July 2011

Well the summer is finally upon us – hopefully! All of us at RSS hope this turns out to be a good ice cream summer for all of you – enjoy!!

Make mine a Tutti Frutti!!

If you’re passing through Reading Railway Station over the summer then make sure you have enough time to stop off and sample the Italian ice cream being made in the latest retail addition to the station concourse. For a change it’s not a big high street chain that has secured the premises! Tutti Frutti Ice Cream is independently owned and managed by husband and wife team Jane and Paul Stockley.  Great Western Trains took a change in direction by accepting the new business proposal to sell coffee and other hot and cold drinks, old fashioned sweets, specialist chocolates, cakes and pastries as well as Tutti Frutti manufacturing and selling their very own Italian style ice cream.

Jane and Paul have had other successful ventures together including running a business in Australia. Upon their return to England they were introduced to RSS Hereford as a supplier who could provide them with the experience and knowledge they required for turning their ideas into reality. After visiting the beautifully equipped showroom at RSS Hereford, meeting the sales and service team and seeing other examples of their work around the UK, they signed up with RSS Hereford to prepare design drawings for both the retail and manufacturing areas.

RSS Hereford had to think outside of the box, quite literally, to accommodate the needs of their client. Using their years of experience in designing and installing ice cream parlour/coffee shops they produced a first class establishment that can now be seen by 350,000 commuters a week. Together with bar counter and cabinets from Bocchini and interior finishing by RSS Hereford they were able to create a well organised space that maximises throughput and deceives the eye into thinking the shop is larger than it actually is. With such a confined space, RSS Hereford also had to design and install an air extraction system to ensure the efficient running of equipment and a pleasant working environment for the staff.  “Because our vast experience extends to ‘making ice cream’ on a retail basis, rather than just ‘selling equipment’, we were able to fully utilise the space allocated to Paul and Jane from an ice cream maker’s perspective” says Neil James, RSS Hereford Managing Director (and ice cream maker since the age of 12!).

Paul Lewis, RSS Hereford Service Manager, was heavily involved with the selection of refrigeration equipment taking into consideration the restriction of services provided, what was suitable for the confined environment and the long term economical running costs. Jane and Paul selected the Ecomix pasteuriser from Telme as it is the quickest on the market. The Ecomix provides a flexible approach to production allowing the user to react quickly to demand when bulk storage is not possible. The storage fridge was specially chosen for its height to allow a blast freezer to sit comfortably on top to save vital counter space. As space is so tight, even the sink was specially designed with bowl covers for when the sink is not in use to give the customer more work surface.

The site was not without its complications, being located in the middle of a busy commuter railway station, but the RSS team overcame multiple logistical barriers associated with deliveries and installations in a public place to produce a fantastic shop on time and on budget!

Jane has embraced the creative side of ice cream making with a passion and is well known at the station for her amazing creations. One of the biggest successes is the sale of ice cream in insulated boxes for commuters to take home to eat – “It’s a great way to up the spend per customer head” says Jane Stockley, owner and ice cream maker, “and has a huge impact on the volumes of ice cream we are selling”. Paul has taken on the challenge of competing against the nearby major coffee chains proving that extra attention to detail can create specialty coffees as they should be.  They are also capitalising on the late night traffic and have been known to still be open at midnight!

RSS Hereford can help your business with site specific plans and quotation following payment of a one off fee that is fully refundable against an order. For more examples of completed work explore our website or call 01432 276777 for an appointment today.

Fit for a King!

RSS is pleased to announce that another outlet for Café Concerto has now opened on the Kings Road, London. Keeping to the same successful formula, Café Concerto has used Bocchini spa modular display cabinets and bar counters along with some unique design and display products that were specifically made to order for this shop. This flexibility to mix and match custom and modular products allows RSS Hereford and Bocchini to provide tailor made solutions at reasonable prices. Whether you want display cabinets for shop fitting by others or a complete turn-key project including furniture and decoration RSS Hereford can help. Take a look at our gallery of photos of other work we’ve completed in the UK.

Changes to the Team at RSS!

RSS Hereford is bucking the employment trend and recruiting staff to ensure the best level of service to our past and future customers. We are pleased to welcome Laura Mitchell as the new office sales contact who will be able to talk to you about any of our products. Laura will also be assisting Neil James whose role has now expanded from Sales Director to running the whole company as Managing Director. Alison Watkins has returned to work following prolonged leave with responsibility for marketing. Watch out for a rogue’s gallery coming soon to the website!

Data Loggers have the answer!

We know from our experience that one of the critical areas of concern for Environmental Health Officers is the pasteurisation cycle and how you, as an ice cream maker, can ensure that the cycle has been completed as necessary. Well, help is at hand in the form of a data logger and probe that can be used in a pasteuriser to record the temperature at minute intervals with the data capable of being downloaded to a spreadsheet and stored electronically ready for inspection if required. The hardware and software package costs £599 + vat – a small price to pay for peace of mind. For more information please contact Paul.Lewis@RSSHEREFORD.CO.UK.

Trend-watch from Observer Food Monthly

(published Tuesday, 17 May 2011 10:45)

Observer Food Monthly celebrated 10 years in its 15 May issue, looking forwards as well as backwards over the decade.  One thing was clear from almost all the editorial: the food journey towards greater interest in provenance and seasonality that started ten years ago is still only just beginning. Take heart from comments such as:

Lorraine Kelleher, who monitors food and drink trends for Cafédirect: ‘A taste trend begins with a driver which is anything that causes and imbalance in the life of the consumer … the trend that has infiltrated the food industry most is provenance.’

On the topic of keeping it local …’cue the ascendancy of the farmers’ market ... Farmers’ markets have become something of a phenomenon since the first was launched in Bath in 1997. Couple that with our increasing worry over food miles, and farmers’ markets – and farm shops – will continue to flourish.’

Traceability is key alongside sustainability; food writer Fiona Sims says ‘The obsession with pricier organics may have waned in these tough economic times but being on first name terms with the farmer, knowing what field his sheep graze in has become very important. Traceability is key, along with sustainability – the buzzword that is now virtually mainstream as we watch in horror as fish stocks dwindle.’

New arrivals on the block: Gourmet Food Trucks are about to make an appearance, picking up on a trend that has swept Los Angeles and New York in the USA. Their owners are passionate foodies who see the food truck as an attractive opportunity with low start up costs and creative potential. There are some already operating in London and Manchester e.g. Eggonomics, who specialise in filled omelettes.