Simon Edye, the founder of the beloved Ronaldo Ices in Norwich, has passed away at the age of 73. He started his ice cream venture in 1983 with a single homemade, hand-hauled Victorian-style barrow, and over four decades grew it into a wholesale business that supplied shops, restaurants, theatres, and visitor attractions across East Anglia.
Early Life and Career
Born in Sidlesham, West Sussex, to John Edye, a journal editor, and Alison (nee Allan), a teacher, Simon was the eldest of three brothers. He attended Chichester High School for Boys and later began a social sciences degree at the University of East Anglia in 1970. However, he dropped out and settled in Norwich, taking on various jobs including fruit and vegetable picker, acupuncturist, taxi driver, and bicycle repairman. For the bicycle repair business, a friend painted the humorous sign “Honest Ron Enterprises – Bicycle Repairs.”
With his brother Jo, “Honest Ron’s” later ventured into the stir-fry business, operating a stall at Stonehenge, Albion Fairs in East Anglia, and even the Epsom Derby. In 1983, Simon built his barrow and began selling ice cream on Norwich’s pedestrianised London Street. Nodding to Italian traders, Ron became Ronaldo, and following tradition, he sold hot chestnuts in winter.
Building a Business
Discerning customers demanded real ice cream with no artificial flavours or ingredients. In response, Simon completed a one-week ice-cream-making course at Reading University in 1987 and opened his own factory. There, he began creating hundreds of different flavours, using local milk, cream, and fruits whenever possible.
Ronaldo’s barrows became a staple at summer events, where I often worked. However, after the retirement of Simon’s right-hand man, Rob Ellis, in 2016, and the onset of lockdown in 2020, the company shifted focus to its wholesale market. Simon handed over the reins to his son, Chris, while maintaining a proprietorial eye on the business.
Passion for Sport
Outside of work, Simon had a passion for sport. A cricketing friend suggested running to help quit smoking, and, never one for half measures, Simon soon competed in marathons and triathlons. He then took on Iron Man triathlons, which include a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and 26-mile run. He competed in the world championships in Hawaii in 1999, 2004, and 2009. Remarkably, his first Hawaii event came just three years after a time-trial cycling collision with a taxi that left him in hospital with life-threatening head injuries.
Simon was instrumental in founding Tri-Anglia Triathlon Club in 1992 and fought for several years to secure official swimming access to the new Norfolk Broads at Whitlingham for the first Norwich Triathlon in 2005.
Personal Life
Interviewed for BBC Radio Cambridgeshire last year, Simon said: “The wonderful thing about ice cream is it makes people happy. And when you make people happy, it makes you happy.”
Simon married Jan, a social worker who later became a breastfeeding consultant, in 1979. She survives him, along with their son, Chris, and two daughters, Joanne and Ruth, six grandchildren, Cooper, Otolie, Albert, Baxter, Solomon and Poppy, and his brother Jo. His youngest brother, Pete, predeceased him.
