Business Hours for Shaved Ice

What’s more frustrating than traveling to your favorite restaurant for dinner, you pull up, and they are CLOSED?! They just lost your business because you're going to treat yourself to one of their OPEN competitors.

We have found that establishing regular business hours is one of the first steps to take when opening your business. The next (and hardest) step? Sticking to it. Don’t get discouraged when you haven’t had a customer in 2 hours. As soon as you close your doors, a customer will arrive with 10 shaved ice orders for their coworkers. It’s imperative that your customers know when they can expect you to be open.

If you need to take a day off, do it. However, establish this early in the season and do not make the mistake of opening occasionally or only at your convenience. Your other option is to hire employee's to keep the business open while you’re away.

Likewise, don’t make the mistake of closing your business when it’s raining. Even on rainy days, you can do just enough to make a profit. Some extra cleaning, paperwork, ordering and planning your next advertising campaign are the perfect ways to take advantage of your downtime.

Your daily business hours will greatly depend on your location and competitors. Some shaved ice businesses in high traffic areas open as early as 10 a.m. and close as late as 10 p.m. We suggest scoping out other businesses in your area. Are there schools, baseball fields or shopping centers in your area? Figure out their schedules and set your hours accordingly. Also, if you have competitors in your area, check out their hours and make sure you have the same (or similar) hours.