We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kyndra Bell a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Kyndra thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Our mission at Dream Kreams Artisanal Creamery is to redefine the ice cream experience by offering a wide range of artisanal flavors that cater to all dietary preferences. We believe that everyone deserves to enjoy a delicious scoop of ice cream, regardless of whether they consume dairy or not. By providing both dairy and dairy-free options for every flavor, we aim to make our ice cream inclusive and accessible to all. We are committed to using high-quality ingredients and innovative techniques to create a product that not only tastes amazing, but also brings joy to our customers’ lives. This mission came about because a lot of people in my community are lactose intolerant, but really enjoy ice cream and other dairy products. I would often hear, “I love ice cream, but I don’t want to eat it because it will make my stomach hurt.” Dairy free options weren’t always available and the ones that were, were not the best tasting. I wanted to develop an ice cream that could be enjoyed by everyone, regardless of dietary restrictions. One of the best compliments I have received since starting this business is when I have customers who have not had dairy in years come to me in tears, telling me how much they love ice cream and thought they would never have it again, but my ice cream doesn’t trigger their allergy or intolerance and they can enjoy it! Or when a child has eaten my ice cream and says to their mom, “This ice cream is good and it doesn’t even make my stomach hurt!” It may seem like a small thing, but it has brought so many people happiness in those little moments. That’s why the mission means the world to me.

Kyndra, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Kyndra Bell, I am 37 years old and a mother of twins, aged 12. In 2018, I decided to press the reset button on my life. I relocated to a new city and moved in with my mom. I am a licensed cosmetologist and make up artist, but was having trouble building clientele so I had a lot of time to explore my other passion, which is cooking. I began to make ice cream for my family and friends, pretty soon they were encouraging me to start a business. Dream Kreams Artisanal Creamery is hand-crafted, uniquely flavored ice cream that combines fresh ingredients and amazing unconventional flavors. With flavors such as Pistachio Cloud, Peach Cobbler, and Strawberry Crunch Cake, Dream Kreams juxtapositions your taste buds between the nostalgia of what ice cream used to taste like during your childhood and explosive flavors that you’ve never tasted an ice cream before! I offer 30 flavors of ice cream, all of which have a dairy free counterpart. The dairy free option is soy free free, gluten free and nut free, which solves the problem of people that have intolerances or allergies can enjoy delicious ice cream that you couldn’t have guessed was dairy free. The fact that every flavor has a dairy free option sets Dream Kreams from other brands. What I am most proud of as of late is opening the first brick and mortar location. The grand opening is next month and I am excited!

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

What helped build my reputation is consistency. Consistency in my service to the community, consistency in offering amazing customer service, and consistency in the quality of the products I produce. I pride myself on remembering most people’s favorite flavors and dietary preferences, I enjoy going the extra mile! I also pride myself on using the freshest ingredients and making everything from scratch. This creates an incredible product that is the same as it was 5 years ago.

Any advice for managing a team?

The best advice I have for managing a team and maintaining high morale is to genuinely care about the team. Being intentional while forging the relationships with members on the team is imperative because it builds trust. Once your team trusts you, it’s easier for your team members to be honest with you. Whether it be about policies, logistics, improving processes, a team that has been empowered to confidently approach the leader with concerns, observations, and even suggestions is one of a business owners’ biggest secret weapons. What better way to improve than to hear from the people that implement your policies daily?! Pouring into your team, being concerned with their personal goals, seeing them as people and outwardly appreciating their contributions to your dream ensures high morale. If your team is happy, feeling appreciated, seen, and heard, maintaining morale will be effortless!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dreamkreams.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/dreamkreams
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/dreamkreams