Fans of iconic Welsh brand Joe’s Ice Cream have gathered to help one of Wales’s best-loved brands celebrate its 100th birthday in style. 

Joe’s Ice Cream revealed new branding and a beautifully renovated flagship parlour on St Helen’s Road, Swansea, at its grand reopening last week. The new brand represents both a celebration of the firm’s 100-year heritage and a return to its remarkable roots.

To celebrate the occasion, the company gave away a free ice cream to all its customers, just as its founder, Joe Cascarini, did in 1945 to celebrate the end of World War II. It also launched a very special new dessert: its Centenary Sundae – an Italian-style Tiramisu flavoured dessert, specially designed for the anniversary to mark its founders’ Italian heritage.

In addition, the company raised money for two charities at the relaunch event in its St Helen’s parlour: The British Red Cross and Local Aid. 

Moreover, the company unveiled details of a tree-planting scheme to mark the occasion. It will plant 100 trees in the Swansea area in Wales, and another 100 in Nepal. This project has been organised in conjunction with Centenary Forests via Swansea University, a social enterprise that supports biodiversity in farming and the environment.

The century-long journey of a beloved brand

The origins of the famous ice-cream business can be traced back more than 100 years – to 1898 when Luigi Cascarini travelled from Italy to Swansea in search of work. Surprised by the lack of cafés around the docks, he started his own, serving coffee from dawn until dusk.

He quickly diversified and started serving homemade ice cream. Then, in 1922, his eldest son Joe followed him to Wales. He set up his own café (also serving ice cream) at 85 St Helen’s Road – still the site of the company’s landmark premises today.

Since then, the business has grown, diversified and been passed through the generations, becoming an increasingly recognisable brand in Wales and further afield, with strong community links and a commitment to the environment.

“The relaunch, rebrand and refurbishment at our St. Helen’s parlour has been incredibly well received, and we’ve been visited by many regular customers, some brand-new customers, and some local school groups during the day,” reported Lucy Hughes, Director of Joe’s Ice Cream. “Our new Centenary Sundae has gone down very well with customers old and new, and we expect it to be a very popular addition to our menu, as well as a tribute to the business’s heritage.

“We have also given away free ice creams – just as Joe did, to celebrate the end of the war. This is something that a lot of people who were there at the time remember, and have told us about, so we wanted to repeat that today,” she continued. “As we celebrate a century in business, we hope that over the next 100 years future generations of loyal customers can continue to visit us and create happy memories at our St. Helen’s parlour.”