*COPYRIGHT MUSIC*

Meet the ice cream man always selling 99s to celebs - including Princess Beatrice and Holly Willoughby.

Steve Hawkins, 52, who is originally from Essex, decided to start his ice cream van after work as a black cab driver dried up during the pandemic.

His company, called Bossie's Ice Creams, has now gone on to secure a licence selling in the capital's Canary Wharf, meaning he often serves desserts to A-listers.

Through volunteering to help at charity events, the business owner has sold frozen treats to some of the biggest names from Davina McCall to Gareth Southgate.

But, having driven celebs including Oasis and Richard Branson in his cab, the businessman says he never gets star struck and believes they are "just like us."

Steve said: "I have had a lot of celebrity customers, but I treat everyone the same. "

"All the celebs act the same. Everyone becomes like a child when they see an ice cream van. There is just so much nostalgia no matter who you are. It never leaves you. "

"They are all really down-to-earth people in my experience."

Coming from a council estate upbringing, Steve got his first job aged 14 working at fruit stalls in Medway, Kent, every Saturday.

The businessman says this is where his work ethic began, and it is also where he met his wife, who he now shares two children with.

He then went on to secure a job as a black cab driver in London, becoming successful enough to have a "fleet of black cabs." "

However, with business very slow across the pandemic, the dad decided it was time to try something new, and he spent four months doing unpaid work in an ice cream van.

Steve said: "I had a council estate upbringing, which is a great background as it makes you hungry. "

"I loved being a cab driver. It was hard graft but great. The change came when the pandemic hit. Nobody could go anywhere and I was doing nothing."



"One week the ice cream man came down, and he asked me if I wanted to learn more about the business."

"It is a tough industry to get into, as it is all family businesses, so I jumped at the chance. A door opened and I ran through it."

One day, Steve decided it was time to take the plunge and he spent £95,000 on his own first ice cream van.

Having friends at BGC, a brokerage and financial tech firm, the dad volunteered to work at their charity event for September 11 attacks, which landed him a full time spot in Canary Wharf.

It is through these events that he gets to serve 99p flakes to the biggest British celebs from sports stars to TV presenters.

He added: "Sometimes you have to take a chance, and every now and then you give and get back. If I hadn't offered my help I never would be where I am today. "

"It has just gotten bigger and bigger. It is crazy."

"When I told my friends I was buying an ice cream van they all laughed. They thought I was winding them up. Nobody thought I would go through with it."

"I was a kid in a council estate who couldn't afford an ice cream, so to see the joy on the kid's faces is the best part. "

"Everyone is always happy to see you from a child to a parent to a grandparent. You always bring a smile to people's faces."

The business is still growing, and Steve now has two electric Mercedes vans which were converted by Whitby Morrison, with his latest purchase costing a whopping £188,600.

The owner says that it is a tough job, but he is still eager to grow, with dreams of expanding to Dubai in the future.

He said: "It is a great job, though it is hard work. You have to clean all the machines at the start of every day."

"The vans are not cheap, so it is a big investment. But that shows my dedication to this industry."

"Running a business isn't for everyone, it isn't easy."

But I love it, and I am still hungry. I just want to make it bigger and bigger.

"I wish I had discovered this industry 30 years ago."