Owners Stories

Ice House America owners come from all different backgrounds and operate ice vending machines across the country. With support from the dedicated Ice House America staff, owners continue to maintain, improve and expand their ice businesses. Our Owner Stories highlight some of our active business owners, and show what business is like for an ice vending machine owner.

Operator of the Year: Ray Yusuf

Ray Yusuf started with Ice House America with a background in convenience store ownership. Yusuf saw an opportunity to improve his stores and his bottom line when he got started with ice vending. When he added his 15th machine to his business in 2017, it was also the 3,000th Ice House America ice machine to hit the market.

Our Owners

Ice House America is a family-owned business, and we are pleased to work with many other family-owned businesses and individuals across the country. Some of our owners operate their ice vending machines alongside existing businesses, such as convenience stores or car washes. Others work in a different industry, and manage ice vending machines as a side business. For other business owners, ice and water vending is their primary business, and they manage numerous machines. Owning an ice and water vending machine allows you to be your own boss, set your own hours, and maintain a lifestyle that makes sense for you.

Josh Worley: Owner in Texas and New Mexico

Josh Worley is a full-time attorney in Roswell, New Mexico. When he learned about Ice House America vending machines, he saw an opportunity to run a side business and earn extra income, without interfering with his busy career and active lifestyle. Working with his brother and law partner, Worley invested in an ice vending machine and soon owned several machines across Texas and New Mexico. The ability to run the business without the need for employees first sparked Worley’s interest in ice vending, and the machine’s high quality brought him to Ice House America.

David Kocon: Owner and Dealer in New Mexico

David Kocon owns five Ice Houses in the greater Albuquerque area. After running the business and experiencing how the ice machines work, Kocon saw an opportunity to expand his own business and help others get started as well. He became the dealer for the state of New Mexico, and helped other owners start and manage the 58 machines across the state. After a career in financial services, Kocon was attracted to the idea of a business that was both lucrative and flexible. He carefully maintains and monitors his machines, helps others get started with a successful ice business, and still has time for playing golf and fishing.

Steve Delgado: Vendor Owner in New Mexico

Steve Delgado is a vendor owner for Ice House America in Silver City and Bayard, New Mexico. In Steve’s past and previous businesses he’s learned that products speak for themselves and that’s one reason why he loves being an owner of Ice House America machines.

Robert Board: Owner in Arizona

Robert Board is a very happy and proud owner of a Twice the Ice Ice Machine located in Prescott Valley, Arizona. Board has been a residential general contractor for about 45+ years and was looking for an opportunity to slip into retirement but still make passive income. That’s when he came across Ice House America.

Daren Prather: Owner/Operator in Illinois

Daren Prather is a publishing rep in the mid-west and owns two machines along with his wife, Sandy, a school teacher in their local town. Their machines are located in Mahomet and Rantoul, Illinois. They got into the Ice House business because of their experience using a machine when visiting their son at college. They were wowed by the machine and thought it was a perfect opportunity for them. “It’s perfect for us. No employees, just us and a machine.”, says Daren.

Flint Dewitt: Owner in Illinois

Flint Dewitt is from Canton, Illinois. Flint owns three machines in the Canton area, one in Lewistown, and is getting ready to purchase his fifth machine. Flint saw his first Ice House America machine when he was on vacation and started researching how to become an owner as soon as he got home. Since becoming an owner, Flint likes the flexibility of the machines the most, the machines do the work without needing to be present 24/7.

Steve Kennedy: Multi-unit Operator in Arizona

Steve Kennedy owns two machines in Glendale, Arizona. Steve first got into the business when he was visiting family in Oklahoma and had to run out to get ice. He really liked the concept, did some research, and opened up his first machine in his hometown. Steve then opened his second machine a mile down the road as an offload to his first machine (it was so busy and couldn’t keep up with the traffic). Steve likes the quality of the water and ice the most and gets a lot of compliments from his customers.

Chris & Lisa standing in front of their Twice The Ice machine

Chris & Lisa Norris: Owners in Missouri

“Before Ice House America, we could not have imagined an opportunity that has a low time commitment and no employees. It is rare to find a business that has low overhead and allows you to invest in a $4 billion industry that is essentially recession-proof. We could not be happier with how this new adventure of ours has turned out.”

Marc Savenor standing next to his Twice The Ice machine

Marc Savenor: Owner in Boston

“Having a background in the dry ice business, I had a pretty good understanding of the potential for the ice industry. However, I was not expecting how successful of a business model it would be when ice vending and water are combined at one convenient location. IHA has exceeded all of my expectations, and I look forward to growing this new business venture for many years to come.”

Mark & Elizabeth Sellers

Mark & Elizabeth Sellers: Multi-unit Owners in Texas

“The business opportunity offered by Ice House America allows us to 1) provide products and services that deliver exceptional value and customer experience (better, cheaper and faster!) to our local community 2) without staff investment or a full-time commitment… and 3) we are very happy with the ROI and potential future growth. We are proud to be part of a growing business segment that is successfully disrupting/revolutionizing the way people purchase ice (our tagline is, “Why would you ever go anywhere else?!”) and we love being part of the Ice House America community.”

Virgil Denise: Sublease in Florida

Virgil Denise has owned coin-operated car washes in the Jacksonville area for decades. Over ten years ago, he found an opportunity to increase revenue to his businesses without adding extra stress to his workday. He noticed an Ice House on a nearby lot, and looked into adding an Ice House to his car washes.

“I’m always looking for a good sublease,” he explained. “Anytime you can sublease to another business, you’re making money. I just saw one [an Ice House] and called the number.”