After 75 years of serving up sandwiches, soups, and its iconic Choco-Cremes, Lic’s Deli & Ice Cream is turning the page. The Smith family — who has owned the business for more than six decades — has sold the beloved brand to Jodi Ashby.
“For two generations, you’ve let us be part of your lives: birthday celebrations, lunch breaks, first dates, after-school treats, and countless everyday moments. It’s been the honor of a lifetime,” the family said in announcing the sale.
The business began in 1950 and was purchased by Don Smith in 1963 while he was working as a bank teller. Smith, along with his wife, Jane, and daughters, Jamia Brown and Kara Combs, grew Lic’s from a single Evansville store into a regional staple known for its scratch-made bread, old-fashioned soda fountain-style milkshakes, and signature Choco-Cremes.
Expansion began in Evansville in the mid-1960s and continued through the 1970s and 1980s, including the opening of the Owensboro store around 1982. Today, Lic’s operates seven locations — four in Evansville, one in Newburgh, one in Vincennes, and one in Owensboro — plus an industrial bakery and ice cream plant. The plant manager has been making ice cream for nearly 50 years, and many front-line employees have been with the company for decades.
“I wouldn’t have wanted it if I thought that it all needed to be changed,” Ashby said. “I think the sandwiches are really quality. I think the ice cream is even more so, and I don’t plan on changing any of that at all.”
All of Lic’s ice cream is made in-house using an 18% cream recipe that dates back to the original owner. Choco-Cremes are handmade daily at each store, and bread for sandwiches is baked from scratch in the Evansville bakery before being delivered fresh to stores each morning.
Ashby said she plans to continue the same focus on quality and community that made Lic’s a household name.
“I’m incredibly grateful to God, to the Smith family, and the amazing Lic’s team for trusting me with this treasured company,” she said. “Lic’s is more than just ice cream and deli shoppes — it’s a legacy, and I’m honored to help write its next chapter.”
Brown said the decision to sell came in part because there wasn’t another generation of family ready to step in.
She said Ashby’s respect for the business’s history, its community ties, and the art on the walls made her an ideal successor.
The connection between Ashby and Lic’s dates back years. Nearly five years to the day before the sale closed, she had reached out to Brown about the possibility of buying the business. At closing, the Smith family gave her a copy of that original email with the date circled.
Ashby called the transition “a team effort” and noted that Brown will remain in a consulting role to help ensure a smooth changeover.
The Smith family expressed confidence that Ashby’s passion for the brand makes her “the perfect fit for Lic’s future.”
Ashby said any expansion — including the possibility of another Owensboro location — will come only after she has had time to settle into ownership.
While she sees opportunities for growth down the road, she said her immediate focus is on honoring the legacy and maintaining the quality that has defined Lic’s for 75 years.
