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J.P. Licks is an ice cream store chain located in and around the Boston area. It has a total of ten stores in Davis Square, Mission Hill, Coolidge Corner, Newton Centre, Harvard Square, Legacy Place, West Roxbury, Newbury Street, Wellesley Center and of course, Jamaica Plain.(1) J.P. Licks was founded by Vince Petryk, a Philadelphia native, in 1981 when he was just 26 years old.(2) The first store, a five hundred square foot building, was located in Jamaica Plain where he lived. The Jamaica Plain store was moved later to a bigger location in 1998 where it became the headquarters and production site for all its homemade goods. Vince Petryk Vince Petryk graduated from Temple University with a degree in psychology. He planned on being a family therapist, but instead was introduced to the world of ice cream. He worked at Hillary’s Homemade Ice Cream store right out of college and as he moved up the ranks he became more and more aware of the emotional ties that comes with ice cream. He stated, “While at Hillary’s, I witnessed daily the power and magic of ice cream. I realized that ice cream connects you to some of the fondest memories of your childhood” (1) He later got married and moved to Jamaica Plain which he would later call his “true emotional hometown” (6). He worked at Wendy’s Hamburger Chain as a manager and essentially learned all he needed to know before he started his own store. He then decided to create his own store in Jamaica Plain that would spread joy through delicious homemade ice cream. He started the business with his partner Michael Herbert; they both invested 25,000 dollars to start the store. Michael only remained part of the company for a couple years before Vince bought him out for 100,000(6). Through this mentality J.P. Licks became a store not just focused on great ice cream, but also great service. Coffee In 1999 J.P. Licks began roasting their own coffee in the headquarters in Jamaica Plain. (3) They have a wide selection of fair trade organic coffee as well as an FTO White Coffee ice cream flavor. They personally support a community in Guatemala called Trapichitos Community. It produces Bourbon and Typica coffee trees. The coffee is hand picked, hand sorted and sundried. The growers decide the price and are paid directly to eliminate middlemen manipulation that often comes with growing coffee. (1) The initial decision to make coffee was made by Vince when Starbucks bought Coffee Connection and he was unimpressed by the quality of coffee in the Boston Area. He describes his coffee as “down the middle…dark enough for a hearty brew but not so dark that every bean tastes burnt”. His espresso is just as popular and is brewed with equivalent care. Depending on the store, J.P. Licks also offers breakfast goods such as savory croissants, muffins, cookies, cupcakes, scones, and bagels. These are all homemade in the J.P. Licks headquarters. Flavors Known for its exotic, intense flavors J.P. Licks uses ingredients that can be found in a normal household or in “your local Whole Foods Market”. As an example, the peach ice cream is made with fresh peaches grown in the United States, brown sugar, cream, milk and sugar and that is it.(1) Vince emphasizes that “simple is better”(1) and clearly the customers agreed as by 2002 Vince was operating five stores and had beaten his competitors in sales. (2) In total J.P. Licks has over 300 recipes for their entire repertoire of frozen treats, including lactose free ice cream, sorbet, sherbet, low-fat yogurt and non-fat soft yogurt.(1) J.P. Licks is known for their ambitious flavors of the month that if anything simply draw attention for being outrageous. Examples are Cucumber, Tomato Basil, Noodle Kugel, Avocado, Disco Inferno (Tabasco flavored), Turning Japanese (wasabi flavored) and Leprechaun Brew (a green ice cream with Sam Adams). They have signature flavors of the month that emphasize and embellish the flavors and tastes of that season. For fall they have Pumpkin and Apple flavors. For summer they have Peach and Raspberry Lime Rickey and Fudgsicle. For spring they have Red Sox theme flavors like Batter Up (cake batter) and Youk’s Manischewitz sorbet. For winter they have Peppermint and Gingerbread flavors. They had a green ice cream, Leprechaun Brew, for Saint Patrick’s Day. These flavors resulted from extensive experimentation by Vince himself; he even called himself a “mad scientist”. (4- Boston Magazine) Cake Business J.P. Licks has been very successful with its cake business as well. They sell four different sizes Baby, Medium, Large, and Half Sheet. Most times they have all cakes in stock in the store freezer, but for custom made cakes they need 48 hours notice. Community Service J.P. Licks is very generous in its donations to local charities, organizations and schools. (1) Not only does it donate its food for various events but it also sets up in store charitable options. They recently supported the Starlight foundation by giving a “J.P. Licks” dollar to anyone who donated one dollar to Starlight. They also set up a one-day special for Veterans Day where all proceeds from one-dollar coffees went to the New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans. (5) They also did this type of fundraiser for the Home for Little Wanderers, which they recently made a long-term partnership with. J.P. Licks is very involved in the community, which no doubt stems from Vince’s ambition to spread joy through ice cream. Early Childhood Vince as a young boy was viciously bullied through elementary school, middle school, and half of high school. It got to be so debilitating that at one point he contemplated suicide. His sophomore year in high school he got a girlfriend and then the bullying stopped and his social life improved. (6) Growth Vince uses the term “organic growth” to describe J.P. Licks’ expansion. A new store will not open until everything is ready, in place and feels right. Nothing is forced to happen, it is simply meant to happen. (6) Vince’s next move is far from predictable, but a  certain curiosity has been shown towards the nation’s food capital, Manhattan… so you never know! (6) Awards J.P. Licks has received over 400 awards, ranging from big time honors, to small magazine recognitions. Past awards include “Best of Boston” by Boston Magazine, “Best Location- Jamaica Plain” by Boston Magazine, WBZ’s “A-List”, and Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce’s “Small Business of the Year”. (5)