSR Media: Tell us about the business?

Amanda: Trampoline Gelato opened its doors in Brunswick St Fitzroy in 2004 with a bit of a bang. Apart from the odd one-off better quality ice cream shops, there was really not much in the market apart from dated, low quality, sometimes American style, chains using loads of artificial colours and flavours and with a lot of fat. We come from a dairy background and have a sister business that produces high quality dairy products in Gippsland, Victoria, one of the world's best quality dairy regions. It seemed that there was a great opportunity to do something uniquely Australian using the best quality ingredients, so Trampoline was born.

We focused heavily on what the brand stood for - providing simple pleasures through real quality served fresh with a grin - creating a whole range of touchpoints for the brand that are fun and quirky and often irreverent, as well as contemporary and colourful which seems to appeal to everyone! Our product range has grown from the early days when we sold just gelato and sorbets, to include shakes, smoothies, frappes, frozen yoghurt, and now, mouth watering thin based gourmet cooked-to-order breakfast, lunch and dessert pizzas at our new store in Sunshine Plaza.

We initially grew the brand in Melbourne with many iconic locations and then opened a store on the Waterfront in Darwin, which has been highly successful and continues to grow. It makes sense to head north to beat Melbourne's chilly winters, so the next target is to expand throughout Queensland.

QSR Media: Store design has been an area of focus, what have you been doing here, what results have you been getting?

Amanda: As I mentioned, we originally only needed to sell gelato in our stores, which allowed for a much simpler store design with the focus purely on the gelato. It was very much a grab and stroll kind of a concept and we didn't build the stores with much seating or with much consideration for the cooler months. Given that ice cream is obviously a seasonal business, we have incorporated a range of other products into our offer so that we can fill in the day parts, as well as having something to offer on colder days. This has also meant considering the store layout and the finishes. We have pushed the serving counter back in new strip stores to create room for gathering (it's a social affair this ice cream eating!) and introduced some warmer finishes such as timber and tiles in Sunshine Beach as well as making greater use of all the colours from our logo in our stores to create warmth in winter.

We have also had to make room for other products which is often challenging in small footprints, but having a topping display means that they can be used on a whole range of products from gelato, to frozen yoghurt to pizza. So that is really the integrating factor across all of the products.

QSR Media: You have recently introduced gourmet pizzas, is this for all your stores?

Amanda: Putting pizza into Sunshine is a bit of a trial but makes complete sense as a high quality Italian style lunch offering. Clearly, we like to borrow from our Italian friends and then interpret the classic food concepts they have created in our own Aussie kind of way. They work really well in terms of spreading out our trade and we have some plans to increase the range to fill different meal occasions. I feel very optimistic that they could be a great offering in stores where we need to provide lunch so we would consider retrofitting some of our existing stores for pizza, as well as incorporating them into many of our future stores, depending on space.

QSR Media: The introduction of gourmet pizzas, what kind of sales are you achieving?

Amanda: It's early days yet, but so far they are looking very promising as a complimentary meal option. It's a bit of a new concept for a food court where most pizza is pre cooked and sits under lights for hours. So we imagine that as we educate Sunshine Plaza customers as to the quality of our pizzas, that sales will grow even further.

QSR Media: Franchise partners, who are you looking for, what kind of investment is required?

Amanda: We are looking for owner operators who have a passion for high quality food ( but need not necessarily have worked in food before as the model is very simple). They must have a sunny predisposition because after all, we are selling a simple pleasure! (which by the way, tends to be recession proof). Investment ranges from $250- $320k but we are also developing a mobile concept in the form of a van or a trailer, or even a cart, which would have an entry point from $50k depending on the format. There's a lot of ice cream eaten at fairs, markets and events, and it's not all good!

QSR Media: Any other comments?

Amanda: There are a few foreign concepts coming into the market, but at the end of the day, I think we have created a space in the hearts and mouths of Melbournians and Darwinians who like to support a local concept and local dairy farmers. We aim to find that same space in Queenslander and NSW hearts and mouths as well.