Daily Inspiration: Meet Mark Armitage

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Armitage.

Hi Mark, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My story began in Massachusetts. My first job at the age of 12 was working on a tobacco farm where they produced shade grown tobacco leaves used as the outside wrapper for cigars. At age 16, I got my first restaurant job as a busboy/dishwasher, and before long, a cook. After graduating high school, I took a cook’s job in Connecticut.
Eventually, I headed west to California to continue cooking, and at 27 I was offered the Executive Sous Chefs job for a private club in Orange County. That’s also when I started dabbling in ice carving for the clubs’ special events, just a hobby at first.
Everything changed at 30 when I was offered an Executive Chef position and moved to Phoenix in 1990. I continued carving ice on the side, and my first official paid carving job was for Philip Morris. With that first check, I bought my very first set of chisels.
In 2010 I made the decision to start an ice sculpture business, so with a heavy heart I left my chef career behind and launch Armitage Ice full-time. It was a leap—but the right one.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The first obstacle I faced when starting my business was convincing my wife that this leap of faith was the right move.
the main reason I knew starting this business was going to work, CNC technology. Without any knowledge of CAD designing and programming or in running a CNC machine it proved to be a daunting task for months. I knew cutting ice by hand would not be sustainable at the age of 50. To make a living at it meant I needed this technology.
Then one day, I got a visit from a guy who runs an ice sculpture business in Spokane, Washington. He had set up a temporary shop in Phoenix for two seasons. Denise, who had used similar technology for years, wanted to help me out. We talked, he watched my process, and he quickly recognized what wasn’t working correctly: the two main elements—the design software that came with the CNC machine and the machine itself. In just an afternoon, he showed me what the software was capable of doing. Suddenly, a light bulb came on, and I was finally on my way to start truly learning.
Over the years, managing growth has also been one of my biggest hurdles. When you’re building something from the ground up, it often feels like you need to be in two places at once. Learning how to balance demand, expectations, and my own time has been a constant challenge.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
PROFESSIONAL LIFE & CAREER
I was in the hospitality industry for 30 years, 23 of those years as an Executive Chef. That experience helps me with many of my clients who are also in hospitality. I often consult with chefs on designs to display their food from small plates for caviar for dinner parties to 24’ long seafood tables for buffets.
I am self-taught when it comes to ice sculpting using the traditional tools such as chisels and chainsaws, before long I learned what was possible using die grinders and specialty ice bits. In high school I enjoyed woodworking and it seemed to transfer over to my ice carving.
Ice sculpting has evolved over the last 30 year from standing in front of a 300 lb, 40” tall, 20” wide and 10” thick block of ice with chainsaw in hand, to what it is today using technology I never imagined.
In the last 15 years this business has grown by over 15 percent year over year except for the Covid years of course.
With a small staff of 4 full-time and between 6 and 12 part-time employees, we produce hundreds of ice designs a year ranging in size from dining table center pieces to 2000 square foot ice lounges and everything in between such as Logos, Luges, Bars, Seafood Displays, Walls Craft Ice for cocktails and more.

We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
At the age of 25, while working as a saucier for Hemingway’s Restaurant in Newport Beach California, I had the opportunity to be on a team of 4 from the restaurant to prepare a catered dinner for President Richard Nixon. The venue was in San Clemente, California at his Western White House, La Casa Pacifica. The dinner was for 40 people to raise money for his Presidential Library. After the meal was over, President Nixon, with a bodyguard on each side, came back to the kitchen and thanked us one by one and expressed his gratitude for the meal. A surreal moment I’ll never forget.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://armitageice.com
• Instagram: armitageice
• Facebook: Armitage Ice LLC