Taking the High Road

High Road Craft Ice Cream & Sorbet is the brain child of Keith Schroeder and Hunter Thornton, who met while earning business degrees at Kennesaw State University. The pair actually came up with the idea for the company while preparing a business plan for one one of their classes.

One of their professors liked the plan so much that Schroeder and Thornton entered it into an international business competition that pitted their model against students from prestigious learning institutions across the country and the world.

They won, earning the duo a $7,000 award for capital start up costs, but more importantly, creating local buzz throughout the college's campus. So much so that students started handing them money to invest in the company.

High Road opened its doors last Halloween. The ice cream company's base of operations and production facility is tucked away in an unassuming building in Chamblee. However, all you have to do is walk through the door to feel that something special is happening here.

Hunter and Keith have already expanded their operation to producing 450 gallons of ice cream and sorbet a day to help fulfill orders for over 150 clients across the Southeast from Virginia to the Caribbean Islands.

Each flavor is researched, developed and crafted in-house by a team of skilled culinary wizards including executive chef Kenny Botte, chef Lorenz Quiambao and chef Lauren Holte. The team has created over 50 unique flavors in the past year and are continuously looking to expand their line.

"Ice cream is the product but it's not the soul at this company," Thornton said. "We're building a family here and I really love that."