Andover family takes Mad Maggie's to North Andover

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April 4, 2007

Brian Messenger

Stephen Reppucci has a sweet job.

The Andover resident and father of four makes Mad Maggie's Homemade Ice Cream, a business he started with his wife.

Mad Maggie's will be moving into the former home of Treadwell's Ice Cream on Route 125 in North Andover this April. The Reppuccis will also keep in operation the seasonal North Reading stand where their business started four years ago, just a year removed from when they first began making their own ice cream.

"It's a much better spot. We intend to operate on both sites," said Reppucci, whose wife's name is Maggie and whose kids' names, Michael, 19, Amanda, 15, and David, 14, spell out the M-A-D in the family business name. (Reppucci also has a another daughter, Kristen, the youngest of the four.) "Now the ideal location has become available, so we made the leap and went for it."

While Reppucci hopes his customers keep coming back to Mad Maggie's for the great tasting ice cream, he said superior service is a hallmark, too.

"I always tell my kids, 'Everybody gets a greeting, and smile. It's ice cream, it's a fun food,' " he said. "Let the people be happy."

"We're a little more friendly than most businesses."

Vanilla and chocolate rank as the No. 1 and No. 2 flavors at Mad Maggie's, respectively, but Reppucci isn't afraid to experiment with new flavors or take on the suggestions of customers when trying to come up with his rotating flavors of the week.

"I think our flavors are much different than what you'd get in most places," said the man behind such creations as Vermont Maple Walnut, Banana Pudding, Candy Store Floor, and Pumpkin Gingersnap. "I'd say they're unique flavors."

Reppucci even created an online Internet chat group in 2003 to exchange ideas with other small business owners/ice cream makers, a forum that's grown to more than 300 members and includes members from as far away as the Philippines and Iraq.

"There's a lot of time spent there talking to people around the country," he said, "trading all sorts of tips of running a small business like this."

Reppucci estimates Mad Maggie's served 50,000 gallons of ice cream last season, a number that's likely to increase exponentially with the new North Andover location.

Reppucci said he's well aware his family business has big shoes to fill in taking the place of Treadwell's, a summertime staple destination for many area residents.

"It's a little intimidating in a way," said Reppucci. "I think once people taste our product and see our type of service, I think they'll think we're just as good as Treadwell's ever was and hopefully better. ... Our product's as good as anybody's you'll try around."

Reppucci said he and his wife got the idea to start their own ice cream shop when their kids were younger and they'd regularly pack them in the car to go get the frozen treat out of town.

"Why not in Andover?" was the question the Reppuccis always asked themselves.

"After we said that long enough I investigated it and eventually said, 'You know, why don't we open up an ice cream store?' " said Reppucci. "It's a lot more work than I originally expected. It's not so much making the ice cream, but everything else, running a small business."

The Reppuccis may not have an Andover ice cream store, but they'll have plenty of help from family at the two locations this summer. Along with his three children who will work at the store, Reppucci estimates two nieces will also find employment with him.

"On most nights we have two or three family members there," he said of the North Reading stand.

Their dad may have a cool job, but kids will still be kids, according to Reppucci.

"The kids all complain when they have to work there," he said. "(But) whenever they want ice cream, it's there."