This week, we shine the spotlight on Roz Kaldor-Aroni, the entrepreneur behind the ice cream brand Elato. Roz was inspired to make her own ice cream after learning about the actual science of making it, which piqued her interest as a maths, chemistry, and physics nerd. With this knowledge, she sought to not only create a healthier ice cream alternative but also be able to support sustainability advocacies.
ISB: How did your interest in maths and sciences led you to making your own ice cream?
RKA: It started when I was given a recipe book by my husband on Mother’s Day 10 years ago which had a chapter about the maths of ice cream. I had already been making ice cream as a hobby as I love desserts and the idea that ice cream was all about maths was very exciting for me as I have always been very good at maths and science, studying it at an advanced level at high school and at University including studying food chemistry. The idea of combining maths and science with desserts felt like ice cream making was my calling.
ISB: What was the most challenging aspect in making that shift to be an entrepreneur and how did you overcome it?
RKA: Making the decision to be an entrepreneur wasn’t a challenge for me as my father had been an entrepreneur all his life. So I had grown up knowing about the highs and lows of being an entrepreneur. More importantly, my husband was committed to supporting me as a first-time entrepreneur emotionally and financially plus he has provided business advice when needed from his many years of experience as a lawyer advising companies with business issues. Having this unconditional support from my husband has been the most important part of my entrepreneur’s journey.
ISB: How did you strike a balance in making your ice cream healthier without compromising on taste or texture compared to other ice cream brands?
RKA: I was always looking for a point of difference to make ice cream healthier and without chemicals. I learned how to make ice cream without chemicals in Italy. When I was training in Canada at Guelph University, I discovered that lactose-free dairy products were three times sweeter than standard dairy products. This meant I could add 30 per cent less sugar to my recipes without compromising sweetness. I also decided to add extra fibre and protein to my recipes to get a three-star health rating as this helped rather than hindered the taste and texture of my ice cream. This combination of ideas then enabled me to achieve a granted patent.
ISB: Can you tell us about your work with nonprofit organisation OzHarvest and why their advocacy is close to your heart?
RKA: OzHarvest has been an exceptional non-profit partner. They have a low-cost entry for becoming a corporate supporter plus I was attracted to the fact that their work in repurposing food is diverse, working to solve many intractable issues in this area not just collecting food that would be thrown away. They are also very grateful to receive any support no matter how big or small. This isn’t always the case with not-for-profits. Also, as a food manufacturer, it was important for me to support a not-for-profit providing food to the needy.
ISB: What is your vision for Elato’s growth in the next couple of years?
RKA: In FMCG, an important and cost-effective part of building a brand is to be available for purchase in as many stores as possible. So we are focussing on increasing listings as rapidly as possible. This has included getting additional listings for our new 125ml mini-tub size which is becoming popular in cafes and petrol and convenience stores. We are currently listed in over 1000 stores and are targeting to increase this by another 1000 locations every year for the next few years.
ISB: Lastly, if you are to share one piece of advice with someone who aspires to be an entrepreneur, what would that advice be?
RKA: I can’t limit myself to one. There are three reasons why Elato has been successful. Firstly, I have mentioned the unconditional support of my husband. Secondly, I believe to succeed in food, you need to taste better than the competitors so I use a blind taste test to demonstrate the exceptional taste and texture of Elato compared with its competitor flavours when pitching, which has worked well as most of the time my flavours are selected as the preference over competitors. Finally, our investment in Elato has included investing in highly-experienced advisors which has helped me avoid making many of the common beginner mistakes of first-time entrepreneurs.
