The artisan ice cream market - Italy

1.2 World overview

The artisanal ice cream market is a market that is mainly developed in Europe. There are about *** thousand artisanal ice cream shops scattered in ** countries, ** thousand of which are in the Old Continent. Countries such as Italy, Germany and France encapsulate the tradition of artisanal ice cream in the most diverse forms.

Artisanal gelato also represents excellence in terms of quality and food safety, and, not surprisingly, it is the only food to which the European Parliament has ever dedicated a Day - the European Day of Artisanal Gelato, which next March **, **** will celebrate its tenth anniversary: an occasion to pay homage to a supply chain capable of sustaining a turnover of *.* billion euros and more than ***,*** employees in Europe alone.

The Old Continent covers ** percent of the sector´s worldwide turnover and is by far the most important market in the world. In the European context we find, after Italy, Germany in second place in terms of number of ice cream parlors, with *,*** outlets serving artisanal ice cream (***)[***].

Artisanal ice cream shops in Europe Europe, ****, units Source: ****

As for the rest of the world, excluding Europe, in **** there are about **,*** ice cream parlors, led by markets such as Argentina, the ...

1.3 Italian market

Among the gastronomic products with the most flavors in the world, of which each Italian is estimated to have consumed about *.* kilograms in ****, artisanal ice cream is the epitome of the craftsmanship and creativity of artisans and is appreciated far and wide across the planet by people of all ages.

Italy is, by detachment, the world´s leading market for artisanal ice cream both in terms of turnover (***) and the number of points of sale, ** thousand ice cream parlors, pastry shops and bars.

Turnover of artisanal ice cream sector Italy, ****-****, billion euros Source: ****

The sector is then characterized by an all-Italian production chain, which also involves the ingredients and semi-finished products sector, with ** companies involved and a turnover of *.* billion euros. The machinery and equipment sector also sees the Belpaese leading the way. According to the National Association of Manufacturers of Ice Cream Machinery Furniture Equipment in ****, the turnover was about *** million euros with exports accounting for more than ** percent of production.

1.4 Covid and price increases

The crisis due to the Covid pandemic also affected artisanal ice cream shops. During the pandemic, due to lockdowns and restrictions, ice cream parlors were closed for quite some time, causing loss of money and customers. Following the total lockdown that affected Italy from March **** to April ****, ice cream parlors were able to reopen following the regulations and various state restrictions regarding business activities.

There were principally three ways for artisanal ice cream shops to resume, both related to both legal restrictions and consumer behavior[***]:

Take-away ice cream parlors, to which "walk-in and take-away" consumption corresponds Table-service ice cream parlors, to which corresponds mainly the consumption of cups and specialty ice cream while seated; a model that can still also take advantage of "walk-in and take-away" consumption, but less competitively than the take-away model. Home delivery

Another problem facing artisanal ice cream parlors in **** are price increases due to the War in Ukraine and the ever-increasing prices of raw materials.

First, the price of electricity is causing big problems for ice cream makers who are forced to raise the prices of their products. According to L'Adige, which interviewed some ice cream makers in Trento, between **** and **** the cost of electricity bills ...

2.1 Consumer habits

According to research conducted by PXR Italy in ****, the frequency of year-round consumption of ice cream varies by gender.

Forty percent of men claim to consume less than one ice cream per week, while ** percent claim to consume more than one per week.

Men and frequency of consumption of artisanal ice cream Italy, ****, percent Source: ****

As for women, **% claim to eat less than one gelato per week and **% claim to eat more than one.

Women and frequency of consumption of artisanal ice cream Italy, ****, percent Source: ****

Ice cream consumption tends to be seasonal. The time of year when the most ice cream is consumed is summer; ** percent of Italians claim to eat it exclusively during this period, while ** percent eat it regularly year-round.

When ice cream is consumed Italy, ****, percentage Source: ****

This trend is also confirmed by Google Trends, according to which the summer seasons are the ones in which the phrase "Gelateria Artigianale" is searched the most on the search engine.

Searches for the word "Gelateria Artigianale" on Google Italy, September ****-August ****, Units Source: ****

In addition, according to ** percent of respondents, the best time to eat gelato is for an afternoon snack, followed by the evening for ** percent.

Moments to ...

2.2 Tastes and pairings

Due to the craftsmanship of the product, there are many flavors of ice cream and many special combinations.

According to the Deliveroo platform, which keeps track of the most home-ordered ice cream flavors in artisan ice cream parlors , in ****, the favorites in Italy were Pistachio, Stracciatella and Hazelnut.

Pistachio Stracciatella Hazelnut Cream Chocolate Fiordilatte Strawberry Yogurt Gianduia Caramel

As for what to try with ice cream, however, Italians like fruit, ** percent, followed by coffee, ** percent, and liqueur cream, * percent.

Pairings with ice cream Italy, ****, percentage Source: ****

2.3 Family expenditure

Monthly household spending on ice cream is around *.* euros and has not changed much over the years. An increase to *.**euro/month was recorded in ****, subsequently decreasing to *.*euro/month in ****.

Household spending on ice cream Italy, ****-****, euro Source:Istat Ecoicop : *****

2.4 The Trends Related to the Development of Food Delivery

Now well established in the habit of buying food online, artisanal ice cream is also seeing growing numbers when it comes to delivery. Already in ****, the European food delivery market has reached a total of $**.* billion.

**** was the year of ice cream delivery, artisanal ice cream was the revelation of food delivery, with a *** percent increase in orders compared to the previous year, surprisingly during the winter period between September and November **** where ice cream orders on Deliveroo increased by *** percent compared to the same period last year. This is because, during the winter, the customer struggles to go out to the store in person, allowing the artisanal ice cream shop to maintain the relationship with its customers throughout the year and deseasonalize sales.

In Italy, according to data shared by Deliveroo, looking at the volume of ice cream orders in relation to the total population, it is in the provinces that the most "ice cream lover" locations in Italy are found. In first place is Somma Lombardo, followed by Ferrara and Fabriano. Outside the TOP ** are the largest cities on the Peninsula.

Somma Lombardo Ferrara Abbiategrasso Fabriano Piombino Bracciano Civitavecchia Livorno La Spezia Agrigento

Regarding the most ordered flavors, ...

3.1 Where homemade ice cream is sold

In Italy, artisanal ice cream is mainly produced in ice cream parlors, followed by pastry shops and bars. Since artisanal ice cream parlors are identified by an ATECO code (***) that they "share" with pastry shops, it is difficult to identify the size of the economic sector. Moreover, in order to identify and estimate as correctly as possible the world of Artisan Ice Cream, it is necessary to take into account that:

artisanal ice cream is produced not only in ice cream parlors but also in other entities that produce artisanal ice cream (***) it is necessary to use tools and sources other than chamber registers to refine the numbers of the sector

According to the YG**U study by the Internal Revenue Service of the bar, ice cream parlors and pastry shops sector, the percentage of businesses that produce and sell artisanal ice cream directly to the public out of the total number of ice cream parlors and pastry shops is high and equal to ** percent of the sector. Therefore, this percentage will be used in this study to be able to determine the number of businesses and total turnover of the sector.

Given these assumptions, there are ***** artisanal ice cream workshops ...

3.2 Employees and types of enterprises

Applying the same percentage of **% to the data available on Istat of the number of people employed in the sector gives ***** people. The trend in the number of employees over the years has remained fairly constant with a change between **** and **** of *.**%

Number of employees in the artisanal ice cream industry italy, ****-****, units Source:Istat Ateco : ***** Percentage applied to the data **%

Nearly ** percent of enterprises in which homemade ice cream is found are established as sole proprietorships or partnerships.

Types of ice cream enterprises Italy, ****, percent Source: ****

Businesses and women

According to the study carried out by MIG, in ****, considering the total number of active business locations in the entire industry shows that about ** percent are women-owned enterprises. However, compared to a decade ago, a decrease in the share of women-owned enterprises can be seen.

However, the decline in women-owned enterprises is in line with what occurred nationwide for the total economic sectors.in addition, the incidence of female-led enterprises in the entire industry surveyed (***).

Enterprises and young people

According to the study carried out by MIG, in ****, considering the total number of active business locations in the entire industry, one in ten enterprises is run by young people (***). Compared ...

3.3 Production

Determining the production of artisanal gelato is complicated. Considering the per capita consumption, one can estimate the total production of artisanal gelato by multiplying it by the number of inhabitants in Italy. Following this calculation, in ****, the production of artisanal gelato was *** thousand tons.

This numeor does not take into account consumption by foreign tourists. According to Coldiretti, tourists would add an additional ** percent to the consumption of artisanal ice cream. Counting this figure, production can be estimated as follows:

Materials used in the production of artisanal ice cream Italy, ****, thousands of tons Source: ****

4.1 Products offered by artisan ice cream parlors

The main product found in an artisanal ice cream shop is precisely ice cream to be served in a cone, cup, or to be taken away in tubs. It can be divided into two subcategories depending on the ingredients that make it up:

Source: ****

In addition to classic ice creams, other products that can be encountered in an artisanal ice cream shop are :

Ice cream cakes Popsicles Ice cream on a stick Ice cream cookies Pralines and ice cream bars Frozen yogurt Semifreddi Sorbets Monoportions Pastries-ice cream Truffles-ice cream Crepes Affogati Granitas Brioche with ice cream

In ice cream parlors-bars, it is also possible to find savory products typical of a bar, such as sandwiches, flatbreads and appetizers, while in pastry shops-ice cream parlors, it is also possible to find cakes, biscuits and sweets typical of a pastry shop.

4.2 Prices

Ice cream prices vary depending on the size (***) and the quality of the ice cream and its ingredients, but also on the notoriety of the ice cream shop and its location, even in the same city.

A kilo of ice cream varies on average between ** and ** euros, with the basic raw material costing around *-* euros per kilo. The cone and cup are generallyemnte the same price. Research by Altroconsumo showed the difference in product prices in different cities. The ranking shows Milan as the city with the most expensive ice cream, followed by Sorrento and Bologna.

Source: ****

4.3 Rankings

As Italian artisan ice cream is such a world-renowned product that it also attracts the attention of foreign audiences. Annually, rankings are stipulated to decide which gelato shop offers the best quality products. The most important rankings are the one stipulated by Gambero Rosso, the Financial Times and the Travel *** guide. Some names appear in all the rankings and, in general, the gelaterias are located evenly throughout Italy. The yardsticks for choosing them are the use of quality raw materials, the total absence of semi-finished products and dyes, the originality of the proposal and the opinion of the public.

Note: Gambero Rosso does not rank with a position but mentions the best gelaterias in random order. Above were mentioned the gelaterias that won special recognition for the guide. The three cones are the equivalent of Michelin stars for the Michelin guide.

Note: Travel *** ranks the ** best ice cream parlors, the top * in the ranking have been listed.

Note: FinacialTimes ranks the ** best gelaterias in the world, the four listed are the four Italian gelaterias that appear on the list. They are in order of position.

4.1 New trends

Cultural, social, and economic changes that have significantly impacted and are significantly impacting people's habits and lifestyles regardless of their generational target also influence future trends in artisanal ice cream. This is especially so now where technology, pandemic, and sustainability are profoundly changing people's lifestyles. Given these assumptions, it is important to analyze in detail how the approach to artisan ice cream consumption and ice cream preference is changing in relation to different generational targets: baby boom generation, X generation, Millennials, and Z generation.

The main trend for **** identified by Artigeniale is a return to high quality over quantity. Consumers also have greater awareness in food and are interested in the use and origin of the ingredients from which artisanal ice cream is made. following are the most popular trends for ****:

Sugar-free ice cream Ice cream with vegetable fats Gluten-free ice cream Lactose-free ice cream Traditional ice cream with native ingredients

Other trends involve experimentation with special flavors and combinations. More and more flavors with exotic and special ingredients and even savory flavors are being offered, such as the trend called barrique, which consists of using wine and cheese as flavors of one's ice cream, and the use of more air ...

5.1 Regulations

The requirements for opening an ice cream shop are especially related to training and bureaucracy. To become an ice cream maker, it is important to train by working or attending a highly professional ice cream making course.

for the activity of making ice cream, reference is made to Law No. ***/**, better known as the Framework Law on 'crafts. The bureaucracy to follow is long and the documents to open an ice cream shop are many:

submit to the municipality, where you want to open the business, the SCIA (***) you must be in possession of the certificate of attendance of the HACCP plan open a vat number at the Internal Revenue Service regularize the positions within the business of employees and owners with INPSand INAIL register the business in the Commercial Register at the Chamber of Commerce make a diversification for the name of your business according to the service you want to offer. If you want to give customers the opportunity to consume the product in the facility the activity will not be just a simple ice cream shop but a business of selling and serving food and beverages; if you want to include a laboratory you will have a homemade ...

6.1 Segmentation

• L'albero dei gelati
• Fiordipanna
• Gelateria Badiani
• Callipo Gelateria
• Gallizioli Pasticcerie