Mad Pops didn’t start in 2014.

It started about a year before that, somewhere very unglamorous. We used to call it the golden dookie idea because yes, that’s exactly where it dropped into our heads.

Before there was a store, there were markets. Before there was a brand, there was experimenting. We were making popsicles with whatever we could get our hands on, playing with flavours, using local fruit, coconut, spices figuring things out as we went. Eventually, we got lucky and landed a small spot on a busy street in Bali.

We started churning coconut-based ice cream because that’s what we grew up eating. In Bahasa Indonesia, it’s called es puter. It tasted like childhood. But es puter alone wasn’t enough. At the same time, we had Baskin Robbins somewhere in the back of our minds so the idea became clear: coconut-based ice cream, but done our way. Familiar, but modern. Playful, but serious about flavour.

Eleven years later, we’ve made over 40 flavours, with coconut as our backbone. Along the way, we opened six stores in eight years. Today, only two remain. Some closed because rent went up. Some because the location just didn’t work. That’s the reality of running a business in a place that changes faster than you can keep up with.

We also learned something else the hard way: trends can scream louder than the product. We were part of that too. Once, we put up a neon sign that said Ice Ice Baby. It went wildly viral. And quietly, we asked ourselves — do they even like the ice cream?

Things changed again. Coconut prices changed. Supply changed. The Indonesian government started exporting coconuts in large quantities, and suddenly the type of coconut we rely on from a very specific area became harder to find, and harder to afford. So we adapted. We introduced dairy not because it was trendy, but because it was necessary. We know it won’t be for everyone. That’s something we’ve learned to live with.

And somewhere in all of this the openings, the closings, the algorithms, the pressure to constantly sell we got tired. Tired of chasing trends. Tired of social media noise. Tired of over-branding and shouting for attention.

So we slowed down.

Mad Pops is still about ice cream. But it’s also about conversation. About thoughts that sit with you. About asking questions not just about flavour, but about life, the world, and how things come to be. We want this to be a place where you can pause, think, talk, and share a scoop or two while you’re at it.

This is where we are now.
Still figuring it out.
Still experimenting.
Still making ice cream we care about.

x

Marty + peetie