Collegian Cameron Farmilo (Hamilton 1995 - 1997) and his team began handcrafting fun ice cream flavour combinations at their fine dining restaurant. The popularity of their atypical combinations, “sparked the idea of opening a stand-alone scoop store where we could really focus on more flavour development, the idea flew from there,” says Cam.

With a few favourite staples ready for market, the business opened in 2015. Named after an island in the Waikato River, Duck Island is a secret spot where the neighbourhood kids love to swim.

Among their now 50 variations, flavours include Strawberry Coconut Lime Leaf, Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, and Salted Caramel Cacao Crumb. ‘Duck’ proudly guarantees that whatever is in the flavour’s title will be in the recipe. Duck Island also highlights other local producers and food brands in the flavour combinations.

As the success of Duck Island rapidly grew, Cam let go of the restaurant to focus on ice cream expansion and opening more stores. The business now stocks pints of ice cream in supermarkets nationwide and employs more than 200 staff members at the factory, head office and six scoop stores. Outside the usual scooping operations, the infamous Duck Truck and Trailer can be spotted at all the best Waikato events.

The business is constantly evolving and the team is always looking for new locations and neighbourhoods that would fit the brand well.

Through finding an opportunity to include their customers, Duck Island has run several competitions over the past few years including one where children submitted their dreamt-up ice cream creations in the hopes of seeing them come to life. After much anticipation, the winning flavours included ‘Le Duck Island French Breakfast’ and ‘Grannies Afternoon Tea.’

As a proud Collegian, Cam describes St Paul’s Collegiate School as a “foundational part of his education.” He adds, Tihoi Venture School was a stand-out grounding experience as it taught me to be confident in following and trusting my instincts.

Outside of ice cream, Cam plays the drums - a skill he learned while attending St Paul’s. He also loves spending time with his three young children making it a family priority to have regular holidays together.