After hundred years serving its famous ice cream, Rossi’s scoops more sweet expansion success

With over a hundred years serving its famous ice cream to dessert-lovers in North Belfast, Rossi’s is celebrating a business milestone thanks to the support of a historic business Enterprise Park.

Rossi’s has celebrated its expanding production at its Townsend Enterprise Park headquarters to satisfy hugely increasing customer demand by taking on a second unit. After enjoying a 30% sales growth during the lockdown and having recently expanded to a second store at Yorkgate Shopping Centre, Rossi’s owner Anita McCann knew the time was right for business development.

Crowds have flocked to Rossi’s shop on the Antrim Road for genuine Italian ice cream for over a century. Over the years, the menu has expanded and changed to suit current tastes. Rossi’s now offer a variety of favourite core flavours, including specialities Guinness, Salted Caramel and Biscoffi, and 10 new vegan options.

But such is the popularity of their renowned ice cream, the volume required to keep up with demand can’t be made on the premises. Instead, Rossi’s experts create their favourite flavours at their ice cream HQ located in Townsend Enterprise Park, which has held a place in the city’s industrial history for over 300 years.

The site where Townsend Enterprise Park is located has played a significant historical role in the industrial and commercial life of Belfast since a major foundry was established there in 1838.

Anita, who has owned Rossi’s for 15 years, explained: “Rossi’s is a much loved and respected heritage brand in Belfast and beyond. It has always moved with the times. Now we are taking another forward step in our history with the expansion of our production HQ at Townsend Enterprise Park.

“Townsend Enterprise Park has been our home for over five years, and we all love it here. It is ideally located to meet our business needs as it forms a triangle between our Antrim Road shop and our new Yorkgate premises. Accessibility is so convenient, and the Park’s services are excellent. We are delighted we have this opportunity to move into a second unit as the capacity for increased production is driving our expansion.

“The Townsend Enterprise Park team has brilliantly supported our current success and recent expansion. Throughout Covid, they helped us not just survive but flourish by offering a rent holiday and unlimited support with any business-related enquiry. They have also given us added marketing support and are always giving back where they can. I can’t thank them enough for the genuine practical and emotional support they have provided.”

Townsend Enterprise Park is a charitable organisation aiming to stimulate social and economic regeneration. It is located just off the Westlink, a stone’s throw from the city Centre. The Park is home to over 40 small-to-medium-sized businesses, employing over 300 people from across the city and beyond, providing flexible workspaces, meetings, and training and conference rooms.

CEO of Townsend Enterprise Park Margaret Patterson McMahon, added: “We extend congratulations to Anita and her team at Rossi’s for their recent expansion. This is the cherry-on-top for everyone who has worked hard to make this success happen. At Townsend, we strive to offer more than just business premises. We nurture, support and help every business in our Park where and when we can. The park is a charity, so it is profit-making, not profit-taking. That means we act as a proactive seedbed for businesses to take root and grow in the best possible conditions for success.

“Townsend Enterprise Park was opened in 1987 with an ethos of creating local employment and incubating homegrown businesses, and we are proud to sit at the very heart of this historic community. Rossi’s recent expansion is an excellent example of how there’s room for everyone in the story of Townsend Business Park, whether they are new startups or long-established and much-loved businesses ready to change and grow. We are here to support businesses and help them flourish.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper whenever you are able to do so.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper when you can safely.

You can also enjoy unlimited access to the best news from across Northern Ireland and the UK by subscribing to newsletter.co.uk

With a digital subscription, you can read more than five articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Thank you