Streets Ice Cream was founded by Edwin (Ted) Street in Corrimal, a suburb of Wollongong, where he and his wife had a small grocery store. Originally hand-churned, his ice cream proved so popular that Ted soon installed a mechanical churn and began to supply other local stores. He bought his milk from south coast dairy farmers, which led to the catch cry ‘The cream of the coast’. One of the earliest products was the ‘Penny Pinky‘, a small strawberry-flavoured ice cream in a cone, sold from carts by street vendors.

In the 1930s, Street took further steps to expand his operation. In 1934 he bought the local ice works, where he began to manufacture on a larger scale. The same year, he registered his company and, in 1939, began selling his products in Sydney. The Sydney market was serviced by a depot in Bexley.

The Streets Ice Cream factory at Corrimal was famous for its neon sign featuring a polar bear licking an ice cream. While of a different design, this was remarkably similar to the equally famous Sennitt’s sign in Melbourne. Streets also used the Sennitt’s line “Bear in mind”. It’s not clear who copied whom, but my money is on Sennitt’s as the originator. In 1961, Streets was to acquire Sennitt’s and the question became moot.

In 1946, Streets established a second factory at Turella in Sydney’s south. Soon after the establishment of the Sydney factory, Streets launched their first ice cream on a stick: the Street’s Heart. The Heart remained in the range until the mid-1980s. The successful Paddle Pop arrived in 1953 and is still going strong.

In 1950, Streets Ice Cream amalgamated with Lynam’s Ice Cream, a business located in Parramatta, west of Sydney. Lynam’s had been in operation since 1930 and had a strong following in its local area. Both brands continued to be offered through the 1950s, but in 1960 the company was sold to Unilever and the Lynam’s name disappeared. The purchase of Sennitt’s in 1961 saw Streets extend its reach into Victoria. Streets went on to become a national brand, launching favourites including the Splice, Gaytime and Magnum.