16-year-old Maryland teen takes ice cream business afloat, earning over $25,000 in one summer

Sixteen-year-old Brian Troupe turned an unsuccessful pier-side business idea into a floating ice cream business on the Bohemia River in Maryland. By the end of the 2026 summer season, his boat-based business, Troupe's Treats, had made more than $25,000 in gross sales. The young business owner started his journey at age 15 after a conversation with a neighbour gave him an idea. While they were out on the water, the neighbour mentioned that someone had once sold food to local boaters. Troupe enjoyed spending time on the water and saw a chance to earn some extra money while providing a service that few boaters could access during hot summer days. "I thought quite a bit about how I can kind of sneak past some food certifications and not have to have a sink on a boat and all of this extra equipment," Troupe told Entrepreneur magazine. "And still having something that a lot of boaters don't have on their boat."Setbacks on the shoreTroupe's first attempt to sell ice cream did not go as planned. He set up a small shop at the end of a pier, hoping boaters would stop by to buy frozen treats. However, he did not make a single sale on the first day. Boat owners were unwilling to pull up their ...