Noosa ice cream makers Happy Pops expands with new hinterland shopfront

A family-owned ice creamery founded in Noosa is taking their popular pop-stick gelatos to the Hinterland with the opening of their third shop.

The husband and wife co-founders of an ice cream making business known for its high quality pop-stick gelatos is expanding with a third shopfront in the Hinterland.

Augusta and Ian Puttkammer opened Happy Pops’ new hole-in-the-wall store in Eumundi on Friday as the couple look to extend their presence across the Sunshine Coast.

The duo started the business in May 2018 on Hastings St in Noosa after the couple moved from Sydney to the region to build a better life for their family.

It didn’t take long for their delectable desserts to draw a “cult-like” following which saw them open a second shop in South Brisbane a year later where they also proved to be an instant hit.

The business’ revenue had doubled in 18 months after the move.

Happy Pops was founded by husband and wife duo Augusta and Ian Puttkammer in Noosa in 2018 and have now set up in Eumundi. Pictured with their 12 month old daughter, Lily. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Having weathered the impacts of Covid-19 lockdowns, Mrs Puttkammer said the pair was ready to make the investment with plans to open two new sites a year.

“We’ve been looking around to expand and we knew Eumundi is all about being hospitable and when this option became available it ticked all the boxes that our brand stands for,” Mrs Puttkammer said.

“We’ve got a lot of customers in the Hinterland that love Happy Popps but they don’t want to come all the way down to Noosa, so we wanted to bring it to them.

Happy Pops’ new shopfront in Eumundi. Picture: Patrick Woods.

“There’s a lot of people around on the weekends, takeaway has always been our concept and with our product it's something you can walk around with. It is a smaller town and we can get away with a smaller freezer so we think having a smaller shop there will be ideal for us and our product.”

Happy Pops’ Memorial Drive outpost will have a condensed selection of gelatos from straight chocolate, vanilla, and hazelnut flavours to mixed ones, vegan options, and limited editions on rotation.

The ice creams are based on Mrs Puttkammer’s own recipes made using Maleny Dairies milk from their Nossa based kitchen where they now produce about five times the amount of desserts compared to their first year.

Happy Pop’s makes a wide range of gelato flavours from their Noosa-based kitchen. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Happy Pops started with four staff and has grown to employ 34 people.

Ms Puttkammer said the pair focused on “organic growth” with their business model.

“Every corner you can find an ice cream shop but no one that does pop stick ice creams really well,” she said.

“In the beginning it was a new product and you’ve got to educate your customers in what you’re doing. Sometimes it has been a bit of a process in convincing customers because it's so different, but we’ve found that people have really taken to it and keep coming back because of the flavour in our gelatos.”

“On face value, our brand really resonates with people. Before we started, we designed the branding to be light and fun and gave us a good ground to work from, I think that’s the biggest thing.”

Originally published as Noosa ice cream makers Happy Pops expands with new hinterland shopfront