Chocolate Shoppe
Ice Cream Company
The History of
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream Company began in 1962, when Chuck Sr. and Nancy Deadman decided to open their very own candy and ice cream shop. Their vision was to provide the community with a bit of happiness by serving homemade candy and ice cream. They held the philosophy that quality lies at the heart of every marvelous treat shop, and with this, Chuck Sr., master researcher, tinkerer and perfectionist, set out on a mission of making the best ice cream he could. After countless batches of ice cream, and tweaking and adjusting machinery, he came up with his own original, super-premium ice cream flavors to offer at their shop, located on Monona Drive in Madison, Wisconsin.
WE’VE COME A LONG WAY
After 60 years of continued innovation, Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream Company now encompasses four ice cream parlors and a manufacturing plant in Madison, Wisconsin. The manufacturing facility produces more than 100 super-premium, award-winning ice cream flavors, and supplies to independent restaurants and scoop shops nationwide.
THE LEGACY CONTINUES
Chuck Sr. and Nancy are both “retired,” although Nancy is still in every week, and you’d be hard pressed to find a day when Chuck Sr. couldn’t be spotted at the manufacturing facility or one of the area shoppes. Today, the company thrives under the leadership of the second generation of Deadmans, Chuck Jr. and Dave Deadman. Chuck Jr. and Dave proudly uphold the same commitment to quality and community that served as the foundation for that first little shop on Monona Drive.
A timeline of events
1962 – Chuck Sr. and Nancy Deadman open their own ice cream and candy shoppe on Monona Dr., introducing the community to their homemade, super-premium ice cream.
1963 – Excitement builds over the ice cream. Senior and Nancy open a few new shoppes and move their production to their first, one-room ice cream kitchen on Milwaukee St.
1964 – Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream on State St. opens for the first time, which now stands as the company’s oldest and most iconic shoppe.
1976 – Senior and Nancy’s oldest son, Chuck Jr., returns to help prepare batches of the company’s unique, super-premium ice cream.
1979 – Demand outgrows production capacity, and Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream builds the current manufacturing plant on Madison’s east side.
1990 – Senior and Nancy’s youngest son, Dave, joins the family company to grow wholesale partnerships with small, independent businesses.
2001 – Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream perfects and releases their first-ever batch of their now cult favorite, Zanzibar® Chocolate ice cream.
2002 – Under the core value of creating treats that everyone can enjoy, including the founders’ lactose-intolerant grandson, Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream releases its first line of vegan desserts.
2013 – For the first time Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream can be found in small businesses in the majority, 26, states in America.
2022 – The manufacturing plant expands to include a mix pasteurizing and processing room, and Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream partners with the Baerwolf family to use milk from the pasture-raised cows of Sassy Cow Creamery.