Local Ice Cream Store is a One-Stop-Shop for Your Fresh Market Needs
At the former Gulf gas station at 517 N. Apperson Way, Shawn Clark is giving customers plenty to smile about. Now home to Cream & The Crop, the fresh market and ice cream shop carries a wide range of produce, including bananas, potatoes, oranges, zucchini, onions, apples and fresh flowers. Oh, and ice cream.
“People eating ice cream are happy people,” Clark says. “You can’t frown while you’re eating ice cream. It’s impossible.”
Open since May 2024, Clark has owned the roughly half-acre lot on the southwest corner of Apperson Way and Jefferson Street for more than a decade, purchasing it from Jack Bowser Sr., who operated the property as a Gulf gas and service station for decades. The business now operates seasonally, allowing Clark to balance work with the pace of retirement.
“This doesn’t feel like a job to me,” he says. “I was sick a couple of weeks ago and couldn’t come in. That killed me because I wanted to be here for my customers and the community.”
Clark’s connection to Kokomo runs deep. He graduated from Kokomo High School in 1985, attended Ivy Tech and enlisted in the Army in 1989. Stationed at Fort Ord in California, he deployed that same year to Panama during Operation Just Cause. After serving until 1992, he returned home and began a decades-long career at Chrysler while also starting small businesses on the side.
By the late 1990s, Clark had launched a window-cleaning company with two partners and opened a restaurant near his current store. When the site at 517 Apperson Way became available in 2012, Clark already had a vision for what it could become.
“Selling plants, flowers, produce and ice cream felt right for this neighborhood,” he says. “I’ve been in this area a long time. I know what it needs.”
The offerings reflect his attention to detail. In early spring, produce comes from outside the state until Indiana farms begin to harvest. By midsummer, shelves hold green beans, tomatoes and sweet corn from local growers, while flowers and plants arrive from regional nurseries. The centerpiece, however, is the ice cream.
“It’s super-premium ice cream — denser, creamier and richer in flavor than standard ice cream,” Clark says. “Fourteen percent butterfat. A three-gallon tub weighs about 27 pounds compared to 18 or 20 pounds for regular ice cream. Ours is creamier and doesn’t melt as quickly.”
One of the most popular flavors is Exhausted Parent, an espresso-and-bourbon ice cream streaked with bittersweet chocolate chunks. Customers are often surprised not only by the richness but by how easy it is to enjoy, with the higher butterfat making a difference for those who are lactose intolerant.
The heart of the shop, though, is in the simple services Cream & The Crop provides to the community in a city that’s steadily expanding.
“Sometimes someone just needs an onion — a one-off for dinner or a recipe they’re making,” he says. “That excites me. They don’t have to drive across town to a big grocery store. They can walk in here, get what they need and be on their way. Maybe they grab an ice cream too.”
As Kokomo grows with new industries and development, Clark sees value in keeping the basics close to home.
“If I can do the small things right, if I can make sure they’re done well, then I’m contributing in my own way to the city’s future,” he says.
Family support helps keep the shop running smoothly behind the scenes. His children lend their skills with accounting and operations, though Clark handles the daily on-site work himself.
He enjoys the connection that comes with running his store, knowing that his personal touches help shape his vision for the community.
Clark’s new chapter is less about scale and more about intent. Kokomo is growing quickly, but Clark believes its future will be built as much on small, thoughtful efforts as on large projects. Cream & The Crop is his way of proving that a neighborhood store can still matter — and that doing simple things the right way, and with care, can make a difference.
Stop by Cream & The Crop at 517 N. Apperson Way in Kokomo. For questions on current produce and floral offerings, call 765-614-2426 or email creamandthecrop@gmail.com.
