Gelato Business Week: Business Models, Operation and Return of Investment

Short Description
A comprehensive training program designed to develop the economic, managerial, and strategic skills required to start and grow a gelato shop—or a chain of gelato shops—in a conscious, structured, and results-oriented way, increasing the chances of success while minimizing business risk.

Course Introduction
This course was created in response to the increasingly evident need, expressed by aspiring entrepreneurs and industry professionals, to complement technical skills in artisanal gelato making with solid managerial and entrepreneurial knowledge.

Today, knowing how to make good gelato is no longer enough. To start and manage a successful gelato shop—whether as a single outlet or as a multi-store network—it is essential to understand economic mechanisms, business models, cost management, growth strategies, and organizational principles that ensure long-term business sustainability.

The program provides a complete and structured overview of everything needed to enter the industry with awareness: from initial investment to profitability, from management control to operational models, and up to development and scalability strategies.

This course is designed for those who want to start with a method, reduce the main causes of failure, and build solid foundations for long-term growth in the gelato industry.


Topics Covered

Introduction, Business Plan, and Management Control
* Course presentation and learning objectives
* The gelato shop business plan: structure and purpose
* The importance of management control: analysis of key economic indicators and its role as a decision-support tool
* Food cost and margin analysis in the gelato sector
* Visits to gelato shops

Small Gelato Shop: Low-Investment Models
* Easy Way Method: low initial investment, optimization of space and resources
* Shop-in-Shop model
* Expanding the product offering without purchasing additional machinery (Crystal Program)
* Field trip – visit to a gelato shop

Traditional Gelato Shop and Commercial Development
* Best Way Method: required investment, organization, and margins of a traditional gelato shop
* Introduction to the B2B channel – supplying gelato to restaurants and other businesses
* Complementary products – introduction to the production of cakes and related items
* Field trip – visit to a gelato shop

Centralized Production Facility and Multi-Store Development
* Analysis of different possible production methods: advantages and disadvantages of each
* Organizational and economic benefits of centralization
* Integration between the production lab and retail outlets
* Field trip – visit to the centralized production facility

Layout, Design, and Marketing
* Functional and efficient layout of the retail space and production lab
* Store design and branding
* Marketing fundamentals for gelato shops
* Diploma presentation in the early afternoon



Duration*
The live online course lasts 5 days, 8 hours total, 9.00am - 5.00pm CET. 

Format
The course is a live online course and students will receive the recording of the lesson (via link, via email) which will be valid for 30 days.



* Course organization may vary if the minimum number of students is not reached or for other reasons. Course confirmation will be sent via email before the start of the course. Please consult the conditions for any cancellation or modification of the course at https://www.gelatouniversity.com/en/whoweare/frequently-asked-questions or contact us by email at info@gelatouniversity.com