CASE STUDY Ice Cream Heaven I ce Cream Heaven is an independent, family-owned restaurant that offers an extensive selec. tion of ice cream and desserts, along with basic sandwiches and comfort food. There is also a playground for children. The target market consists of families with young children and sports teams. The restaurant is a popular place for teams to come after Little League and soccer games. Most of the items on the menu are between $5 and $10, and that price point is not flexible customers are not willing to pay more than that. Also, many of the customers buy only ice cream or milk shakes. Therefore, the business is very seasonal because the restaurant is located in the northeastern United States. The majority of revenue is obtained during the summer months, and the annual revenue is approximately $500,000. Most of the workers are local high school students, so labor is relatively inexpensive. However , the food costs run about 35 percent, even though it is a simple menu. The owner tries to use local companies and quality ingredients. One of the problems is that there is only one Ice Cream Heaven and the amount of volume doesn't result in significant discounts from large suppliers (c.g., Sysco). The owner is trying to decide what to do at this point to increase profits. Case Study Questions and Issues 1. Can anything be done to minimize costs in the supply chain? What are the possible sources of supplies? 2. What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of opening one or more additional restaurants? Should they be the same concept? 3. How would franchising affect the supply chain