Brothers Harry and Robert Borun, along with Norman Levin, founded Borun Brothers as a Los Angeles drug wholesaler. This business laid the foundation for what would later become the Thrifty name.
The Borun brothers opened their first retail stores under the name Thrifty Cut Rate Drug Store. The first location opened at 412 S. Broadway in downtown Los Angeles.
Harry and Robert Borun created Thrifty Ice Cream as an affordable in-store treat that brought customers into Thrifty Drug Stores and encouraged them to stay longer. That same year, Thrifty purchased an ice cream plant on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, giving the brand its own production home and helping establish the quality and consistency customers would come to love.
Thrifty’s iconic cylindrical scoop was introduced alongside Thrifty Ice Cream in 1940. Designed to make hard ice cream easier for employees to serve, the scooper created the clean, flat-topped shape that became one of the brand’s most recognizable trademarks.
Thrifty Ice Cream began earning gold medals at major California fairs, including the Los Angeles County Fair and California State Fair. These early wins helped establish the brand’s reputation for quality, flavor, and consistency.
By 1961, Thrifty Ice Cream had earned its thirteenth consecutive gold medal at both the Los Angeles County Fair and California State Fair, with judging based on flavor, texture, sanitation, color, body, and packaging.
By the 1970s, Thrifty Ice Cream had become a beloved part of Southern California culture. Its affordable scoops, classic flavors, and signature cylinder-shaped servings made it a neighborhood favorite.
Thrifty opened its larger ice cream facility in El Monte, California, replacing the original Hollywood plant. The new factory was built to serve hundreds of Thrifty stores and support growing wholesale demand and is where the ice cream is made to this day.
Thrifty Ice Cream earned 24 gold medals at the Los Angeles County Fair, more than any other competitor that year. The achievement reinforced Thrifty’s long-standing reputation for award-winning quality.
Thrifty Drug Stores and Thrifty PayLess were acquired by Rite Aid. Rite Aid kept Thrifty Ice Cream counters in many West Coast stores, helping preserve the brand’s loyal following.
Thrifty phased out its traditional half-gallon brick-style cartons and moved toward newer packaged formats, while keeping the same recognizable flavors and scoop-shop experience.
The El Monte factory continued producing ice cream for hundreds of Rite Aid stores and wholesale customers. Thrifty remained known for its flash-freeze process, real ingredients, and signature scoop style.
Thrifty expanded its product lineup with new flavors and smaller package sizes, including pint containers. The brand continued balancing nostalgia with new ways for customers to enjoy its ice cream.
Licensed Thrifty scoop shops continued growing in Mexico, with ice cream produced at the El Monte plant. This helped extend the brand beyond Southern California while keeping production tied to its original roots.
For the first time, Thrifty’s signature cylindrical ice cream scoop became available to the public. The tool helped preserve one of the most recognizable parts of the Thrifty Ice Cream experience.
Thrifty’s Chocolate Chip Ice Cream earned a gold medal at the Los Angeles International Dairy Competition, showing that the brand’s award-winning quality continued into a new generation.
For the first time in 85 years under new ownership, Thrifty Ice Cream is now an independent company, making ice cream the same way since 1940, and scooping memories from generation to generation.
Thrifty Ice Cream began a new chapter focused on wider distribution, updated packaging, and more flavors. The brand continues building on its Southern California legacy while reaching new customers, scooping its way to the top with real ice cream, and premium taste. The same award-winning taste since 1940.
