Written by Kelsey Bangs
After changing its name and location, Sno Island has become a hit with the Searcy community as well as with Harding University students, according to store manager Daniel Spears.”About half of our customers are Harding kids, and the other half are Searcy locals,” Spears said.Sno Island, located across the street from Harding University on the corner of Race Street and Grand Street, serves more than 70 different flavors of gourmet shaved ice, Blue Bell ice cream and fountain drinks. The store broke away from the franchise Frigid Frog on Aug. 17 of this year and moved into a more permanent building.”Moving locations was a much-needed transformation for customer needs and to accommodate customers from elements of the weather for more year-round service,” Spears said. “And the fact that it is within walking distance from campus makes it convenient for students.”Now that we are no longer with Frigid Frog, we are able to work year-round instead of just in the summer months.”Assistant manager Caleb Ingram said he would love to see Sno Island grow and later become a chain like Frigid Frog.”I’m anxious to see what the future holds for this booming operation,” Ingram said.Both the manager and assistant managers for Sno Island are Harding graduates, and they are currently working on their Master of Business Administration.”Working for Sno Island is great,” Ingram said. “I like the interaction with the customers and making the “Sno Balls,” and the challenges that face day-to-day activities.”Sno Island is famous for their ‘Sno Balls,’ which are ice cream-filled snow cones. They also provide several different flavors including “Bison Blast,” made of cola and banana flavoring, for Harding University students.Sno Island is open seven days a week, from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.
