Category: ICE CREAM/CUSTARD

Carvel

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In 1934, Tom Carvel borrowed $15 from his futurewife Agnes, filled a battered vending truck with ice cream, and drove off in search of the American dream. His truck broke down in Hartsdale, NY, but the dream never faltered. On that very site, Tom Carvel started selling his ice cream which would one day become New York City’s number one ice cream brand and would create a cult-like following that has existed for over 70 years. Today, you are pursuing your own American dream, and we welcome the opportunity to share the many reasons why you should consider a Carvel franchise.

Our vision is simple. We want to be a national player in the ice cream industry, an innovator in franchising and a “best in class” employer. This is what gets us up in the morning.

At Carvel, we believe in promoting Carvel through multiple types of venues. Our unique concepts allow our franchisees to offer our delicious ice cream products in a wide range of locations and opportunities.

The time is right and the reasons plentiful for you to get in on the ground floor of a rapidly growing company. Carvel currently operates over 500 franchised and food service locations, and is part of FOCUS Brands Inc, owner of Carvel, Cinnabon and certain international markets of Seattle’s Best Coffee.

Together, we can create memories – for you, for your family, and most importantly for your customers. Read on to learn the many reasons why Carvel can help you realize your American dream, and create memories that will last a lifetime.

Be part of “The Carvel Way”

One of the most important aspects of owning a franchise is support of your operationTheCarvel franchise operations department provides you withmany areas of support,including field and corporate operations, design and construction, purchasing, marketing and many others as well as the Carvel Franchise Advisory Council, known as CFAC.

Field Operations support includes:

• Regular consultation visits
• Store review – everything a customer sees
• Business review and analysis

Franchise Resources support includes:

• Toll-free helpline
• One stop provider of answers for any miscellaneous questions you may have
• Dedicated trained team member

Development Services support includes:

• Prototype plan for your particular location
• Staff to answer any design and construction questions
• Detailed design and construction manual including equipment and design information

Purchasing and National Account support includes

• Discounted everyday service and products for the franchisee use, including pest control, contractors, insurance, credit card service

Marketing support includes:

• Advertising
• Local store marketing
• Product development
• Public relations

Training support includes:

• Field training
• 10 days at the Carvel College of Ice Cream Knowledge
• Onsite store opening assistance
• Continuing education

Get a free detailed info packet from Carvel

(FranBest.Com)

According to this article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, the new owners of Rita’s have aggressive growth plans for the franchise chain.

Here’s an excerpt:

Rita’s wants 1,500 stores, each earning $500,000 a season
By HAROLD BRUBAKER
When Jim Rudolph and his brother, Bill, bought Rita’s Water Ice in May 2005, they were stunned by the amount of attention they got.

“You have to remember, I’m not from Philadelphia,” said Jim Rudolph, now Rita’s chief executive officer. “I’m from Pittsburgh.”

Rudolph didn’t realize how popular Rita’s was in the Philadelphia region, where it had been founded in 1984 by a firefighter trying to supplement his income.

But McKnight Capital Partners – the Rudolph brothers’ investment firm – didn’t buy it for the strong Philadelphia connection. They bought it to expand far beyond the Mid-Atlantic region.

“Who says this can’t travel?” Rudolph retorts to skeptics who say that people outside the region have no idea what water ice is.

Rudolph – described by franchisees as passionate, tireless and intense – has lofty goals for Rita’s: He wants to have 1,500 stores by 2010, up from 319 when he bought it, and $500,000 in average annual sales per store, up from $225,000 last year.

Full-time employment at Rita’s Water Ice Franchise Co. L.L.C. has climbed from 42 at the time of the sale to 83 now. That does not count the thousands – mostly part-time workers – employed by franchisees. Last year’s sales at Rita’s outlets totaled $73.7 million, the company said. So far this year, they are up 5 percent, Rudolph said.

To meet the 2010 store goal, Rudolph has stepped up the pace of openings, going from 33 in 2005 to 68 last year. This year’s goal is 135 stores. As of last week, 45 had been opened this year, giving the company 451 stores, Rudolph said.

There were about 20 things Rudolph said he was trying to do to meet his ambitious sales-per-store goal. First among them is a steady flow of new products, such as this year’s Blendini, which contains bits of Oreos or Nilla Wafers.

“We want ‘new’ all the time,” Rudolph said. He and franchisees said the Blendini was the first new Rita’s product since 1998, with the exception of Rita’s Squeezers launched in 2005 for supermarket sales.

Perhaps most significant is a change in Rita’s culture, with Rudolph’s leaving behind the model of Rita’s as a part-time mom-and-pop business.

“We’re trying to get a more engaged partner to be involved in this business,” Rudolph said. Like other fast-growing franchisers, Rita’s is signing more franchisees to multistore deals, including a five-store deal last week in Jacksonville, Fla.

That means Rita’s is signing franchisees with more business experience and much more money than the typical franchisee of five years ago. At the same time, the company, which in April moved its headquarters from a cramped building in Bensalem to a 12,000-square-foot facility in a Trevose office park, is demanding more from existing franchisees.

“They’ve raised the bar in the franchise community to run better stores,” said Mitchell Cove, who has been a Rita’s franchisee for 18 seasons and has four stores in Northeast Philadelphia and three in Bucks County. “It’s been a challenge, but they are kind of keeping us on our toes more.”

Rudolph has increased the number of franchise service managers, who are constantly on the road visiting stores and working with franchisees. The increase – from seven, or one for every 46 stores in April 2005, to 13, or one for every 35 stores now – means each franchisee gets more attention… CONTINUE READING…

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