Vampire Penguin’s local owner Ray Penkalski (Photos by Ianne Salvosa)
A dessert shop and its mythical mascot are expanding to Tuckahoe.
Vampire Penguin, a national shaved dessert chain, will open a store at 411 N. Ridge Road in the Tuckahoe Shopping Center in coming weeks.
It’ll be the second Henrico County location for local franchisee Ray Penkalski, who opened Virginia’s first Vampire Penguin at 11345 Nuckols Road in the Town Center at Twin Hickory with his wife Benita in 2021.
The shops specialize in shaved snow, a creamy shaved ice dessert, with an assortment of toppings. Also on the menu are boba tea, milkshakes and desserts including cherries jubilee, bubble waffles and brownie sundaes.
Penkalski said lactose-free and gluten-free options, as well as adjustable sugar levels for the desserts, help attract customers of all ages. Older customers, he said, enjoy how light the shaved snow is compared to ice cream, while younger customers enjoy the Vampire Penguin brand and character.
“Our success lies in the ability to attract and to serve that wide-range group,” he said.
Penkalski said he spotted the Tuckahoe location, which is roughly a mile from the University of Richmond, the day he did a walk-through of the campus for a catering order.
Vampire Penguin sells frozen ice desserts that feature Asian-inspired flavors and toppings alongside classic American ice cream options. (Courtesy of Vampire Penguin)
The location used to be Coco + Hazel, a milkshake and espresso shop, which the owners closed down earlier this year to focus on their Bon Air location. Penkalski said the construction costs to outfit the space for Vampire Penguin are minimal since it used to be a dessert shop.
“It was just an opportunity that we couldn’t pass up,” he said.
Taylor Long Properties’ Robert Marshall was the broker for the lease at the Tuckahoe location.
Tacking on more locations was always in the plans for Penkalski, who has licensing rights for more Vampire Penguin locations in Virginia. With the Twin Hickory store in its fourth summer and bringing in more than $250,000 in annual revenue, he felt it was time to expand.
He added that catering services have helped drive company revenue. The Twin Hickory location also uses a trailer, dubbed the “Snowmobile,” to sell at events.
To prepare for a projected Aug. 15 opening date for the Tuckahoe store, Penkalski is working on ordering equipment and painting the new space. Staffing is no issue, he said, because employees are transferring from the Twin Hickory store.
The Vampire Penguin is the chain’s mascot.
He said most of his employees are young adults, whom he has retained with a low turnover rate because of bonus programs and competitive pay.
To prepare for the new store opening, he said he brought on team leaders earlier this year with the intention of moving them over to Tuckahoe on a full-time schedule.
During his four years as a business owner, he said he’s learned to assemble a strong team that can run the business while he works on developing it.
“It’s going from being an owner-operator to an owner-manager,” Penkalski said. “And as a small business, as you grow, you’re never going to be able to grow if you’re always working for the business, not on the business.”
Penkalski plans to add one more Vampire Penguin store to his portfolio, he hopes in about two years.
There also is a Vampire Penguin in Chesterfield, at 14822 Hull Street Road, owned by Jon Grambling.
Vampire Penguin has around three dozen locations along both coasts in 11 states, with the most in Florida.
Vampire Penguin’s local owner Ray Penkalski (Photos by Ianne Salvosa)
A dessert shop and its mythical mascot are expanding to Tuckahoe.
Vampire Penguin, a national shaved dessert chain, will open a store at 411 N. Ridge Road in the Tuckahoe Shopping Center in coming weeks.
It’ll be the second Henrico County location for local franchisee Ray Penkalski, who opened Virginia’s first Vampire Penguin at 11345 Nuckols Road in the Town Center at Twin Hickory with his wife Benita in 2021.
The shops specialize in shaved snow, a creamy shaved ice dessert, with an assortment of toppings. Also on the menu are boba tea, milkshakes and desserts including cherries jubilee, bubble waffles and brownie sundaes.
Penkalski said lactose-free and gluten-free options, as well as adjustable sugar levels for the desserts, help attract customers of all ages. Older customers, he said, enjoy how light the shaved snow is compared to ice cream, while younger customers enjoy the Vampire Penguin brand and character.
“Our success lies in the ability to attract and to serve that wide-range group,” he said.
Penkalski said he spotted the Tuckahoe location, which is roughly a mile from the University of Richmond, the day he did a walk-through of the campus for a catering order.
Vampire Penguin sells frozen ice desserts that feature Asian-inspired flavors and toppings alongside classic American ice cream options. (Courtesy of Vampire Penguin)
The location used to be Coco + Hazel, a milkshake and espresso shop, which the owners closed down earlier this year to focus on their Bon Air location. Penkalski said the construction costs to outfit the space for Vampire Penguin are minimal since it used to be a dessert shop.
“It was just an opportunity that we couldn’t pass up,” he said.
Taylor Long Properties’ Robert Marshall was the broker for the lease at the Tuckahoe location.
Tacking on more locations was always in the plans for Penkalski, who has licensing rights for more Vampire Penguin locations in Virginia. With the Twin Hickory store in its fourth summer and bringing in more than $250,000 in annual revenue, he felt it was time to expand.
He added that catering services have helped drive company revenue. The Twin Hickory location also uses a trailer, dubbed the “Snowmobile,” to sell at events.
To prepare for a projected Aug. 15 opening date for the Tuckahoe store, Penkalski is working on ordering equipment and painting the new space. Staffing is no issue, he said, because employees are transferring from the Twin Hickory store.
The Vampire Penguin is the chain’s mascot.
He said most of his employees are young adults, whom he has retained with a low turnover rate because of bonus programs and competitive pay.
To prepare for the new store opening, he said he brought on team leaders earlier this year with the intention of moving them over to Tuckahoe on a full-time schedule.
During his four years as a business owner, he said he’s learned to assemble a strong team that can run the business while he works on developing it.
“It’s going from being an owner-operator to an owner-manager,” Penkalski said. “And as a small business, as you grow, you’re never going to be able to grow if you’re always working for the business, not on the business.”
Penkalski plans to add one more Vampire Penguin store to his portfolio, he hopes in about two years.
There also is a Vampire Penguin in Chesterfield, at 14822 Hull Street Road, owned by Jon Grambling.
Vampire Penguin has around three dozen locations along both coasts in 11 states, with the most in Florida.