Ridiculously Good News from Zinger’s!

In This Issue:

100!

About That Anniversary

News About US 26

Monthly Flavor Report

Schedule

100!

This is a milestone year, in that we celebrate our tenth anniversary of business (started way back in January 2001). We were written up for that in the Coast-River Business Journal and the Seaside Signal (thanks!) but otherwise we didn’t make a big deal of it. Someone else did, and thanks again to Lisa for the lovely balloon bouquet!

We will make a big deal of something else, however…this is our 100th newsletter.

Don’t they make a big deal of it when TV shows record their 100th episode? I know that it’s all about syndication and money and consistency and money, and apart from the syndication and consistency (and money) we’re in the same boat. We didn’t set out to be everyone’s favorite ice cream parlor (all we wanted to do was to run a small, successful business). Heck, we didn’t even set out to make our own ice cream (that was born, as are so many great inventions, out of necessity – see below). But one item that has been as consistent as anything is this newsletter. And even the newsletter isn’t what it was.

Way back when, it was a short monthly blurb that drifted to an every-other month event. I often wondered how I’d fill just one page of the newsletter, even though I seem to be born with the gift of gab. Then, when we started making our own ice cream, I found I didn’t have to worry about that ever again. And later, I found even more to talk about, and we went back to a monthly edition (while in season). The rest is 100 issues of history.

We hope that you enjoy what we have to say. Sometimes it’s informative and sometimes it’s witty (or at least, there’s an attempt at wit, even half-wit). If nothing else it’s a list of the current flavors, hours of operation, and a coupon. That’s consistent, at least.

ABOUT THAT 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

In retrospect, achieving ten years in business is a triumph considering that many didn’t think we’d make it at all. Now I’m not talking about doubting friends or family (they ALWAYS worry about us), but the “general local consensus.” Oh yes, we know about that. Local chatter and all that…we have ears. They won’t make it, such-and-such place is better, they’ll be closed in two years, etc.

If you read about our history in the articles mentioned above (we have a copy at the store on the front window, or read it here), you know about how we “stopped serving a well-known brand of ice cream and began making [our] own from scratch.”

What you might not know is the rationale behind it.

When we bought the store, there were only a few places in the area that sold ice cream. There was Oscar’s (the place we bought and changed the name to Zinger’s, which many thought would be the kiss of death right there), and the Dreyer’s place up the street (which is what everyone calls it since no one can remember their real name), and a couple of other spots in town that had just an “eight-holer.” That’s an industry term for the size of the ice cream freezer – if it holds 12 tubs of ice cream, it’s a “12-holer” or a “twelve.” That’s one way to measure the level of competition in town – count the “holes.” When we bought Oscar’s, the 97138 zip code area (Seaside and Gearhart) had a total of 80 holes.

We figured that we could compete well with good service and big scoops, but a new ice cream shop opened A MONTH after we did. And that pattern continued…by the time we decided to make our own ice cream, a couple of smaller places closed up shop, two more new places opened, one expanded, and the hole count was up to 128 (that’s 50% more). Further, there were rumors that another ice cream shop was to open the next year, so we decided to make a difference and distinguish ourselves the only way that made sense to us – we’d make our own ice cream. Others could sell ice cream, but no one would sell HOMEMADE ice cream.

Incredibly, the rush for more places to sell ice cream hasn’t slowed down – there are now a total of 220 holes in the area…and this doesn’t include soft-serve, frozen yogurt, shave ice, and novelties sold from a freezer. Nor does it include restaurants that offer ice cream desserts. Competition is intense – the national business census shows that in the USA, there is approximately one ice cream parlor per 32,000 residents. Clatsop County has about 32,000 residents (a few thousand more) and there are TWELVE shops here – about one per 3000, not 32,000. Yes, this is a tourist area and the population swells a few months of the year, but that’s still quite a competitive bar to cross.

Thanks to the competition, we make our own. Thanks to you, we made it (get it?).

COMING TO SEASIDE ON US26? MORE (brief) CONSTRUCTION

The Dennis Edwards tunnel on US route 26 is fixed, but like a guy with bad teeth, there’s more “bridge work” to be done along the road near Seaside. The good news is that ALL the work does NOT block traffic on weekends AND the delays are very short (less than 10 minutes). As always you can check for updates and the latest traffic conditions by visiting: www.tripcheck.com.

MONTHLY FLAVOR REPORT

Some new flavors for August (not totally new, just stuff you haven’t seen yet this year):

THE STANDARDS (back row): Butter Pecan, Chocolate Almond, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Coffee, Just Plain Chocolate, Licorice, Marionberry, Mint Chocolate Chip, New York Cheesecake, Oreo Cookie, Strawberry, and Very Vanilla.

THIS MONTH’S SPECIAL FLAVORS (front row):, Chocolate Covered Banana, Double Butterscotch Chip, Oregon Hazelnut, Oregon Black Cherry, Toasted Marshmallow, and White Chocolate Chip.

FLAVORS LEAVING THIS MONTH: Black Walnut, Coconut, Lemon Custard, Malted Milk Ball, Peppermint Candy, and Root Beer Float.

NEW FLAVORS COMING THIS MONTH: Caramel Cashew, German Chocolate, Lotsaberries, Maple Walnut, Peach, Pumpkin Pie…and a few more surprises!

AUGUST SCHEDULE

Mostly the same:

Daily – Open at 1pm, close at 10pm…until August 28, when we will close at 9pm on Sundays through Thursdays (still 10pm closing on weekends)

And of course, Labor Day weekend has the 10pm closing, and then hours change dramatically after that!

MAIL CONTACT

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