‘Ice Houses’ Provide Self-Serve Ice
by July 3, 2006 12:00 am 242 views
Kool Kat Vending LLC of Fort Smith plans to open 10 “ice houses” — 200-SF ATM-like ice dispensing machines — in the River Valley and Northwest Arkansas by next year. Three are currently in operation, and three more will be open by the end of this year.
Each machine costs $100,000, which amounts to a cool $1 million investment, said Lisa Crowden, communications manager for the com pany. Kool Kat — owned by Hank Hankins and Bryan Goodwin, both of Fort Smith — has the franchise rights in Sebastian, Crawford, Washington and Benton counties, as well as Russellville and Clarksville.
The three ice houses in operation are located on Main Street in Farmington, Center Street in Greenwood and Midland Boulevard in Fort Smith.
The machines are placed on either the franchisee’s property or on a leased lot. All the machine needs is water and electricity to operate, Crowden said.
The machines are accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week for customers to vend their own ice. Twenty pounds of ice can be vended into a customer’s cooler for $1.50 or a 16-pound bag of ice can be vended for the same price. Crowden said it costs about $1.50 plus tax for a 10-pound bag at a convenience store.
The ice machine can make 5,000 pounds of ice a day.
The machines take only bills and coins, but Crowden said the company plans to retrofit them with debit card readers by the end of the year.
The machines will operate through the winter as long as the water lines don’t freeze, Crowden said.
Ice House America, based in Moultrie, Ga., patented and manufactures the ice houses.