Danish couple to open ice cream shop on Hermosa Avenue
Camilla Cramer and Lars Hartmann, a young couple from Copenhagen, are ready to serve Danish ice cream to Hermosa Beach. Photo
Last summer, a young couple from Copenhagen was trekking through California, on a brief road trip for the first time in the state. They came across Hermosa Beach and were immediately taken with the small beach town.
“It’s very similar to the European style,” Lars Hartmann said. “Hermosa Beach is a European city with an American twist. That’s how it appeared to us.”
A year later, the couple is opening up a Danish ice cream shop on Hermosa Avenue. A Paradis ice cream franchise, which boasts nearly 60 original flavors including vegan sorbets, the shop is set to open this weekend in time for Fiesta Hermosa. This will be Paradis’ fourth location in L.A. County.
Lars and Camilla Cramer, both 30, first crossed paths in Copenhagen’s old meatpacking district in the fall of 2012 and have been together since. They shared an apartment in the city’s central area, where Lars worked in finance and Camilla was finishing up her master’s degree in linguistics.
Just around the corner from their apartment was Camilla’s favorite ice cream shop, Paradis, flanked by a Ben & Jerry’s and an Italian ice cream cafe. A self-described ice cream fanatic, she always chose Paradis for its lighter texture. Though creamy, it’s not a heavy cream-based ice cream.
Paradis, which since 2000 has expanded to 43 cafes across Denmark, is known for handcrafted ice cream and sorbet made fresh daily from fresh fruit, milk or water and no artificial ingredients. All of its sorbets are vegan.
“When we found out they were looking for franchising, we thought that had to be us,” she said.
The couple went through the interview process and came out on top, fulfilling their dream of living in a new country. Lars’ brother and sister-in-law did too — they’ll be opening up a shop in Seal Beach. Camilla said she and Lars explored other areas in L.A. county but knew Hermosa Beach was the right place. The two currently live in Long Beach.
Since moving stateside in April, the couple has been busy trying to adjust to a new country while preparing for the shop’s grand opening. They’ve been spending a lot of time in Hermosa Beach, becoming increasingly enamored with the dog- and bicycle-friendly culture and its clean beach. It’s the only beach they’ve felt compelled to go in the water, they said.
“To be honest, we felt like it was now or never,” Camilla said. “We don’t have anything to tie us down, like children … It’s a huge opportunity to try living in a new country. You have all these images of what it will be like but you never know until you’re actually there.” ER