Today we’d like to introduce you to Skyler Walker.
Hi Skyler, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always been an entrepreneur and supporter of small business. I started my first business back in 2007. It was an errand/concierge service. We completed tasks for busy individuals (think grocery shopping, dropping off dry cleaning, and completing other tasks that took time away from people). At the same time, my dad bought out a small same-day freight delivery service. Moving forward to 2012, I decided to buy into his company as co-owner and VP of Sales to help the business grow. Everything was going very well…our businesses were flourishing, money was great, wife had an amazing job, we had our first child, life was complete. We were heavily involved in our local church, and I spent tons of time in our worship/music dept as a volunteer. Never thought in a million years that God would call us into full-time ministry, but in 2015, He did. We sold everything we owned – houses, cars, gave up our businesses and jobs. But we knew God had a plan, and we trusted Him. We moved from our family and friends, and I served at a tiny rural church in Western Nebraska as their worship pastor. We loved serving at that church, the congregation was amazing, but after a couple years, God ended our serving there on staff. We were left not knowing what to do or where to go. We then had our second child while living in Nebraska. We knew Nebraska wasn’t a long-term home for us. My wife’s family lived in Saginaw, so we started to talk about moving there. Of course, her parents and sisters were thrilled, so I’m sure that helped us solidify that decision. And yes, we were happy to be around family too. So, in the Spring of 2018, we moved to Saginaw Township and started renovating a home we found. But what was next for us? I’ve always been interested in franchises, but most of them are insanely expensive with no local focus. And after having sold everything and coming from a ministry-paid position, we couldn’t pour millions into that endeavor, ha! I also knew I wanted to get into something that was fun, something that the tri-city didn’t really have, and a business with a huge local focus. Enter Kona Ice. When I told my wife about it, she looked at me and said, “Um, we live in Michigan…and you want to sell shaved ice?!” She did have a point, but I felt such a pull towards Kona that it wouldn’t leave my mind. Fast forward to April 2019, and we launched Kona Ice of Saginaw. It’s been one of the best decisions of my life. It’s so much fun being able to “serve joy,” as we call it to the Tri-City community. And while we had a wonderful first year in 2019, we all know what year came after that…2020. Our calendar for 2020 was exploding with summer events until we reached late March. Within a week, over 150 events we already had scheduled cancelled on us. Talk about a depressing week! What do we do? Are we going to lose everything? But God definitely took care of us! There are two main reasons we made it through 2020. 1) I decided to get off my butt and do something about it. We did home deliveries with Kona, and we just made it work…by working like crazy and not accepting defeat. And 2) our customers. Our customers and fans are simply incredible. They showed us support like no other. We felt the community’s love towards us like never before. Because of that, we were still able to grow 40% over 2019’s numbers. We are now running 3 trucks, 2 trailers and have also opened a mobile coffee truck called Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee of Saginaw and are expecting a second coffee truck later this year. We’re also huge believers in giving back to the community we live in, and Kona provides tons of opportunities to fundraise for organizations. 2023 will be our 5th season in operation and we’re humbled to say that since we’ve opened, we’ve donated close to $100,000 to local schools, youth sports, and non-profits.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
2020 was obviously difficult…for all of us. Over 150 scheduled events for that summer cancelled on us within the course of 1 week.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We keep it simple; we sell shaved ice. We’re not snow cones…those are hard and crunchy. Our shaved ice is light and fluffy, which allows the flavors to be absorbed into the shaved ice, making it super tasty and delicious!
We have a patented flavorwave on our units – meaning people can put as many and as much flavor on their shaved ice as they want. Our flavors are also in-house. We use a proprietary sugar base called Vita-Blend. Every flavor we carry contains vitamins C and D and is 40% reduced sugar. We also love the fact that almost anyone with food allergies can enjoy our product. We are gluten-free, fat-free, nut-free, lactose-free, cholesterol-free, soy-free, and have no HFCS. We have sugar-free options too, and are also Kosher certified! We’re a very fast serve as we can serve around 300 people per hour.
We love giving back to our community. We do tons of fundraisers for local schools, youth/school sports, and non-profits. Since 2019, we’ve been able to donate close to $100,000 back to our local community!
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
Don’t let anyone tell you it’s not possible or you can’t do it.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kona-ice.com
- Instagram: konaicesaginaw
- Facebook: Kona Ice of Saginaw
