Rob Roy Dairy Sold To New Owners

Rob Roy Dairy Sold To New Owners

A kiddie-sized scoop

Rob Roy has been officially sold to a new owner as of July 17th. The iconic Dunedin dairy, famous for its hefty amounts of ice cream and massive cones (wheyyyy), had been up for sale since March 2nd before being purchased by new owners the Wednesday before last. 

As the old guard looks to pass the scoop to new management at the beginning of next month, it’s worth asking: Can students expect any changes to their mid-study sweet treat?

The short answer is no, so there really isn’t a lot to report on here. Critic Te Ārohi nabbed an exclusive chance to speak to the new owner Freya who was eager to take on the challenge of one of Studentville’s most prized possessions. Freya insisted that it will “all remain the same.” She confirmed: “Same ice cream size, same price.” Music to the ears of ice cream lovers, and a relatively deflated Critic that the news wasn’t a great scoop.

Speaking to Critic in March, previous owner Liz Watson had said, “The dairy wouldn’t be the same without [the students]. I wouldn’t have introduced the ice cream parlor if it wasn’t for the students and this area.” Now, having finally sold her business, she said, “It's all really quite daunting [...] I’ve been [at Rob Roy] 17 years now [...] It’s hard to let go.” Over those 17 years, Liz turned Rob Roy into one of Otepoti’s iconic attractions, allegedly to her surprise at the media attention the news of the dairy’s sale attracted in March. 

Third-year and self-proclaimed Rob Roy veteran Molly told Critic that, despite the change of ownership, she “hopes it continues to be great”. Molly also acknowledged the pressure that will come with living up to the high standards and legacy Rob Roy has created: “I think that it would be a pretty stressful job [to come into], and the people who have been running it thus far have done a great job.”

This article first appeared in Issue 16, 2024.
Posted 8:40pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Angus Rees.