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Biz Buzz: Ice cream shop near Dubuque's fourth Street Elevator reopens; Dubuque Phillips 66 adds partnership with U-Haul; Latin American grocery store opens in Dubuque. business tips sought Do you have a story idea or update to share about a local business? Ideas can be shared with reporter Thomas Gleason at [email protected] or 563-588-5647. Biz Buzz shares business tidbits from the tri-state area. This edition highlights businesses in Dubuque. The ice cream shop near the bottom of Dubuque's Fenelon Place Elevator reopened under new ownership on Saturday. Dubuque Ice Cream Shoppe, 454 W. Fourth St., offers ice cream, candy by the pound, popcorn, sodas and more. "Ice cream is very nostalgic," said Joie Booth, who owns the shop with her two sons, Carter and Graham Booth. "It's very romantic. It's very family." The Booths buy the ice cream from Ludington, Mich.-based Ashby's Sterling Ice Cream. "It is 14% butterfat, which makes it the most incredible flavor ever," Booth said. The shop offers cones and dishes of eight flavors and carries a range of soft drinks and sparkling water. "We do root beer floats and orange floats," Booth said. "We can make a float out of just about everything." Customers can also purchase a large Pepsi glass to use for their float and keep the glass. Eventually, the glasses will be uniquely shaped and engraved with the shop's name. The shop also sells bags of Cedar Creek Popcorn and souvenirs, including Dubuque-themed T-shirts, shot glasses and mugs. The Booths plan to add more ice cream flavors, souvenirs and candy to the store soon. They also hope to renovate the kitchen in the back of the shop. "I would like to make some of the things here - make the toffee, make the fudge, make some of the popcorn balls," Booth said. They hope to keep the shop open year-round. "We're hoping to come up with some creative ideas to have it going pretty strong through the fall and winter," Booth said. Joie Booth has always been self-employed and thought an ice cream shop would be a cool business to own, she said. In May, the opportunity to buy the business came about, and she jumped at it. She brought her two sons into the process, and they whipped the shop into shape quickly to avoid missing the entire summer season. The family members painted the shop with the "historical watercolors of Dubuque," and added their own flair with a new countertop near the front window, Booth said. "Midwest summers are so hot," she said. "We want this to feel like a place where a family can sit down and just enjoy some air conditioning for a few minutes." Dubuque Ice Cream Shoppe is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. For more information, visit its Facebook page at tinyurl.com/dbqicecreamshoppe. Dubuque Phillips 66 adds partnership with U-Haul. Phillips 66 on John F. Kennedy Road added U-Haul services this month. The gas station serves as a place to rent and return U-Haul trucks. "It's just to make it easier for customers that are moving or need to load something for convenience's sake," said Phillips 66 owner Charan Singh. The gas station keeps a 10-foot truck, 15-foot truck and 20-foot truck in-house, which means that the trucks must be returned to it after being rented. It carries other U-Haul trucks on a rotational basis, depending on reservations and where trucks are located. "If you need something in a few days, make a reservation with us right away," Singh said. U-Haul's traffic department can help secure the trucks needed for the reservation even if Phillips 66 does not have the truck when the reservation was made, he said. The gas station is not renting out trailers because it does not have the staff to accommodate the service. "We're trying to manage it with the staff we have," Singh said. "If it keeps growing, we'll hire someone to just work the U-Hauls." Singh approached U-Haul about partnering with the company because the gas station includes a large parking lot that was not being utilized. "One of the biggest things I was looking for was how to grow the business," Singh said. "Why not take advantage of the space and have a win-win situation?" Two other U-Haul locations in the city are in the Point and the North End. "This side of Dubuque didn't have one," Singh said. Phillips 66's U-Haul service is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Customers can also utilize an app for after-hours drop-offs and pickups. For more information, visit uhaul.com. Latin American grocery store opens in Dubuque. A Latin American grocery store opened in Dubuque this month. El Mercadito Nicas Market, located at 233 Main St., offers a diverse range of products. "We have good service, and we have nostalgic products from our country and Colombia, Venezuela, Honduras, Mexico - things that you can't find here," said Patricia Báez, who owns the store with her husband, Denis Martínez. The store is filled with snacks, candy, drinks and fresh produce, including plantains, onions, tomatoes and avocados. "It's an opportunity for another different business on Main Street," Báez said. The husband and wife are natives of Nicaragua and moved to the United States about nine years ago. They started Nicas Market in Platteville, Wis., over three years ago. They secure their products directly from Latin American producers. One of Báez's favorite products is Avena Mosh en hojeulas, a cereal made from oats by Mexican company El Caracol. Báez and her family lived in front of the company's manufacturing plant in Nicaragua, and her uncle worked there. Other products she likes are Nicaragua-made Tiste corn meal, a drink served cold; Callejas Guava Jelly, a fruit spread; and Milca, a raspberry soda. People asked the couple to open a location in Dubuque because there is a lack of Latin stores in the city, Báez said. They took over the lease on the space about two months ago. The couple brought in two refrigerators for some of their drinks and produce, built shelves to install throughout the space and built the cashier space with a counter and shelves behind it. They plan to continue adding more products to the store in the future. El Mercadito Nicas Market is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day. For more information, visit its Facebook page at tinyurl.com/ elmercaditonm.

U-Haul Moving & Storage of Edsall Road closes. * 2 hrs ago The U-Haul(R) center at 6295 Edsall Road, Plaza 500, Suite 200, has closed its doors. June 28 marked the last day services were provided at this Alexandria location. U-Haul had been leasing the space which the property owner intends to redevelop. U-Haul had been leasing the property since September 2023. Eight Team Members were let go due to the closing. Customers who did business at the Edsall Road location can find self-storage, truck and trailer rentals, and additional offerings at U-Haul Moving & Storage of Springfield at 5285 Port Royal Road. The Springfield store is five miles west of the Edsall Road store just off the Interstate 495 loop and Braddock Road. There are several other U-Haul centers and neighborhood dealers in the area to meet customer needs. Find locations near you at uhaul.com/locations. Local U-Haul Companies are always exploring opportunities for growth as they pursue means to better serve the needs of customers but sometimes find it necessary to close or relocate stores, shops, offices and services. Reasons for closures can include long-term strategic plans; safety and security concerns; physical site conditions and limitations; shifts in demographics; availability of local Team Members; trends in migration; expansion of the U-Haul neighborhood dealer network; proximity to other new or existing Company locations; and external factors. About U-HAUL Founded in 1945, U-Haul is the No. 1 choice of do-it-yourself movers with more than 24,000 rental locations across all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. The U-Haul app makes it easy for customers to use U-Haul Truck Share 24/7 to access trucks anytime through the self-dispatch and -return options on their smartphones with its patented Live Verify technology. Its customers' patronage has enabled the U-Haul fleet to grow to approximately 204,800 trucks, 136,600 trailers and 42,000 towing devices. U-Haul, which offers rate transparency to self-storage customers through its 1-Year Price Lock, is the third largest storage operator in North America with 1,136,000 rentable storage units and 99 million square feet of self-storage space at owned and managed facilities. U-Haul is the top retailer of propane in the U.S. and the largest installer of permanent trailer hitches in the automotive aftermarket industry. Get the U-Haul app from the App Store or Google Play. Media gallery

U-Haul opens new facility in South Haven. * By HP STAFF * 4 hrs ago The new U-Haul Moving and Storage facility in South Haven offers a wide range of services, including moving truck rentals, self-storage units and U-Box portable moving and storage containers. * Photo provided The South Haven Area Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed U-Haul Moving and Storage as a new member with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 72710 Light House Blvd. * Photo provided SOUTH HAVEN - The South Haven Area Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed U-Haul Moving and Storage of South Haven as a new chamber member. According to a news release, the chamber held a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of its new facility at 72710 Light House Blvd. The new U-Haul facility expands moving, storage and transportation services available to residents and businesses throughout the South Haven area. Located near Phoenix Street, the facility offers a wide range of services, including moving truck rentals, trailers and towing equipment, self-storage units, U-Box portable moving and storage containers, moving supplies, trailer hitch installation and truck sales. "Designed to support both local and long-distance moves, the facility provides customers with access to a variety of rental options and storage solutions to meet residential and commercial needs," the release stated. The self-storage center features climate-controlled units, indoor storage options, electronic access controls, video monitoring and a variety of unit sizes. In addition to its moving and storage services, the location offers moving supplies, towing equipment, trailer rentals and U-Box containers that can be used for moving, storage and shipping needs. "The South Haven Area Chamber of Commerce is pleased to welcome U-Haul Moving and Storage of South Haven to its membership and recognizes the investment the company has made in expanding services and resources available to the local community," the release stated.