Frozen yogurt over that past decade has become a popular dessert for Americans. Veronica Tessler hopped on the trend and created a company located in Iowa City. She noticed what was on the horizon of trending desserts and created a successful business. Through giving back to the community and working with locals, she created a strong name to her company and brings in many devoted customers.

Tessler understands what her customers want, and she gives it to them by constantly bringing in new toppings and frozen yogurt flavors. When the problem of not getting customers in the winter arose, she added hot cocoa bombs to the menu so customers could enjoy something warm during the cold weather. She innovated a way to keep revenue up during the winter and found a way to increase sales. Tessler demonstrated adaptation during covid by transforming her shop into a walk-up window and delivery service so she could continue selling to the public. When the money began flowing in, she hired more employees, bought more frozen yogurt machines, and established more locations. After reading an article on Vanessa Tessler, I learned how someone began with an idea, and with determination and focus, turned that idea into company that tops all the other companies within its market.

Every kid loves ice cream, even many like-minded adults feel the same affinity. Ice cream is a perpetual symbol of innocence and youth that has Grove City students line up in the cafeteria and is even stored in the freezers of content Grovers. While only in the fifth grade, two middle school students, Sam Nassif and Oliver Greenwald noticed a toddler drenched in ice cream. As the mother was cleaning the ice cream, they almost instantaneously knew what needed to be done. They invented the Drip Drop, which is a ring that slides onto cones and is able to catch any ice cream that may drip or even drop. In 2012, the two then took the Drip Drop and entered it in a contest for entrepreneurs. The Drip Drop garnered second place, which was enough to pay for a patent on the design of their work.

Nassif and Greenwald’s idea seemed to be so interesting that it appeared on the television show, Shark Tank. Not only this, but it was an impressive showing to say the least. While the Drip Drop did not currently have any sales, the two landed a deal with Barbara Corcoran that was $50,000 for 33% equity. In addition to this, at the time, the two were the youngest to ever appear on Shark Tank without an adult present.

Currently, the business is not in commission, as the two have moved on to collegiate life and have internships to keep up with. The business is very impressive, however. Nassif and Greenwald took a problem that they observed in broad daylight, without much introspective research, and knew what they had to do. This is an example of taking a problem that has been around for decades, and creating a practical solution for it. Their entrepreneurial drive inspires me, before they got off the ground with their product, they knew what needed to be done, which was seen through obtaining a patent, crowdsourcing, etc.

To read more about this inspiring story, click here.