Adison and Jackie Sichampanakhone have a soft spot for the Country Club Plaza, they shared. It’s where the journey with their soft-serve ice cream shop began.
“We’re excited to be back. We had so many great customers down here before, so we’re happy to be able to serve them again,” said Adison, who co-founded Ice Cream Bae with his now-wife in 2018.
Jackie and Adison Sichampanakhone, Ice Cream BAE; photo by Channa Steinmetz, Startland News
The couple first launched Ice Cream Bae as a counter-front-shop in the original Made in KC Marketplace on the Country Club Plaza. Known for its unique flavors and aesthetic swirls, Ice Cream Bae quickly gained a loyal customer base and hungry social media following — now numbering more than 40,000 on Instagram alone.
Recognizing they needed more space, the Sichampanakhones opened their first standalone storefront in November 2020 at Park Place in Leawood; leaving the Made in KC store. Two years later, the couple opened Ice Cream Bae’s second storefront — back on the Country Club Plaza — in what feels like a “full-circle moment,” Adison said.
Click here to read more about how Ice Cream Bae got its start and its Park Place location.
Ice Cream Bae’s new Plaza store officially opened Nov. 24 during the 93rd Annual Evergy Plaza Lighting Ceremony.
“A lot of people have been waiting for this location to open for a while,” Adison said, noting the original plan was to open the shop in Spring 2022. “We didn’t have enough time to plan for a grand opening, but we knew we needed to open by the Plaza Light Ceremony because so many people come down here.”
When customers walk into Ice Cream Bae’s Plaza shop, they are greeted with a bright, all white interior — a direct contrast to Ice Cream Bae’s Park Place all-black design.
“We wanted this blend of retro and modern for our Plaza shop,” Adison said, walking over to the ice cream shop’s Polycade machine. “We took retro elements, like an arcade game, but found ways to add a modern twist.”
Ice Cream BAE
A majority of flavors on Ice Cream Bae’s menu are the same between the two locations, but each shop will offer unique options from time to time, Jackie said.
“We have rotating specials depending on the time of year and what’s in season at the moment,” she explained. “We currently have apple pie in our swirl machine and are about to launch a black sesame flavor. It’s cool to introduce different flavors that are a little more adventurous, and then see people coming back to try what’s new.”
“We also have our signature menu that is made up of the combinations we’ve created, and that is different between the two locations,” Adison added. “But all the ingredients are offered at both spots, so someone could do a ‘create-their-own’ and essentially get the same thing. We really encourage customers to make their own swirl and discover what they like.”
Finding the right staff
Although the Sichampanakhones have opened other businesses before — even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic — each business and storefront brings on a new set of challenges, Jackie acknowledged.
The majority of the problems in opening Ice Cream Bae’s Plaza location were related to staffing shortages with vendors, she explained.
“Construction companies and the city — they were all facing staffing and product shortages, so we just had to be patient and push back our opening date,” Jackie said. “It wasn’t what we were anticipating, but we are grateful to be open now.”
The couple hired staff for the Plaza location in summer 2022, allowing the shop to be fully staffed when it was time to open, Jackie said, noting the store has about a dozen team members.
Adison Sichampanakhone, Ice Cream BAE
“We’re very lucky that we hired people who were willing to train and work at our Park Place shop before coming here,” she shared. “It was a long ride, but we’re really happy they stayed.”
Some employees of Thaiger — the Sichampanakhone’s Thai concept located within the revamped shipping containers at the Iron District in North Kansas City — came to work for Ice Cream Bae too.
“Thaiger is closed for a majority of the winter, so some of our members there are working for Ice Cream Bae now,” Adison said. “We’re very blessed to have the team we do.”
Click here to read more about Thaiger.
Collaborating with the community
With Ice Cream Bae getting its start at the Made in KC Marketplace, the couple is eager to partner with other local businesses, they shared.
“The marketplace was such a melting pot of local businesses, so it was so easy to meet and talk with other business owners,” Adison said. “We’re actively looking for more businesses to collaborate with because we know we can do some really cool stuff together.”
Ice Cream Bae partners with Mr. D’s Donut Shop in Shawnee to offer customers the “Glazed Bae” — an ice cream sandwich made from a glazed donut with the customer’s choice of ice cream in the middle.
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Early tasting trials with HITIDES Coffee and partnership talks with Bruú Café have already been in the works, Jackie teased.
“We’re excited to collaborate with [HITIDES] in the future; we made a coffee milkshake with their coffee that turned out really good,” she shared. “… And then Bruú is a boba shop just a block away on the Plaza that we are really excited to collaborate with.”
Customers have ranged from sweet-toothed teenagers to other Country Club Plaza business owners showing their support, the duo noted.
“Kansas City really gravitates toward supporting local businesses,” Jackie said. “We love trying new, local restaurants and shops, and we hope to be embraced by returning and new customers.”
