Boho Gelato offers hand made, artisan gelato as Daniel White found out
I met Seb Cole on a fresh August morning at his Pool Valley shop Boho Gelato.
Much like the gelato’s he sells, Seb is a man of many colours. As I arrive he is instructing a member of staff as he tackles the seemingly endless list of morning duties. Yet, the pleasure he gets is unmistakable in everything he does.
“I love it all,” he smiles. “I do everything here in terms of roles. So I’m in the kitchen, I do front of house, I do all of the business side; all of the rotas, the wages, the accountancy and the stock ordering. I even drive the delivery van, which I love as well because I get to go and chat to the chef that I’m supplying.”
Seb opened up the business four years ago and it has been gradually growing ever since its inception. However, this summer saw a boom in sales and he believes it is the consistent quality and care that has built the company’s ever-growing reputation.
“At Boho Gelato we hand make Italian-style ice cream using a really traditional method,” Seb explains. “We make it in a proper, true artisan way, so we’re doing a really traditional recipe but with modern style flavours and now we’ve got over 450 flavours. So if you want this new style of gelato made in loads of flavours but you want really good quality, then that’s what we deliver.”
Unlike the many chain gelato’s that have opened up in London and the surrounding areas in recent years, Boho Gelato’s philosophy is based on a offering a superior level of quality than others and is distinctly more “Brighton” as well.
“The name Boho Gelato came from the idea we were like bohemian gelato”, he quips. “So compared to the bigger ones, that have received corporate finance and open multiple sites at one time, we are the opposite end of that spectrum. We’re the all hand-made, creative flavours gelato that don’t have those big-chain systems in place.”
Every day the shop offers a selection of 24 from their 450-plus, with at least five of those being vegan suitable. Vegan flavours include peanut butter, sea salt caramel and hazelnut coffee, while every flavour includes a vast amount of local ingredients.
Although Seb may not be sure of what the future holds – TV work or a Boho Gelato recipe book may be in the pipeline – he is sure of one thing: there will be no franchisement of his company.
He says: “I think the problem with franchising is that as soon as you do it the product is no longer hand made. All you’re doing is putting your branding on a completely different product which I don’t feel very comfortable with because it’s just dilution and it wouldn’t really be Boho Gelato. The reason I’m doing this is because I thought I’d enjoy it all and I do, I’m not just looking for financial reward.”
Visit Boho Gelato at 6 Pool Valley, BN1 1NJ or, for more information visit www.bohogelato.co.uk or call 01273 727 205