Today we’d like to introduce you to Minh Nguyen.
Hi Minh, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Both my wife, Tu Nguyen, and I came to the United States as international students. I began college in Southern California in the early 2000s, while my wife attended college in Texas in the late 2000s. We met at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, where I was pursuing my master’s degree in Computer Science and she was completing her bachelor’s degree in Finance. During our early days together, we often went to Dairy Queen for ice cream on our dates.
Three months before I defended my thesis, I received a job offer from a nearby credit union, which marked the start of my professional career. We got married after my wife completed her MBA at St. Cloud State University. A year later, I was promoted to a managerial role. Around the same time, my wife had to stop working at Wells Fargo’s Corporate Tax Center because she was on an F-1 visa and could not continue working without employer sponsorship.
A few years later, we were blessed with twin sons. Just months after their birth, we were thrilled to receive our green cards, allowing us to live and work permanently in the United States. I continued to advance my career through various management roles, relocating from Michigan to Maryland to support my family. In my previous role, I managed a globally distributed team of 75 professionals.
In 2023, during a family road trip in Virginia, I missed a highway turn and had to turn around. Our sons, sitting in the back seat, asked for ice cream, and I replied, “We’re in the middle of a small town surrounded by cornfields—there’s no ice cream shop around.” I was wrong. Just before the GPS rerouted us back to the highway, we spotted an ice cream shop. We stopped and ordered ice cream for the family and were immediately amazed by its outstanding taste. I had never been much of an ice cream fan, but I had to admit this ice cream was unlike anything I had ever tried.
That moment sparked an idea. My wife suggested opening an ice cream shop to make our sons’ dream come true—Aulac and Annam had wanted to be ice cream men since they were four years old. I replied, “This ice cream is so good, it must be family-owned, but let’s research it when we get home.” Tu later discovered that Bruster’s Real Ice Cream is a franchise business, and our family became excited about the possibility of owning our own ice cream store.
We signed the franchise agreement in early 2024 and the lease for our store in late 2024. While the store was under construction in early 2025, I transitioned into a new role as Vice President of Technology. We officially opened our store on April 25, 2025. My people management experience helped us successfully launch the store with 26 new hires, and even during the slower season, we continue to maintain a payroll of 15 employees. To share our journey with customers, we display our sons’ preschool drawings and photos on the store walls, illustrating their childhood dream of becoming ice cream men and the inspiration behind how our ice cream store began.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Opening a small business or a startup company is never easy. For our ice cream store, the first challenge was to find a prime location and it has to be approved by the corporate. The next challenge was to hire enough employees to operate the store. Even though I have been a technologist, we have had technical difficulty from the payment processing provider, NCR. They payment system and order system didn’t work well as expected and the corporate couldn’t help much. We had to figure out the solution on our own. Then it came to the human resources challenge where we had to let go employees who didn’t fit.
We’ve been impressed with Bruster’s Bel Air, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Bruster’s Real Ice Cream offers some of the best ice cream available. The secret behind its premium quality lies in its tightly controlled base mix, sourced from dairy farms owned by the brand’s founder, Bruce Reed, and its use of top-notch ingredients. Bruster’s ice cream contains only 22% air, compared to 28% or more in many other brands, resulting in a richer, creamier taste.
At our store, we strictly follow Bruster’s recipes and preparation standards, which truly sets us apart from other ice cream options in the market. We also provide a comfortable dine-in area where customers can enjoy their ice cream on both hot and cold days. Kids especially love visiting our store to play with the toys in our dedicated play corner, which we refresh with new toys from time to time.
In addition to in-store service, we offer fundraising events, catering, and delivery through DoorDash, allowing our community to enjoy Bruster’s Real Ice Cream in even more ways.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
For small business entrepreneurs, I would suggest getting advice from Maryland Small Business Development Center. We had some great help from Mr. Ryan Del Gallo before we started our business.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brustersbelair/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brustersbelair/
