By: Ashley Pierce, WCCCC
There’s nothing quite as refreshing as a spoonful of delicious ice cream or water ice on a sweltering summer day. Treats like ice cream and water ice are quintessential to summertime and Richie Vliese knows that. That is why he opened Richie’s Water Ice in Downtown Coatesville in 2023.
Richie is well-traveled. He was born in Amsterdam, shortly before moving back to his parent’s homeland of Ghana in West Africa. Richie spent his childhood in Ghana and moved to the United Kingdom when he was eighteen years old to pursue a college education.
“My mother wanted all her children to have a better education, so as we each turned eighteen, we moved to the U.K. by ourselves.” Richie explained. There, Richie earned a bachelor’s degree in IT with Business and a master’s degree in strategic marketing. After graduation, Richie began a career in the car rental industry.
In 2016, Richie moved to the United States, where his wife, Naa K. lived in Philadelphia. Early in their marriage, they settled in Delaware County, but as they expanded their family and their children grew, they wanted better school districts, a bigger home, and more room for their growing family. The Vliese family moved to Chester County in 2021.
Upon arriving in Chester County, Richie realized there was not an ice cream shop for the local kids to enjoy during the season.
“I realized there’s nothing like Richie’s around here,” he said. “We always had to drive a little bit further out every time our kids wanted ice cream or water ice. So, I thought, ‘What do the kids in Coatesville do?’” Richie realized the Coatesville youth didn’t have a fun summer spot to grab a treat from; something every child deserves.
“Essentially, I took the plunge,” Richie continued. “Not all of the kids here have access to cars, and they can’t afford to drive to Downingtown.” Richie’s Water Ice is within walking distance for the city kids. “It means a lot to me, to be able to bring this to the community.”
Richie’s Water Ice has everything, including over twenty flavors of water ice, ice cream (with sugar-free and vegan flavor options), hot dogs, hot sausage, funnel cakes, milkshakes, sundaes, banana boats, soft serve, and gelati. “We have everything you see at a traditional ice cream shop and more!” Richie said. Richie’s also has a variety of toppings, such as fruits, nuts, sprinkles, gummy bears, and so on. The three most popular water ice flavors are mango, strawberry lemonade, and blue raspberry.
His family has been in the industry for decades, with his brother owning a few shops throughout Philadelphia and his sister running a shop in Baltimore. The three siblings can share ideas amongst their businesses, helping each other and supplying unique offerings to their customers. “It’s a small group of close-knit family that works together across the businesses.” Richie added.
“My sister Tia, who owns Tia’s Italian Ice in Baltimore, and I realized eating just one flavor, like a large mango or cherry, you can get a little tired of it after a while, so we thought about coming up with some combinations.” Richie said. Combinations are multiple flavors of water ice, layered on top of each other in one order to create a tasty flavor profile. The most popular combination is the Richie’s Special, which is mango, strawberry lemonade, and passionfruit. Other popular combos are Summer Vibes (watermelon, peach, and strawberry) and Juneteenth (cherry, mango, and sour apple). If you can’t decide on a flavor when ordering, try a combination!
Richie’s Water Ice is also different than other chains in the type of water ice they serve. Richie’s serves Philadelphia-style water ice, which has a difference in texture. It is smooth and creamy. Other styles of water ice tend to be chunky and icy.
Another aspect of the business that was important to Richie was inclusivity. He has made sure to offer products that people with dietary restrictions can enjoy, such as gluten-free, sugar-free, and vegan.
“In this day and age, everyone cares about their health and everyone’s leaning towards something,” Richie explained. “In business, you have to go with it.” When Richie first opened his business in Downtown Coatesville, he realized there was an older community here, and many were diabetic. Another customer had inquired about vegan options. Just like that, Richie decided to offer six sugar-free ice cream flavors and a vegan vanilla, on top of all his water ice flavors being gluten-free.
“As a business owner, you have to move with the times and if you don’t, you won’t survive. You have to care about what your customers care about.” Richie said.
As a family-owned and operated business, Richie’s Water Ice has a passion behind it that may be lacking in larger chains. With Richie, it’s about his personal relationships with his customers.
“I care. It’s my own people, my own community, so I care more.” Richie said. “I know their names, their families, their issues. I try to help them when I can.” Every day, when Richie opens his shop, it’s about more than the money he makes. It’s about the community he uplifts, the people he meets, and the love he pours into his hand-made products.
Richie’s family and culture has played a vital role in who he is as a business owner. “My culture has made me very good with customer service,” Richie said. “The way I was raised, I treat my customers like my family.”
As his business grew, Richie decided to invest in a van to take Richie’s Water Ice on the road. “I started to do a lot of events and it was a ton of work to carry a freezer in and out, load and unload the products. With the new van, everything’s included.”
His calendar is already filling up with birthday parties, family reunions, company outings, and community events. Richie encourages anyone who’s interested to schedule with him now, as he’s booking out rapidly. Richie can take up to ten flavors of water ice and ice cream out on the road, which the customer can pick out.
With ample side and street parking, a large waiting area for guests, and several scrumptious treats to decide from, come out to Richie’s for your next summertime dessert!
Richie’s Water Ice is open seven days a week until November, 12p-9p Monday-Saturday, and 12p-8p on Sundays.
**This article is from the Western Chester County Life magazine. Check out the full magazine here.