Executive Spotlight: Who Is Tony Lamb, Kona Ice's Founder & CEO? (2027)

Current role and company

Franchising.com's October 2024 release on Kona Ice's licensing deal with Brandgenuity titles Lamb the CEO and founder of Kona Ice. The Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame lists him as founder and CEO of both Kona Ice and Travelin' Tom's Coffee Truck.

• CompanyKona Ice, a mobile shaved-ice franchise headquartered in Florence, Kentucky; NKyTribune describes a seven-acre corporate campus there.
• TitleFounder and CEO (Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame; October 2024 release).
• Other ventureTravelin' Tom's Coffee Truck, a mobile coffee franchise launched in 2020.
• TrainingKONA Kollege, the company's franchisee training facility, founded in 2012 according to NKyTribune.

Career path

• Early work. NKyTribune says he grew up in West Virginia, earned a business accounting degree at the University of Kentucky and began his working life selling vacuum cleaners door to door.
• Consulting. A 2016 NKyTribune profile says he worked in Louisville as a contract marketing consultant before the idea for Kona Ice took shape in 2006.
• First trucks, 2007. The same profile says the first trucks went out in summer 2007, and an October 2024 NKyTribune article says he drove the first truck around Boone County in June 2007.
• Franchising, 2008. Franchising began about a year after launch, with a handful of trucks. The 2016 profile reports franchise sales growing from 50 in 2009 to 142 in 2014.
• Kona Mini, 2012. The company introduced a smaller truck for selling indoors in winter, per NKyTribune.
• Travelin' Tom's, 2020. NKyTribune says the mobile coffee concept launched in 2020; the Hall of Fame profile reports 150 franchised trucks on the road by the end of 2023.

What he is known for

• A franchise built on giving back. Kona Ice's model sends a share of sales to schools and groups. The company said in October 2024 that it had donated more than $180 million, and NKyTribune's 2025 profile cites more than $200 million from Kona Ice and its franchisees.
• Flavorwave. NKyTribune credits Lamb with inventing Flavorwave, the self-serve system that lets customers customize their shaved ice.
• Pivot in 2020. A January 2021 release describes Kurbside Kona, an app-based, door-to-door model with contactless prepayment that the company built during the pandemic. Lamb said the team "redirected our time and focus into innovating the business model."
• Licensing. In October 2024 Kona Ice named Brandgenuity its exclusive licensing agency, with plans to extend the brand into food and beverage, toys and lifestyle products.
• Recognition. He was inducted into the Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame in 2023, was named Cincinnati Business Courier's 2021 CEO for a large private company according to the Hall of Fame profile, and was an NKyTribune NewsMaker of the Year in 2025.

Leadership style and philosophy

In the company's 2018 release on passing 1,000 franchised trucks, Lamb said, "The growth and profitability of our existing franchisees is what is allowing us to accelerate franchising," and described entrepreneurship as "an opportunity to positively impact the lives of others."

In his 2023 Hall of Fame announcement he said Kona Ice "is not just about shaved ice; it's a vehicle for creating a positive influence." The company's stated mission is "Be Good. Do Good. For Good." NKyTribune also reports that he still occasionally drives a Kona truck himself. This page does not claim a broader management philosophy than these remarks.

Key numbers

Company-reported figures for Kona Ice, with the period shown. Counts differ because each source uses a different date and definition of a unit.

• February 2016More than 700 trucks and about 40 local employees; $35 million given to schools and groups (NKyTribune, citing the company).
• January 2018More than 1,000 franchised trucks and more than 1,400 units including minis and kiosks; more than $50 million given (company release).
• January 2021More than $82 million donated since June 2007 (company release).
• November 2023More than 2,600 mobile units in 49 states (NKyTribune, Hall of Fame announcement).
• October 2024Nearly 3,000 points of sale in 49 states; more than $180 million given (company release).
• Travelin' Tom's, end of 2023150 franchised trucks and more than 300 reservations for future trucks (Hall of Fame profile).

Questions people ask

Sources

• NKyTribune: NewsMakers '25, Tony Lamb grew Kona Ice into a major national mobile enterprise · Background, Flavorwave, KONA Kollege, giving total, Travelin' Tom's
• NKyTribune: From shaved ice guys to nationally recognized brand (Feb 24, 2016) · Early career, 2006-2008 timeline, 2016 numbers, hero photo captioned with his name
• NKyTribune: KY Entrepreneur Hall of Fame 2023 inductees · 2023 induction, 2,600+ units, quote
• NKyTribune: Tony Lamb's Kona Ice connects with Brandgenuity (Oct 2024) · First truck June 2007, Kona Mini, licensing plans
• Franchising.com: Kona Ice Serves Up Licensing with Brandgenuity (Oct 9, 2024) · Title, nearly 3,000 points of sale, $180 million
• Franchising.com: Kona Ice Prioritizes Innovation During COVID-19 (Jan 5, 2021) · Kurbside Kona, $82 million, quote
• Franchising.com: Kona Ice Achieves Franchise Industry 1K Status (Jan 18, 2018) · 1,000 trucks, quotes
• Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame: Tony Lamb · Roles, Travelin' Tom's 150 trucks, 2021 CEO award

Facts were read from the linked pages on November 1, 2026. Unit counts differ across sources and dates, so each figure is shown with its source, and promotional claims in page sidebars were not used. The hero photo is the portrait NKyTribune published in 2016, where its caption names him as the founder of Kona Ice; it was taken by Mark Hansel and is centered on a blurred card because the original is small. This page covers public professional information only.

Top photo: Mark Hansel / NKyTribune