BY JANE BLOODWORTH ROWE
VIRGINIA BEACH — So what’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?
If you said sea salt served in a chocolate cone nestled in cotton candy, you’ve probably visited Aqua S, a Sydney, Australia-based ice cream chain with a locally-owned branch located in the Hickman Place shopping center at General Booth Boulevard and Nimmo Parkway.
Courthouse residents CK Wei and Hawaii Lin decided to open this business after falling in love with this soft-serve ice cream when they honeymooned in Sydney in 2017. They missed its unusual flavors and creamy textures when they returned, and that, combined with a desire to open their own business, led them to open their own shop here in December 2019.
“We both grew up around people who had their own businesses,” said Lin, “and we had that entrepreneurial spirit.” She added that she worked at a bank at that time, and she watched small business owners make deposits and wanted to make her own contribution to the small business economy.
“I wanted to help grow our generation’s wealth,” Lin said.
Wei and Lin trained for about a month before they opened, and they learned everything about the ice cream business from customer service to how to make the ice cream. They now make it in the back of their shop from ingredients that have been exported from many parts of the world.
Many of the ingredients come from Italy or Australia, while the chocolate comes from Belgium. Ice creams are made from fresh fruits and other items such as Oreo cookie crumbs, Wei said.
In addition to ice cream cones wrapped in spun cotton candy, Aqua S also offers other ice cream concoctions including floats, milkshakes and ice cream lollipops with a center of sea salt ice cream covered in rich chocolate. Some ice cream flavors are rotated periodically, new flavors added, and a dairy-free or vegan option is always available.
The shop’s opening, right before the pandemic hit, presented challenges, Lin said, because they were closed for periods of time during the pandemic, and business was very quiet.
Now, normalcy has returned, and people are coming out more and discovering Aqua S, Lin said. The business also offers catering for birthday parties or other events.
There are lingering challenges. Wei is trying to learn how to maintain the equipment because the company that they relied on closed its local branch, and the cost of supplies has increased tremendously in recent months, he said.
Still, the couple is enthusiastic about the business’s potential, and they want to work with other local organizations to refer customers and promote sales. Lin spends a great deal of time promoting the business while Wei still works full-time in metal refining and recycling.
Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer, who officiated at the business’s ribbon cutting, is a frequent customer. He said his favorite flavor is a swirl of sea salt and dark chocolate.
“I have tremendous respect for these small businesses, and I understand the challenges that they’re facing,” he said, “not just with Covid, but with this post-Covid inflation. My hope is that all people will come out to support these small businesses because they benefit all of us.”
“We will fight for this,” Lin said, “and we’re not giving up.”
Aqua S is located at 2204 General Booth Blvd. within Hickman Place. Call (757) 563-8808 for more information or follow @salt_lifevb on Instagram or @aquasvb on Facebook.
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