The Ice Co

What The Ice Co does

The Ice Co is a UK-based manufacturer and supplier of packaged ice products, founded in 1860 and headquartered in South Kirkby, West Yorkshire. The legal operating entity is Iceco Ltd (company number 07000474), a private subsidiary of the family-owned holding company J Marr & Son Limited, now under sixth-generation Marr family leadership. Its product portfolio comprises four core formats - Party Ice (general-purpose ice), Super Cubes (premium cubes targeted at cocktails), Polar Cube (premium large-format ice), and The Crushed One (crushed ice for blended drinks) - sold under the single The Ice Co brand alongside smaller additional SKUs.

The company operates a multi-channel distribution model spanning major UK grocery (Tesco), a global online marketplace (Amazon), its own direct-to-consumer e-commerce shop (theiceco.shop), and a dedicated B2B trade channel serving hospitality and event venues. The Adimo integration on the corporate site allows visitors to route purchases directly into retailer baskets (e.g., Tesco online), linking owned digital real estate to third-party retail checkouts. Marketing is concentrated on organic social (Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest), a YouTube video library, a recipe-led content/blog hub, and The Cool Club email loyalty program - the latter orchestrated via Mailchimp at a cap of two emails per month.

No revenue figure, funding round, acquisition activity, or AI/ML capability is disclosed in available materials. Headcount sits in the 101-250 band (the parent-level gender-pay-report threshold of 250 indicates a sizable workforce), the company carries no public listing or external institutional investor, and it self-describes as Europe's leading ice manufacturer and the UK's No.1 ice brand. Recognition includes a 98th-place ranking on the UK's Best Workplaces 2026 list by Great Place To Work UK.

Name

The Ice Co

Legal name

Iceco Ltd

Website

https://theiceco.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1860

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Ice Co is a UK-based ice manufacturer founded in 1860, supplying packaged ice products (Party Ice, Super Cubes, Polar Cube, Crushed Ice) to consumers via Tesco, Amazon, and its own online shop, and to hospitality trade buyers via a dedicated B2B channel.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Pontefract

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Packaged Ice Products: Sale of manufactured ice products (Party Ice, Super Cubes, Polar Cube, Crushed Ice) through retail and wholesale channels

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

The Ice Co manufactures and distributes packaged ice products — including party ice, ice cubes, and crushed ice — for retail consumers and trade/wholesale customers across the UK. It is a long-established ice producer supplying grocery retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

Product overview

The Ice Co is Europe's leading ice manufacturer and the UK's No.1 ice brand, founded in 1860. The company operates as a single-brand ice manufacturer offering a portfolio of ice products under the unified The Ice Co brand. The product range consists of four main ice varieties: Party Ice (everyday general-purpose ice), Super Cubes (premium-sized ice cubes for cocktails), Polar Cube (a bestselling variant), and The Crushed One (crushed ice for blended drinks). All products are distributed through retail channels including online purchasing. The company is owned by the sixth-generation Marr family and maintains operations in West Yorkshire.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Party Ice Bagged party ice intended for consumer use at gatherings and events, sold through retail and direct online channels.
• Super Cubes Larger-format ice cubes for chilling drinks, marketed to consumers and trade buyers.
• Polar Cube Ice cube product line for cooling beverages, distributed via retail and trade channels.
• Crushed Ice Crushed ice product for consumer and trade use in drinks and food service applications.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Reddy Ice: Reddy Ice is North America's largest manufacturer and distributor of packaged ice products, serving retail, foodservice, and consumer channels. It is the most direct global comparable to The Ice Co in terms of product (bagged/loose packaged ice), distribution model (supermarket + B2B + DTC), and category leadership claim, though at much larger scale.
• Arctic Ice: Arctic Ice is a US-based packaged ice producer selling bagged ice through retail and convenience channels. Directly comparable to The Ice Co on product format and go-to-market (mass-market grocery + DTC), though focused on the North American market.
• Langley Ice & Cold Storage: Langley Ice is a UK-based ice manufacturer and cold-chain logistics provider, selling packaged ice and ice sculptures to retail and events. It is one of the closest UK-headquartered peers to The Ice Co in product mix and channel coverage.

Regional players

• Polar Ice Co. Polar Ice Co. is a US-based packaged ice supplier with similar product formats (bagged ice, cubes, crushed) sold through regional grocery and convenience channels. Comparable on product and channel, though geographically focused on the US Midwest/South and not a direct UK competitor.
• Brampton Ice Ltd: Brampton Ice is a Canadian packaged ice manufacturer supplying grocery, foodservice, and special events. Directly comparable product format to The Ice Co, but operating exclusively in the Canadian market rather than the UK/Europe.

Others

• Hoshizaki America: Hoshizaki is one of the world's largest manufacturers of commercial ice machines and refrigeration equipment used by foodservice operators. It is an adjacent participant in the ice value chain — its equipment produces ice on-premise at bars, hotels and restaurants — and therefore competes indirectly with The Ice Co's packaged ice trade channel.
• Scotsman Ice Systems: Scotsman Ice Systems is a global manufacturer of commercial ice machines and dispensers serving foodservice, healthcare, and convenience retail. Like Hoshizaki, it is adjacent rather than direct: it enables on-site ice production at venues that might otherwise buy packaged ice from The Ice Co.
• Manitowoc Ice: Manitowoc Ice (part of Welbilt/Foodservice Brands) produces commercial ice machines for the global foodservice industry. It competes indirectly by enabling hospitality customers to make ice in-house, displacing potential packaged-ice purchases from The Ice Co.
• Ice-O-Matic: Ice-O-Matic (an Ali Group brand) manufactures commercial ice machines for restaurants, bars, hotels and convenience stores worldwide. Adjacent to The Ice Co: it supplies the on-premise production equipment that can substitute for packaged ice procurement in B2B channels.
• Norlake Ice: Norlake produces commercial ice machines and cold-storage equipment for foodservice and industrial customers. It is a peripheral peer — adjacent technology rather than packaged ice — but reflects the broader ice equipment ecosystem The Ice Co participates in indirectly.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/theiceco
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TheIceCo
• Facebookfacebook.com/theiceco
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-ice-co-london
• Instagraminstagram.com/the_ice_co
• TikToktiktok.com/@theiceco
• Pinterestpinterest.co.uk/theiceco

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Ice Co