Salukis in Business — Scott Pepich
B.S., 1988- Finance — College of Business — Owner, Cold Cow Ice Cream
Westmont, Illinois native and Saluki alumnus Scott Pepich spent his “first” career preparing to own his own business before buying Cold Cow Ice Cream in St. Augustine in 2017, moving from Chicago to Florida, and shifting roles from employee to the employer of a staff of 10 people.
Like many alumni, Pepich came to SIU after a few other stops, including a stint in junior college, and a few semesters at UIC.
“I worked in a grocery store to put myself through school, so how and where I attended had a lot to do with price and the ability to fit my schedule to a second job, which I kept even after I transferred to Southern, because it meant I had a way to earn an income on breaks and over the holidays,” Pepich said.
Pepich said that SIU Carbondale appealed to him no only for the quality of the College of Business, but for the beauty of the physical environment.
“I figured I’d be able to concentrate down there in the Shawnee Forest because I would be getting as far away from everybody and everything I knew, but the great weather and the mild winters also appealed to me,” Pepich said.
After graduating, Pepich worked for a while in banking, but ended up opting for a career in retail management, helping to shepherd outlets, like Party City, toward successful goals. He spent seventeen years in the business and opened several successful locations in the Chicago area, but never let go of the idea of opening his own store.
In looking back, Pepich said he found inspiration to own his own business from a couple he knew in the neighborhood he grew up in.
“This couple was in their late 70s or early 80s, and they ran this little ice cream shop that you would drive past if you weren’t paying attention. They were the only employees, and they were open from noon to midnight, seven days a week,” Pepich said
Pepich said he remembers they had really great iced cream, and that they sold it “way too cheap”.
“It was almost cheaper than if I’d bought it wholesale. So, one day I asked them, what do you get out of it? Don’t you need to charge more? But they wouldn’t do it because they owned the building that housed the ice cream shop and they loved people and the interactions that running a shop brought them, so they didn’t need to. And they did really good business,” Pepich said.
But, said Pepich, when he set out to open his own place, it was not based on nostalgia. It was based on research, and trial and error, and although he ended up with an ice cream shop, it wasn’t an inflexible goal.
He knew he wanted retail, and he knew he wanted to locate somewhere where there was a long shopping season, which meant he was looking for communities with a healthy tourist economy.
“I looked all over the country and at many different kinds of businesses, but when my sister moved to Sarasota, FL, I began to focus my efforts in that area. I don’t like the cold, I’d had enough of the Chicago winters, and I was in my 50s, so I had a bit of a ‘do it now or don’t do it’ attitude when I finally decided to make my move,” Pepich laughed.
Pepich said he looked at franchises, but quickly figured out they weren’t a good fit for him, and he came close to buying a breakfast restaurant, but that fell apart at the last minute over real estate issues.
“Going into business for myself was not just a whim. It didn’t just happen overnight. I knew that the l people who went into business and stayed in business were the ones that planned for it. In fact, we looked for about two and a half years before we actually audited a business,” Pepich said.
But finally, Pepich said, he opened up his search to the entire state of Florida, and his current shop, Cold Cow Ice Cream, popped up in the City of St. Augustine.
For those unfamiliar with the city, it was founded in 1565 by Spanish explorers, and is considered the second oldest continuously inhabited city in the United States. Since the late 19th century, the “Old City’ in St. Augustine’s distinctive historical character has made it major tourist attraction.
“The shop fit all our parameters, and so we put in a bid. And everything just lined up for us to be able to purchase it, so smoothly, in fact, that we had three days to turn in my notice at work, pack up the dog and the car, and find a place to live in St. Augustine. It was a bit of a whirlwind,” Pepich said.
Pepich and his girlfriend, Johnanne, who also helps manage the business, initially rented a furnished apartment to make the transition, but eventually ended up finding permanent housing, moving their belongings, and now start their day looking at the beach, a far cry from Chicago’s blustery streets.
“All in all, its been a great move. And it’s a great little shop. We have turntables inside, rocking chairs outside and we bring in entertainment. It’s about two miles from the beach, right in the middle of a family-oriented shopping area, and so people actually seek us out,” Pepich said.
One of the reasons people seek them out is evident if you google the shop in the internet. Reviews speak to the quality, and size of the portions, and the huge variety on the menu. Cold Cow has over 154 varieties of iced cream, most of which are available on a daily basis, including sorbet, gelato, shakes, floats and sundaes.
It’s the kind of small mom-pop that would be great for a first date, or take your family after lunch or dinner. And Pepich employs about ten people during the height of the season, all told, so he’s become a job creator, too, which brings its own challenges in a tourist environment.
As to a second location, Pepich said its on his mind, but he’ll take his time to make sure the experience is a solid one for everyone. Until then, if you’re in the St. Augustine area, or visiting for vacation, make sure to visit Cold Cow between noon and 10 p.m. seven days a week.
Salukis in Business” celebrates the our Saluki Alumni who have taken the risk to go into business for themselves. If you’d like to be the focus of this weekly feature, or nominate someone you think we should feature, please email us at: alumni@siu.edu.
