Since taking out Gelato World Tour title in Italy four years ago, Sydney-based gelateria, Cow & the Moon has been scooping its way to success.
The family business, run by husband-and-wife team John and Wendy Crowl, and son Sam, first opened in Enmore in 2010.
But the family’s gelato journey began more than two decades earlier when John was sent to Milan by an Australian importing company.
“I was actually doing some teaching at TAFE and a fax came through one day about a company that wanted to send someone to Italy to learn more about gelato making,” explains John.
“I thought this is a stepping stone into what I wanted to do.
“I applied and got the job and the rest is history. That was about 25 years ago”.
It took John 14 years to open his own gelato business, and he’s never looked back, still traveling to Italy each year.
Cow & the Moon shot to worldwide fame after its ‘mandorla affogato flavour’ was awarded the Gelato World Tour title in 2014.
“Winning the title was instrumental in driving the business to another level,” explains John with a smile on his face.
John and Sam Crowl winning the Gelato World Title in Italy in 2014. Source: Cow and The Moon
John produces around 600 kilograms of gelato each week to keep up with demand, with customers regularly lining up the street during summer.
But with rising electricity costs the machines are expensive to run.
The family estimate electricity costs have risen 30% in the past 12 months – despite refitting the shop to be more energy efficient.
John explains the rising costs have impacted their cash flow: “when we did our second renovation of the business three years ago we changed the way we configured some of the compressors within the business, which saved us energy”.
“But recently, since the energy costs have gone up it’s had a big impact on monthly payments of energy”.
Another challenge is the weaker Australian dollar, making it more expensive for John to source fruit concentrate for his gelato from Messina in Italy.
“We source the flavours from Europe, for example, the lemon juice, because this particular area in Italy is known for growing citrus fruits and the quality of the fruit is very high.”
Despite the increase in costs for the business, John insists he won’t substitute quality for cost
Cow & the Moon is among a small number of Australian gelato parlours making everything by hand – from original Italian recipes.
“Customers keep coming back because of the quality of the product and the consistency of what we do”.
While famous for their gelato, Cow & the Moon’s cafe menu provides a sales boost during the cooler months.
“Winter is quieter in the gelato area, but then the coffee and cakes pick up and make a balance,” explains John.
Sam explains with a grin; “Some families can’t work together but we can.”
The father and son duo have found success in splitting responsibilities at Cow & the Moon. Source: Supplied
It’s a winning combination that sets this business apart in one of Sydney’s busiest restaurant strips.
With no plans to expand to a second venue as of yet, the family business wants to continue to be a product focused destination.
“We’re still growing and that’s something to be very proud of eight years down the track to still have growth year in year out,” says Sam.
