Is the Isiah Thomas Popcorn Franchise a Slam Dunk?
February 26, 2008
(FranchisePick.Com) Isiah Thomas has had a lifelong love affair with popcorn. It started as a boy, growing up in the housing projects of Chicago’s poorest neighborhoods. Isiah’s mother used to impart her strict life lessons to her sons around a big bowl of popcorn - sometimes sourced from the discarded bags of popcorn behind the Chicago stadium.
Isiah is now an investor in and partial namesake of the gourmet Dale & Thomas Popcorn, the NY-based gourmet popcorn franchise company that it will commence its franchise program in 2008.
Here’s the franchise game plan, according to a release from Dale & Thomas’ PR firm:
Dale and Thomas Popcorn Commences Franchising Program in 2008
ENGLEWOOD, N.J., Feb. 25 — Dale and Thomas Popcorn announced today that it is launching a new and innovative franchise program in select areas of the Northeast. This move signals a new phase of expansion for Dale and Thomas to further share its chef crafted, gourmet popcorn with its friends and loyal customers throughout the country. Through its network of company owned and operated popcorn centers, and after testing multiple formats, Dale and Thomas has quickly built the country’s leading brand of gourmet popcorn. Led by industry veterans from both the food and retail industry, and backed by well known investment firms Goldman Sachs and Sun Capital Partners, Dale and Thomas has developed a formula for easily duplicating the experience while maintaining the highest quality popcorn and commitment to customer service.
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To facilitate the expansion of Dale and Thomas centers, the company has secured a relationship with Northboro Builders Inc., to design and build these new Dale and Thomas Popcorn centers. Northboro’s stellar reputation and experience in the franchise industry, along with its history of delivering excellence and simplicity in “turnkey” design and building services, ensures the success of look and feel of each Dale and Thomas location.
“We are enthusiastic and eager to launch our new franchise program,” says Terry Pritikin, Chief Retail Officer, of Dale and Thomas Popcorn. “Since opening our Times Square location three years ago, we’ve learned a great deal about our stores, our products, and our customers, not only through evaluating the service and merchandise in Dale and Thomas company owned stores, but through our relationship with our two existing franchise locations. We have taken the best from our research and have created an exciting new paradigm of franchising, with our ready-to-pop Franchise program.”
Dale and Thomas will be taking franchise applications immediately and has planned rollouts of the new centers beginning in mid 2008.
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About Dale and Thomas
Dale and Thomas is a privately held company, which manufactures America’s first line of chef crafted, gourmet popcorn products. The Englewood, New Jersey based snack food company sells through wholesale, retail, and direct channels. Dale and Thomas also has a wholesale line: Popcorn, Indiana(TM), a premium kettle corn line, sold at supermarkets, club stores and gourmet boutiques throughout the country. The company has also achieved a high level of recognition as it was selected by Oprah Magazine as one of her favorite things. The company’s Chef Ed has appeared on the Today Show and The View, as well as other national television appearances. The company has also been featured on the CBS Early Show and the Big Idea with Donny Deutsch on CNBC. Currently there are eight Dale and Thomas company retail stores and two franchise locations, located in New York City, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, South Florida, Michigan, and Massachusetts. Dale and Thomas Popcorn is also available at www.daleandthomas.com and 1800-POPCORN.
SOURCE Dale and Thomas Popcorn
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Kidzart Children’s Franchise Heading to China
February 11, 2008
(Franchise Marketing) Children’s art education franchise company KidzArt is heading to China. KidzArt was founded in 1998 to let kids and seniors of all ages explore their inner artistic potential in a safe, structured, non-competitive environment. Franchising since July 2002, KidzArt has franchised units nationwide and growing.
Here’s the release from Kidzart Franchise:
KidzArt Announces International Expansion to China
US Art Education Franchise Organization Brings Right Brain Thinking to Children in Asian Marketplace
(New Braunfels, TX, February 11, 2008)– KidzArt, a children’s art education franchise company, today announced the sale of its first international and sole regional developer in Shanghai, China. Drawing on an increase in demand for children’s creative educational services in Asia, Mr. Jacky Tan has purchased exclusive rights to open a minimum of 10 KidzArt locations in China, starting in Shanghai and continuing throughout other regions of the country. The first location has a targeted opening date of April 2008. Lorne Barnes will serve as chief operating officer.
“It’s wonderful to witness the expansion of KidzArt into the largest growing market in the world. China is now poised to embrace educational programs like KidzArt which focus on igniting the imagination and developing the innovators of tomorrow,” says KidzArt CEO, Shell Herman. “We’re thrilled to be the first art education franchise in China and appreciate being recognized as the highest quality brand available. We are inspired by Jacky Tan’s dedication to bringing this concept to his country and could not have asked for a better business partner.”
KidzArt is only the third US children’s education brand to enter China behind Gymboree and FasTracKids who both now serve thousands of customers throughout that region.
KidzArt Shanghai partner Jacky Tan currently owns and operates a successful ESL enrichment program in Shanghai that has grown to serve over 7,000 students in just six years. In his pursuit of enhancing right-brain thinking and creativity in Chinese children, Tan evaluated all of the leading art education franchises throughout the US before choosing to invest in KidzArt.
“In addition to being well organized and professional, KidzArt was open and honest about their curriculum, philosophy and how they strive to develop strong life skills, such as problem solving, in their students,” says Tan. “Ultimately, we chose KidzArt because of their outstanding reputation, quality offerings and trustworthiness.”
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Other child-related franchises:
Young Rembrandts , The Mad Science Group, Mathnasium Learning Centers, WHIZard Academy - New England , Kid to Kid , Abrakadoodle , Creative World Schools , Fun Bus, Computer Tots / Computer Explorers, FasTracKids, Kickin Flips, JW Tumbles
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KidzArt will be serving the Chinese market by catering to a new generation of parents who are looking to expand their children’s education beyond core subjects. To date, Chinese art education has focused on technical skills and copying with little personal expression. The Chinese government is now advocating the development of its children’s social and creative skills in preparation for a global economy favoring a workforce of “right brain” thinkers.
“Our new area development partners will build KidzArt brand strength in Shanghai and then advance our growth throughout the entire country,” says Joel Lazarovitz, international franchise development for KidzArt
Through KidzArt’s international expansion and new cultural exchange, the organization will leverage the partnership to enhance its curriculum to make it attractive to other countries and cultures around the world.
“Our Shanghai outlet will be a children’s art education model for all of Asia and it will set the standard for what KidzArt strives to become throughout the world,” says Herman.
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