Cold Stone Creamery is an American ice cream parlor chain known for its customized ice cream creations. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, the company is owned and operated by Kahala Brands. The company's main product is premium ice cream made with approximately 12-14% butterfat, made on location and customized for patrons at the time of order.
Cold Stone Creamery at Serendra Plaza in Taguig, Philippines.
The Unique Cold Stone Experience
Cold Stone derives its name from the frozen granite slab that employees use to fold mix-ins into the ice cream. Patrons first select what flavor of ice cream they would like and then choose from a number of mix-ins to be folded into the ice cream. Mix-ins include candies, nuts, brownies, and syrups.
Cold Stone has also expanded its menu with other ice cream-related products, including: ice cream cakes, pies, cookie sandwiches, smoothies, shakes, and iced or blended coffee drinks.
A History of Innovation
The company was co-founded in 1988 by Donald and Susan Sutherland, who sought ice cream that was neither hard-packed nor soft-serve. The company has maintained the same concept created by Steve Herrell who founded Steve's Ice Cream.
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Cold Stone Creamery in Hudson, Ohio.
In 1995, Cold Stone Creamery opened its first franchise store in Tempe, Arizona. Shortly after, a second location (first out of state) was opened in Camarillo, California.
Global Expansion
Cold Stone Creamery is now the sixth best-selling brand of ice cream in the US. Cold Stone Creamery operates stores in numerous countries, highlighting its international presence:
- Japan
- Taiwan
- South Korea
- Thailand
- Brazil
- Puerto Rico
- Indonesia
- Guam
- China
- Mexico
- Bahrain
- Egypt
- United Arab Emirates
- Saudi Arabia
- Kenya
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Qatar
- Nigeria
- Kuwait
- the Philippines
- Turkey
- Pakistan
- India
In 2008, Cold Stone opened its first European franchise in Copenhagen, Denmark. Three more stores were later opened in other parts of the country. In March 2015, Cold Stone opened its first location in Turkey's capital Ankara. In 2015 Cold Stone Creamery opened its first location in El Salvador in Multiplaza Mall.
Cold Stone Creamery in Springboro, Ohio.
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As of 2021, all stores in Dhaka in Bangladesh were closed. On January 3, 2020, Cold Stone Creamery announced that it would close its doors on January 31, 2020 in Singapore.
Strategic Partnerships and Challenges
In May 2007, Cold Stone Creamery merged with Kahala Corp to form Kahala-Cold Stone, which collectively owns 13 brands. Doug Ducey, former president and CEO of Cold Stone Creamery, and later Governor of Arizona, was named CEO of the newly established company. Kevin Blackwell, the former CEO of Kahala, became chairman of the board and chief strategist.
The parent company of Cold Stone Creamery, Kahala Brands, announced in February 2009 that it had reached an agreement with Canadian coffee shop chain Tim Hortons to open up 100 co-branded stores in the United States after successfully testing two locations in Rhode Island. The strategic alliance was intended to pave the way for Tim Hortons to operate in more US locations while allowing Cold Stone Creamery to expand into Canada. The Tim Hortons venture followed on the footsteps of a similar co-branding efforts in 2007 and 2008, but ended in 2014.
Cold Stone franchisees in New York City began partnering with Soup Kitchen International to sell soup in their stores beginning in late 2007. In 2008, the company signed an agreement with the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory to open seven locations in the Western US. Cold Stone has entered into partnerships with other companies to promote brand name products inside its stores. The first major partnership the company entered into was with Kraft Foods for its Jell-O brand in 2009. Cold Stone introduced a series of flavors of ice cream based on popular Jell-O pudding flavors; Chocolate, Butterscotch, Banana, and Vanilla.
There have been allegations by independent franchises that Cold Stone's business practices have put them at a competitive disadvantage. In June 2008, The Wall Street Journal examined the issue. The article stated that a large number of locations, approximately 16-20%, of Cold Stone Creamery franchises have closed or were put up for sale by their owners, many of whom had suffered significant financial losses due to their investment. The article included claims by franchisees that the company had misrepresented the average revenues of Cold Stone stores and acted in ways that reduced stores' profit margins.
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Behind the Counter: The Untold Story of Franchising reported on the failures and successes of franchising. After several edits the program was broadcast on CNBC on March 21, 2011. Brands such as Dunkin' Donuts and Five Guys were highlighted as successful franchise brands. Cold Stone Creamery's executives and corporate lawyers were interviewed. The lawsuit was discussed with former franchisees and the litigation threats with CNBC. An apparently successful Cold Stone franchise was also featured.
Headquarters
While the company was originally headquartered in Tempe, in 1997 the company moved its headquarters to Scottsdale, Arizona. In July 2005 Cold Stone moved into its current headquarters.
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