Photo of Marco Alfero (Left), Founder of Alfero Artisan Gelato and Andre (Right), Senior Business Advisor at SME Centre @ SMCCI.
Alfero Artisan Gelato Pte Ltd was founded by Marco Alfero in 2011 and has been in business for over 12 years manufacturing premium gelato for B2B clients. The business presently operates out of a central kitchen located at Bedok and is exploring expanding their production due to an overwhelming increase in demand.
In pursuit of growing his business, Marco reached out to Andre, Senior Business Advisor at the SME Centre @ SMCCI, for assistance.
Upon meeting with Andre, Marco identified that he would need new automated gelato production solution to sustainably support the increased demand from their clients, and sought his help to apply for the Enterprise Development Grant under process re-engineering.
Additionally, Andre guided Marco through the development of the proposal to support the company’s grant application. In doing so, he helped the business avoid the extra cost of engaging an external consultant to prepare the proposal.
The specialised gelato machine that Alfero Gelato has purchased, automates the entire process – from pasteurisation all the way to final batch freezing.
This improves the current process says Marco, “In our current kitchen, after the gelato is cooled, we need to manually extract all 330 litres of it and transfer it into a chiller. Later, we remove it from the chiller, mix in some of the flavourings, blend and manually transfer the mix to the batch freezer. Due to the various points of contact, there is a higher risk of bacterial infection. With the process now being automated, there is a lower risk of contamination.”
Through the use of the gelato machine, Alfero Gelato will see – a reduction in the amount of human labour required, an improvement in the quality of the gelato, and a reduced risk of bacterial contaminations.
Alfero Gelato’s future plans include focusing on supplying large-scale catering companies, such as airline and cruise companies, with gelato. With the opportunity to scale their business now available, they are also hoping to eventually venture overseas.
Marco shared that “It would have been very hard … without someone to recommend and strategically guide me along the process. (Andre) introduced me to some potential options that I did not consider in the past, such as different options to scale (the business) and expand faster.”
About Alfero Gelato
Alfero Artisan Gelato Pte Ltd is a premium ice cream gelato manufacturer in Singapore founded by Marco Alfero, with the aim of bringing to Singapore the experience of authentic Italian gelato produced using the best quality of imported and local ingredients.
The company supplies ice cream mainly to B2B customers such as hotels and restaurants. Alfero built the business from its’ humble beginnings of a small shop at Bedok to its current status of a well-established company, over 12 years in business. Armed with ISO 22000 and Halal certifications, you can be assured of Alfero Gelato’s premium quality.
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