Bringing in the beach hut
Two brothers re-open shaved ice shop to pay toward schooling endeavors
Dean and Joseph Hendricks are opening Beach Hut Shaved Ice in hopes to not only pay for their schooling, but also the expenses of their three younger siblings. The grand opening of the brother’s business will take place March 26 in the Kroger parking lot off of Wards Road, at its central location, where free small snow cones will be served all day long.
Back in business — Dean and Joseph Hendricks plan to re-open Beach Hut Shaved Ice March 26, and they will be serving free snow cones throughout the opening day. Photo credit: Matt Pierce
The brothers bought the property in August 2015 and immediately began renovating two weeks before school started again.
“It was just me here, living in my friend’s apartment for a week, sleeping on his couch (and) … going to work at the Beach Hut by myself,” Joseph Hendricks said.
“ … I’d say a lot of growing up happened in that week.”
They first opened up in mid August until Oct. 31 before closing down for the winter months to start marketing for its upcoming grand opening.
Joseph Hendricks explained that they had a friend in Tennessee whom they would visit as they were growing up who opened up his own shaved ice business and that he was their inspiration to start the Beach Hut.
“It’s very low investment with possible high return,” Dean Hendricks said.
Dean Hendricks is a junior business student at Liberty who also works for the athletic department. Joseph Hendricks is a freshman engineering student who is a part of the Student Government Association (SGA) and their younger siblings plan on attending Liberty as well.
“(My parents) don’t say it’s a big deal, but we know it’s a big deal to put five kids through college within the span of 10 (to) 12 years,” Dean Hendricks said. “We definitely wanted to help out.”
As of right now, Dean and Joseph Hendricks are the only two employees of the Beach Hut, as well as the co-owners, and they operate the business during the entirety of the hours they are open. It stays open until 10 p.m. every night and offers four different sizes of snow cones and 32 different flavors including some special, not-on-the-menu combinations such as ‘surf wax’ and ‘little mermaid.’
“We’re working hard to make this Beach Hut the best thing that we can, not just for us but to set the example for what a hard working Christian should look like,” Joseph Hendricks said.
Dean Hendricks echoed his brother’s thoughts, explaining that working hard and not cheating the system was what an honorable, Christian business should look like.
“Not every person who has dedicated their life to following Christ wholeheartedly has to be a pastor, but they can put their heart and soul into a business and run it above par,” Dean Hendricks said.
Beyond the Beach Hut Shaved Ice main location in the Kroger parking lot on Wards Road is a mobile unit they can move anywhere, which allows them to serve their product at events. So far they will be serving their shaved ice at a Liberty University tennis match, Forest Middle School’s annual reading day, and also Lynchstock Music Festival.
“I think the major thing is, Christians really should be known for being the best workers,” Joseph Hendricks said. “… I want to set that example for our siblings too as they grow up.”
Pierce is a news reporter.