More Than Your Average Hobby: A Strawberry Delight Story

| April 22, 2018

OIL CITY, Pa. (EYT) – When Cindy Baughman’s friends encouraged her to try leasing a small, local ice cream stand as a “hobby,” they had no idea what the future held in store for her.

Strawberry Delight, a popular spot for quick food and ice cream located along Route 62 just outside of Oil City, had been well-known for over 60 years when Baughman began leasing it in 2014.

Baughman, who hails from the Shippenville/Fryburg area in Clarion County, had left her EMS position in Shippenville and was looking for a change.

“When this came up for lease, all my friends said, ‘You need a hobby. That would be a perfect hobby for you.’ I have found it’s a little more than a hobby,” Baughman said.

“Now, I try to be here seven days per week.”

Baughman began running the small business with the help of her family, learning the ropes and discovering her own way of doing things. She began making a few upgrades, changing the drive-thru window, adding an awning, and generally getting more comfortable over the first few years.

She tried to focus most of her energy on the two areas she found most important: customer service and quality.

“I told my husband when I started this, I want to have a good quality product at a reasonable price. When I got ahold of my supplier, I told them I want really good quality.”

Her focus on quality shines through her menu, where fresh and homemade products are spotlighted.

“We do fresh cut fries, which are very popular. Milkshakes are also very popular because anything that I can add real, I do. So, if you get a strawberry milkshake, we add real strawberries. I even make the brownies for the brownie sundaes.”

The focus on fresh, quality products seems to have caught some attention, as Baughman says her food sales have tripled over the last few years.

Most recently, Baughman has expanded the menu by offering pizza on Fridays and Saturdays – made with fresh, homemade dough. The very first weekend of pizza sales was such a hit that they sold completely out.

Baughman started out leasing the business; however, things changed when she was offered the opportunity to buy it late last year.

“It was exciting to purchase it. I told my husband I put my heart and soul into it, and there was always that fear that, it’s not mine. So, when he (the former owner) called me in September and said ‘I want to sell,’ it was pretty awesome news.”

Strawberry Delight is currently open 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., although Baughman says they’ll start staying open until 9:00 p.m. once the days get a little longer and the warmer weather sets in.

Even though they’re currently doing well, Baughman believes there’s always room for improvement, and she still has more plans for the future.

Small improvements to the building may be in the works.

According to Baughman, the back seating area, already lovely with several picnic tables, swings, and a stand-alone deck, is definitely due for some updates.

Baughman says they’re planning to take out the small deck and replace it with more of a gazebo-type structure sometime in the next couple of years to offer more covered seating for shade and for rainy days.

The building behind the back seating area is more of a question for the future. Baughman tried selling flowers there one year and also briefly ran it as a fruit stand, but she discovered that she just couldn’t manage both buildings at once. The building is currently being used for storage, but Baughman said she would like to see a business there sometime in the future and would be willing to lease the building.

Whatever the future holds, and whatever updates and changes Baughman makes, the one thing she knows is that she’ll have the support of her customers and the local community behind her.

“The community of Venango County has welcomed me with open arms. And, the local businesses support me really well, too. I have got the best clientele, I think, that anyone could ever ask for.”


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Category: Community, Local News