Dickie Dee facts for kids
Dickie Dee is a well-known Canadian brand that used to sell delicious ice cream! It's famous for its unique way of delivering treats right to your neighborhood. Today, the brand is owned by a big company called Good Humor-Breyers.
Dickie Dee vendor in 1983.
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| Industry | Mobile ice cream |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1950s |
| Founder | Syd Glow |
| Headquarters |
,
Canada
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| Owner |
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Number of employees
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1500 annually |
Contents
The Story of Dickie Dee
Dickie Dee began in the early 1950s in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It was started by a person named Syd Glow. In 1959, Syd Glow sold the company to the Barish family. They helped Dickie Dee grow into one of the biggest ice cream selling companies in North America.
Ice Cream on Wheels
At its busiest time, Dickie Dee had about 1,500 people selling ice cream. These sellers worked all across Canada and even in parts of the northern United States. They sold ice cream from special vehicles.
The Famous Tricycles
Most of the ice cream was sold from a special compartment on a modified tricycle. These tricycles were easy to spot! They had bells that the sellers would ring. This bell sound would let kids know that the ice cream was nearby.
Other Vehicles
Dickie Dee also had a group of scooters and ice cream trucks. These were used in places with hills. Tricycles couldn't easily go up and down hills, so the trucks and scooters helped reach more neighborhoods.
New Ways to Sell Ice Cream
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Dickie Dee tried new ways to sell their treats. They started selling products like "Richard D's The Ultimate Ice Cream Bar." You could find these at gas stations and other stores.
Bubble Cabinets
The ice cream was kept in special freezers called "Bubble Cabinets." These freezers had a clear, dome-shaped lid. This allowed customers to see all the different ice cream products inside. The Richard D's bar was special because it was one of the first fancy ice cream bars in Canada to come in its own box.
How Dickie Dee Worked
Dickie Dee had a network of distributors. These distributors would rent the ice cream selling equipment from the company. They would also buy the ice cream products from special company suppliers.
Running a Distributorship
Some of these distributorships were small businesses. They could even be run from a family garage! Larger cities had bigger operations with warehouses and yards to store everything.
Changes Over Time
In 1992, Dickie Dee was sold to a large company called Unilever. It then became part of Good Humor-Breyers, which is another big ice cream company. Good Humor-Breyers continued to run the Dickie Dee brand from offices in Oakville, Ontario until 2002.
Dickie Dee Today
Today, many of the original Dickie Dee tricycles and equipment are owned by people who used to be distributors. They still sell ice cream as independent sellers, but under different names. One example is Canada Cone in Whitby, Ontario.
