Canton family adds coffee truck to popular Kona Ice business
The Berryhills stand in front of their Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee truck Saturday morning.
Given the hot and cold range of southeast-Michigan residents’ taste buds, it was only natural for Canton’s Berryhill family — husband and wife Jeff and Jennifer; and son Wilson — to combine their thriving Kona Ice business with a Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee Truck, a four-year-old sister brand of Kona Ice.
During Saturday’s Belleville Harvest Festival — with the temperature settling at a perfect autumn-like 60 degrees — the family’s widely-recognized, eye-catching Kona truck was parked just a few feet from its three-week-old Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee truck, giving festival attendees a welcoming option for their palates.
“People love Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee because the coffee is made from freshly-ground beans and they love the variety of products and speed-of-service,” said Jennifer Berryhill, who recently retired as a teacher at Smith Elementary School in Plymouth.
“We have a variety of hot and cold coffee products. The frappes are very popular and the hot chocolate is amazing.”
Successful career shift
Jeff Berryhill, who left his successful 24-year career as an engineer in 2017 to become a Kona Ice franchisee, said expanding the family’s business to coffee products was a no-brainer.
“First of all, it’s a great product,” Berryhill said. “And adding Travelin’ Tom’s allows us to extend our season to pretty much 10 months of the year.
“It’s appealing, too, for our full-time employees who want to be able to work for a long stretch of time, not just the six or seven months peak months for our Kona business.”
The Berryhills’ fleet of Kona Ice trucks has grown to eight over the past seven years as their southeast-Michigan coverage area has stretched from parts of Canton to Belleville, Novi, Northville, Ann Arbor and Downriver communities.
“We only have the one Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee Truck now, but we’re looking to add another one next summer and then gradually add more,” he said. “Since the coffee truck first became operational three weeks ago, we’ve asked event organizers who have booked our Kona trucks if they mind if we bring the Travelin’ Tom’s truck, too, and they’ve been very receptive to it.”
Tom’s compelling backstory
Travelin’ Tom’s was launched in 2020 by the same company that owns Kona Ice. It’s namesake is the father of the Kona Ice founder, Tony Lamb.
“Tom is a very charismatic, likable man with a great sense of humor,” said Jeff Berryhill. “When the idea for the coffee truck business was launched, they initially had a difficult time coming up with a name. One of their marketing people came up with the idea of naming it after Tony Lamb’s dad because of his likability and charisma, so Tom’s face is the face of the brand.”
Berryhill said the Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee trucks are equipped with state-of-the-art technology that is not dependent on them being plugged into a generator.
“The advanced coffee-making machines we use are battery-powered, which gives us more freedom in terms of where we can park,” he said. “And if they’re running low on power, we can just start up the truck and it provides energy for the coffee-making machines.”
Patte brews great latte
The Berryhills hired Patte Saganowicz, a former Plymouth-Canton Community Schools para-professional, as their coffee truck manager.
“She does a great job,” Jennifer Berryhill said. “Our variety of products is so wide, it takes a knowledgeable person to operate the machines. Our customers have raved about not only the quality of the products, but the speed of service.”
Travelin’ Tom’s website says is all as far as what customers can expect: “Our goal is to serve you delicious, customizable beverages made fresh on the truck. Come give us a visit and grab a cup o’ joe — we’ll make you feel right at home.”
An added bonus to booking Travelin’ Tom’s for an event is that the Berryhills will often donate a portion of their profits to the organization hosting the event.
“We like to give back to schools and non-profit organizations,” Jennifer said.
To learn more about Travelin’ Tom’s services or to book an event, check out its Facebook page by clicking here.
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