BY Julianne Minervini
Staff Reporter
On Wed., Oct. 16, Sacred Heart University will be opening the Peak, a student run creamery on campus. The Peak is located in Christian Witness Commons, Building A. The Peak will be open from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on opening day.
Manager Alessandra Leone said, “The Peak Creamery is a student run business. Myself and Gianna Margaglione were appointed as managers. I handle the marketing, advertising and management portion while Gianna keeps track of our finances. We are given full creative freedom which is amazing because we can really make the place our own. We also meet weekly with the Welch Experience Director Victoria Rosa Garcia who is a dream to work with and is a great mentor.”
The Peak is hoping to introduce an ice cream flavor of the month, as well as play music, have Wii games and put up a photo wall.
“We want it to be as fun and comfortable as possible to get students accustomed to our space,” said Leone.
The Peak is also working on hosting events as the semester continues.
Junior Danielle Minervini said, “I enjoyed the ice cream at the Peak, it was convenient for me last year as a sophomore because I lived in North and the ice cream tasted delicious. I can’t wait for opening day, I will definitely be there.” (The Christian Witness Commons are commonly referred to as “North.”)
The Peak had guest musicians last year, such as Mike Fritz, and open mic nights for students to perform at as well. Guest musicians will be planned to perform again as the year continues.
Junior Alana Fumo said, “The Peak ice cream shop is a cute little spot to hang out and chill. The ice cream is really good and you get a lot for a low price as well.”
The Peak also has incentive cards. The incentive cards give loyal customers an opportunity to get free ice cream after making a certain number of purchases.
“It’s beneficial to students in their future career because we are learning with every step exactly what it is like to run your own business, and have the creative freedom to make something your own,” said Leone. “It is rewarding, but takes a lot of self-discipline and responsibility, so if entrepreneurship is something students are interested in, the Peak is the ultimate opportunity to get a taste for what it would be like in the future.”
The Peak offers many ice cream flavors ranging from vanilla to pumpkin. The Peak is also working on adding more dairy-free flavors. They have Blue Raspberry and Watermelon water-ice as well.
Junior Alyssa Poidomani said, “The workers are very friendly. It’s a great environment and it’s also nice for study breaks.”
In the fall, the Peak’s seasonal ice cream flavor is pumpkin. They want to offer their own ice cream flavors in the future, but they are in still the process of figuring out the logistics of that.
As long as you are a full-time undergraduate student, you are able to apply for a job at the Peak.
“It’s a great way to meet new people and make some extra money while still being on campus,” said Leone.
Since the Peak is not a work-study job, students will be able to do both.
“Last year was a great first year for the Peak,” said Leone. “It was a little rocky being the first year, but the previous managers were fantastic with organization so that is helping us out a lot moving forward. This is our first year as managers for the Peak, so our main goal is to develop more as managers as well as create a space students know about and want to come to.”
