Sweet Success

High school juniors open shaved ice business
By Phoebe Warren

Photo by shane darby.

Will Parker Davis and Braden Asimos have been friends as long as they can remember. Their parents being good friends, the two have grown up together and formed an inseparable bond. Both born and raised in Texarkana, high school juniors Will and Braden have a deep appreciation for Texarkana and its community. 

Unsurprisingly, the two friends enjoy similar interests, and both enjoy the golf program at Texas High School. While Braden just joined the golf team this past year, Will has played his entire high school career, attending every varsity tournament. 

When the duo steps off the driving range, they have another passion to focus on: entrepreneurship. “We both have always tried to find ways to make money,” Braden said. “I want to become a successful entrepreneur.” 

The two pride themselves on their good instincts and tenacity. “We have always been business-minded,” Will said. “I have owned a landscaping business since I was 9 years old. I have been doing that every summer, and [Braden] mows and resells cars.” 

Will and Braden decided to take a break from mowing to pursue a business more brick-and-mortar in nature: a snow cone stand. 

“We saw that there wasn’t a shaved ice stand around the area where we live,” Braden recalled. “We decided to take a chance and open one.” The idea for the stand was concocted around April 2023, and the two have spent the past year making the necessary preparations to start slinging snow cones. Their opening day was May 13th of this year. Their business, called Twin City Shaved Ice, is located at 5535 Pleasant Grove Road in Texarkana, Texas.

Will and Braden have been inseparable since they were small children. Submitted photos.

When asked why they wanted to open the stand, Will and Braden had the same answer. “We opened it to make money,” they both answered. 

“We are opening the snow cone stand because we saw an opportunity to excel at a business, and we are taking a chance,” Braden explained. “We hope to turn our business into a go-to place for shaved ice in Texarkana.” 

The duo are no strangers to hard work, and they have a good sense of what a new business entails. Will knows they will have to present a good product and serve it quickly. “I hope [that we are] a place where the community can come and grab a delicious snow cone,” he said. 

Braden knows that, beyond the product, elbow grease and community are the secret ingredients to success. “It takes a lot of hard work and perseverance,” he said. “Most importantly, you need to have good connections.” 

When asked of their future plans, Will and Braden aim for bigger, better, and brighter lives going forward. Braden plans to go into real estate and is excited about that potential path. Will plans to keep his entrepreneurial fire burning. “I’ll keep doing what I’m doing,” he said. “I’ll keep building the empire.”