Popular Portchester ice cream van man vows to fight corner after ruffling feathers

But fearless Dan Harding will not be scared off by anyone – with him vowing to fight his corner to the bitter end.

The 30-year-old has grown to be one of the biggest ice cream sellers in the south in just two years with his incredible selection of ice cream trays – leaving rivals with a sour taste in the mouth.

‘I’ve had other ice cream vans following me and people phoning me – the rivalry is very much alive,’ Dan said.

‘I have them slagging me off because they think I’m on their patch. They try to intimidate me but I’m not bothered if someone threatens me.

‘I’ve even tried to keep the air clean by offering to show them what I do but they don’t listen to me. Then they try and copy me. They just get my customers upset – they’re very loyal.’

The Portchester scooper has whipped up a frenzy since the launch of Dan’s Delights Ice Cream Van.

The ice cream vendor has racked up nearly 17,000 Facebook followers - with 5,000 more since lockdown as people go crazy for a boost.

Even before lockdown in the depths of winter, Dan’s Delights would regularly notch up 300 customers at various destinations during his tray delivery nights, with slots posted on his Facebook page often snapped up in four minutes.

The popular happy-go-lucky ice cream van man, who started the business selling lollies from a portable freezer at splash parks 10 years ago, delivers a sensational range of 28 fresh to order trays at locations across the region having started out in Portchester.

Delicious trays cost £5 and include six generous dollops of whippy ice cream and mouthwatering sauce alongside a special chocolate main – ranging from Bounty, Oreo and Aero to Milky Bar, Munchies, Creme Egg and many more.

New additions are regularly added and fans are rewarded with ice creams, money and other items from competitions Dan runs.

Even during lockdown, the irrepressible entrepreneurial spirited ice cream seller has found a way to serve customers by now bringing his products to the doorsteps of people lucky enough to have placed an order before it sells out.

‘I would get 300 people queuing for ice creams in January when I turned up for my tray nights,’ Dan said.

‘So when lockdown happened people asked me to carry on so I got a licence and now do drop-offs to houses making sure I follow guidance on coronavirus.’

Dan’s success formula is sprinkled with his customer-orientated approach - melting the hearts of his customers in the process.

‘I like the personal one to one approach. We could expand but I don’t want to mass produce. I want the products to be exclusive and to make sure customers get what they want,’ he said.

And sharp-scooper Dan is already preparing for when lockdown is over - with rivals braced for another big freeze.

‘I’m building my base so when lockdown is over we will be ready to push on even more,’ he said.

To order go to: dansdelightsicecreamvan.co.uk

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