Frozen dessert fast-food chains are favorite stores that consumers enjoy visiting, but the financial crisis has led to bankruptcies and closings in some cases, leaving customers disappointed.
The ice cream shop industry has reported a 0.9% growth in 2025, according to data from IBISWorld, but still faces economic problems.
“Despite modest growth in appetite for ice cream, significant challenges must be navigated,” IBISWorld said in the report.
Among the economic challenges cited by the report is the rising price of milk, which cuts into profits.
Tariffs on Canadian dairy products have also increased the cost of milk and butter needed to produce ice cream, which raises retail prices and reduces profit margins, the report said.
Customers’ most favorite stores include Baskin-Robbins, Ben & Jerry’s, Cold Stone Creamery, Dairy Queen, and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers.
Some chains ran into some financial problems in 2025 that forced them to file for bankruptcy or close locations.
Ice cream shop operators have cited various reasons for the closures, including rising costs of products driven by labor and inflation or, more recently, tariffs; higher lease payments; Higher interest rates increased the cost of borrowing; And changing attitudes towards shopping by consumers.
About 30 Dairy Queens in Texas lost their franchises in the first half of 2025 when the parent company, American Dairy Queen, pulled franchisees from franchise project Lonestar after failing to rebuild its locations. This means those locations cannot order supplies from the parent corporation and will have to close.
And now the parent company of the Creme ice cream shop chain has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize and restructure its debt, including a settlement of an employment law suit.
Creamy Treats Inc. filed its petition on Feb. 2 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California, listing $500,000 to $1 million in assets and $100,000 to $500,000 in liabilities.
The San Francisco-based ice cream shop chain, which specializes in fresh ice cream sandwiches, did not list a specific reason for filing for bankruptcy protection, but among its largest unsecured creditors was Halil Budan, who owed $98,000 to an employment lawsuit. The debtor also listed Square Financial Services, which paid $27,000.
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