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Rodney and Jennifer Sutherland had just begun to consider opening an ice cream shop when they got a sudden push toward entrepreneurialism.

Rodney Sutherland lost his job driving tractor- trailers for the U.S. Postal Service.

God “closed that door and opened another one,” Jennifer Sutherland said.

“Another example of faith at work,” her husband said.

On Saturday, the couple opened Scoops Express on Main Street.
“Everything just fell into place,” Rodney Sutherland said. “We hope to be here for years to come.”

The shop will offer 16 flavors of Hershey brand ice cream, as well as milk shakes, sundaes and floats. The shop is open in the mornings as well as evenings, and doughnuts and coffee are on the menu. Paul’s Pastry Shop in Burlington will deliver the pastries daily. The shop will be open year-round.

“We’re going to keep it simple,” Jennifer Sutherland said. “Simple and old-fashioned.”

While the couple prepared the space for Scoops Express, word spread about their plan, and many Gibsonville merchants and residents stopped by to ask them about the shop.

“We’ve been overwhelmingly welcomed,” Jennifer Sutherland said.
She’ll continue to work as a store manager at Walgreens at Adams Farm and help out at the ice cream parlor on evenings and weekends.

Her husband will run the shop by himself right now.

The couple lives in Burlington, just a few miles from the shop, and they are active members of Springwood Presbyterian Church.

They enjoy spending time in downtown Gibsonville and grew more interested in opening a business there as the Saturday market and Depot Stage concerts have grown in popularity.

“I love the feel of downtown Gibsonville,” Jennifer Sutherland said.

They chose the name of the shop, and its train logo, because of Rodney Sutherland’s love of trains. The shop has a view of the trains that pass through town, and Rodney Sutherland displays part of his miniature train collection in a glass case beneath the cash register. Also, the small ice cream parlor only has room for a few chairs and tables, so most people will take their ice cream outside.

Contact Jamie Kennedy Jones at jamie.kennedy@news-record.com or 449-4610.