01/03/2023
Happy 2023 No Coasters!
We want to take a moment to reflect upon 2022 and give an update on what 2023 has in store.
2022 was a big year for us, and we grew to the largest that No Coast has ever been in terms of production, output, and availability. We’ve always been a tiny operation, starting with just myself, and when it got out of hand, Kaela, who was always the supportive backbone, but really jumped in to rescue in the last few years.
This past year we did our first Farmers Market season, which was huge and took up all of our resources, but nonetheless absolutely lovely. With some small past exceptions, we took on (or attempted to) take on our first serious wholesale clients, which turned out to be more than we could handle once the Farmers Market started.
We did some great pop ups with new friends like .studio
We made some fun new flavors and some old favorites that we’ve done across the country from San Diego to Madison to Lawrence. We used all of the local ingredients that you could possibly imagine as often as we could from doughnuts to shiso to kombucha to sencha.
With all of our successes, 2022 also had a great deal of hardships for us. Like most small business owners before us (and many to come), we burnt ourselves to the ground between our full time jobs, grad school, and ice cream production. At our summer peak we were at the shop or doing something ice cream almost every single day of the week, usually with only Sunday to spare. We had countless late nights, sometimes until 2 am (where I had to work at 6:30 the next day—yikes!). The farmers market was incredible, but at the end of the day was a weekly Saturday commitment, and at the very least three production days.
All of that said, we’ve spent a lot of personal time reflecting and looking forward to 2023. In our hearts we’d love to continue onward at the capacity that we’re currently at, but we simply don’t have the resources in terms of time, help, or equipment to do so. We’ve decided that it’s time to take a break and step back for our own well being. Dumping all of our energy into No Coast left us with no time to take care of ourselves in the way that we need. Our culture makes the grind out to be this beautiful thing that where hard work and no play leads to the greatest of accomplishments—being your own boss. But at the end of the day it never mentions all of the missed opportunities, the missed concerts, the missed runs, the missed hikes, the night after night dining out and squandering money because you don’t have time to cook, the missed personal time with your partner, the missed walks with your dog. All of the missed things that make life special.
Supporting likeminded businesses and using real ingredients also came with a cost on our scale. It meant that we never personally could take a paycheck from the company. We spent the past year giving and giving our time and energy to something that didn’t necessarily reciprocate fairly. That unbalanced trade isn’t sustainable longterm. We learned that it’s far too easy to exploit yourself.
We haven’t entirely given up on ice cream though, don’t get the wrong idea. We’re looking at some possibilities to get our ice cream out there, but on a much more manageable scale. Stay tuned for updates soon to come. Take 2023 and take care of yourself and support businesses who genuinely support their community! Thank you for all of the support you’ve given ❤️
