NEWBURYPORT — The downtown this summer has more ice cream stores, and a bigger variety of flavors, than anytime in recent memory.
Gelatos, dozens of flavors of frappes, unusual combinations of ice cream flavors — it's an ice cream lover's dream. But, unfortunately, the timing couldn't be worse for the two new stores and the two existing shops.
Cold, damp, raw — this isn't ice cream weather.
On a sunny July day, the line at Gram's Ice Cream and Desserts on State Street is out the door. But as the area enters its third consecutive week with barely a spot of sun, those lines have washed away.
"It's rare for us not to have a line out the door," said Gram's associate Ellyn Nagle, amid an empty store.
Newcomer to the Newburyport ice cream scene Andrea Rossetto, owner of Dolce Freddo Gelato, said though he's happy with his location in Market Square, Newburyport is a walking city, and there's a definite impact on business when it rains.
"If you have a sunny day, you do at least four times more business," Rossetto said. "It's just a matter of weather."
Josh England opened England's MicroCreamery on Inn Street with his wife, Jane, in April. He said June's sales in the Haverhill location, which has been open for eight years, have been down about 40 percent compared to years past, despite being up 40 percent in May.
"On Mother's Day, there was a craft fair downtown, and it was a beautiful, sunny day — sales were excellent that day," England said. "When the sun is shining, business is great, but when it's raining, people just don't come outside."
On Wednesday, Richardson's Ice Cream on Inn Street had 30 customers between when they opened at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., according to owner Wendy Smith. On a normal, sunny June day, they'd have more than 100 customers, she said.
"On a normal June day, the line would be out the door, and we'd have three people working, versus one," Smith said. "It's a drag because kids are losing hours, and they should be making more tips and money."
Rossetto said the schedule at Dolce Freddo Gelato was made for the summer, but they had to cut hours because of sales.
"We'd have two people from noon to 4 p.m., but when it's pouring, they have nothing to do," Rossetto said. "It's really unusual in this business to cut people in July."
Also being cut is the amount of ice cream being ordered for the parlors. Smith said that though they still offer 36 flavors of ice cream, as well as soft serve, smoothies and frappes, they haven't been ordering as much ice cream.
Rossetto said that because they make their own gelato, Dolce can adjust the stock for the 30 to 40 flavors. He said the most popular flavors during the summer are fruity, like watermelon and cantaloupe, which are made using ripe fruit.
Tiffany Wezesa, assistant manager at England's MicroCreamery, said one of the store's biggest sellers is chocolate orange. In the summer, seasonal flavors like coconut are most popular, as well as sorbets. The store will soon release a cherry flavor, and the Haverhill location has blueberry. By next weekend, England's will also roll out a new machine that turns their hard ice cream flavors into soft serve.
Richardson's flavor of the month is Candy Shop, which features M&M's, Snickers, Heath Bar, Milky Way and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup pieces. For those who want to avoid the trip to the dentist, the green tea-based smoothie is made without high fructose corn syrup.
To help customers get in the summer mood, despite the unseasonable weather, Gram's is holding an ongoing Strawberry Festival, with strawberry shortcake, ice cream and frozen yogurt made with fresh strawberries from Tendercrop Farm in Newbury.
"The weather plays a huge factor into our sales," Smith said, noting that upcoming summer festivals such as Yankee Homecoming usually pump up sales. "I hope the sun shines soon, for everyone in town."
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