MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — While many businesses have been rebuilt after sustaining hurricane damage, other business owners have faced a tough decision on whether to reopen.

But Joe Lalond had to make that decision to close Frost Oasis, an ice cream shop that offers other deserts too.

Scooping ice cream isn’t as easy as it looks.

“And a lot of sore wrists — anyone who works in an ice cream shop gets sore wrists,” he explained.

But Lalond said the hard work is worth it.

“What I love is dealing with customers, making people happy, especially the kids. Everyone loves getting ice cream,” he said.

Lalond has owned Frosty Oasis since 2023. The sweet shop had two locations: one in downtown Palmetto and another on Anna Maria Island, a more profitable spot.

But Lalond won’t be serving ice cream in Holmes Beach anymore. The damage that the shop suffered from hurricanes Helene and Milton proved too costly to repair, forcing him to permanently close.

“We had 80% of our life savings into the island location,” he said. “It was definitely a great chapter of our life — it was a dream that we had, and we had built it up. We had built a great name in the community. We were just catching our stride.”

Now, he hopes to catch his stride in Palmetto.

“We’re hoping to grow this business. We don’t get as much business in this location. We’re in a busy marina, and parking can be a challenge. We don’t have the tourist component that we did on Anna Maria Island,” he said.

While Anna Maria Island was a more lucrative location, he hopes introducing some new ideas will bring in more business.

“We’re going to do some door hangers, which worked really well for us on the island. We’re going to introduce some new products,” Lalond said.

He is moving on, closing one chapter of his business and staying focused on what remains. Lalond said now he is looking to add some food options to help his business stand out and increase revenue.