School-to-Community: Mrs. Erin Torroro of Sundaes

For students wondering if later on in life it is possible to embark on a different path than they had originally intended, Mrs. Erin Torroro’s path shows that no matter where you are in your career, you can still dive into a new occupation.  She is the owner of Sundaes, a self-serve frozen yogurt, ice cream, and gelato shop in Port Jefferson Station.

“I was an ultrasound technician for 20 years, and then I started to look around for something else. I saw a sign in the window that this business could be mine. It was a franchise when I opened it, and then I took a chance and said, ‘I think I’m going to try and do this.’ It sounded more fun than the medical field.”

As a businesswoman, Mrs. Torroro had advice for students thinking of going into the entrepreneurial world. She said to try to work in a similar business and to shadow someone in that business to gain insight and experience.

Mrs. Torroro found that taking public speaking and business courses in high school was helpful.

Although she owns the shop today, Mrs. Torroro had to deal with some challenges.

“Brookhaven town didn’t make it easy. Right before we opened the doors, they made us put a grease trap in. We are an ice cream shop, and we don’t do anything with grease, but Brookhaven town makes everybody with a restaurant put one in, so that was a lot of money that we didn’t count on.”

Despite this hiccup, Mrs. Torroro was able to open her shop, which at the time was part of a franchise. She has since left the franchise, and is now able to have creative freedom to expand the variety of items she sells to include gelato, acai bowls, iced coffee, and edible cookie dough.

Mrs. Torroro has also included hosting children’s birthday parties.  “We do face painting, temporary tattoos, and musical chairs. If the kids are older, they’ll do dances like Cotton Eye Joe where the kids know all the dance moves, and it’s so cute. They have so much fun. That’s my favorite part.”

Mrs. Torroro advises high school students not to stress out. “Go to college and find something you love,” she said. She also has advice for students about to start volunteering or working at a part-time job.

“When you get a job, be the best employee. Strive to be better than everyone else. Strive to be the best one, and you’ll always have a job; you’ll always get more hours than everyone else. Walk in with the attitude, ‘I’m going to try to be the best one here, the best that I can be.’ That comes through. I always give those [employees] more hours, and I give them great recommendations when someone calls me.”

Mrs. Torroro revealed a skill she has noticed that teens are not familiar with. “It’s hard when kids are working in the area they live in because they’ll know a lot of people and sometimes people come in that they don’t get along with… and they will still have to be nice and serve them as customers whether they like them or not. It’s sometimes a challenge, but coworkers tend to help with that.”