Arduino Fusaro comes to Scotland to work in a brick works as part of scheme to reconstruct post-war Britain. Two years later he will send for his wife, Amelia, two sons, Vince and Tony, who will travel to London by train with no English and only what they could carry.
Arduino would work firing bricks at Annbank for four years, cycling to Ayr on his days off to work, unpaid, in a café, gaining the experience he needed to open his own venture…
Arduino and Amelia open their first café in Newmilns, in the heart of the Irvine Valley. Here, Arduino begins making his own ice cream, to a simple but delicious recipe, made fresh daily.
The proud purchase of their first ice cream van! A beautiful Morris ice cream van, which Arduino takes up and down the streets of Galston and Kilmarnock blowing a whistle and beeping his horn to catch the attention of potential customers!
The family runs the café in Newmilns until 1961, gaining a dedicated customer base and installing mod cons such as the town’s first ever jukebox!
After driving the length of the UK from Alness to Brighton looking for potential premises for a new family shop, Arduino, Amelia and their by now four children move to Cupar, Fife! They take over a wee café in Cupar with Venetian mirrors and little marble tables. They would later expand this to include a chip shop and would run the enterprise, attracting the youth of Cupar as a major place to be seen, until the mid-80s when they would lease it to fellow Italo-Scots, as it is to this day!
The start of the Luvians story, as we know it today, with the opening of the affectionately named “Baby Luvians” a few doors down from the family café. This wee shop sold confectionary and small-batch ice cream made in a little factory in the back shop. This is the beginning of the three brothers, Vincent, Tony and Luigi, taking a more managerial role alongside their parents.
The Luvians name grows as the brothers open two more shops in the Kingdom.
The Bottleshop in Cupar would become the flagship store; at this stage a bigger, purpose-built ice cream factory was established and the family began carving a reputation for themselves as one of the best suppliers of the finest quality wines, whiskies and spirits in the country.
Nearby, in the bustling university town of St Andrews they also open the ice cream parlour in the central location of Market Street, right beside the iconic fountain.
Both stores remain to this day and have stood the test of time because of hard work and a steadfast determination to stay true to their roots of good food and community spirit!
The most recent of the Luvians premises, The St Andrews Bottle Shop, opens in October 1996. It has become a much-loved destination for locals, university students celebrating (or commiserating!) and tourists from all over the world who visit the town to enjoy its beautiful scenery, enchanting history and, of course, the home of golf! What better place to become more acquainted with Scotland’s Uisge Beatha, or water of life!
Since opening the doors of the first Luvians shop back in 1981 many team members have walked the metaphorical corridors (okay: climbed around in the stock rooms!) of these buildings! A great many have tried to leave only to return to the fold multiple times over the years! Many more have come to us as novices to the trade and left to pursue successful careers as wine makers, sommeliers, brand ambassadors and, indeed, the odd international popstar…
One thing we’re sure they’d all agree on: working at Luvians gives access to a wealth of knowledge and experience, a chance to build character and, above all, the strong sense of belonging to a family!
So if you’re in Cupar or St Andrews pop into our stores to meet the team and be wowed by their supreme product knowledge and witty banter!