Summer holidays are when many businesses take a well deserved break - but for Auckland-based Nice Blocks it's a time when things really start to get busy.
Nice Blocks is the only Fair Trade certified ice block maker in the world.
The company was created in 2010 by friendsJames Crow and Tom Holden. Back then they hand-made popsicles in a cafe at night to sell at festivals on weekends.
Mr Crow says an investment from the co-founder of Phoenix Organics, Chris Morrison, who was a family friend, was a game changer for the start-up. He says their plan for summer 2011 was seen by Phoenix as not scaling fast enough.
"We wanted to get 30 freezers they said no we need 150...The leg work and energy is the same and yet the yield is so much higher. The risk is there but the return is much better. They guided us through the scaling from where we were then to where we are now."
He says the company has gone from a $10,000 to a $1 million business and is growing naturally.
Mr Crow says Nice Blocks can now make up to 3000 sticks in the summer season and sales are growing so fast it's hard to keep up with demand.
He says a key part of their success has been to sell their products in higher-end cafes, delis and supermarkets.
