Cold Stone Creamery is an American ice cold stone coffee ice cream parlor chain. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, the company is owned and operated by Kahala Brands. Cold Stone Creamery at Serendra Plaza in Taguig, Philippines. Cold Stone Creamery in Springboro, Ohio.
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. 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. In 1995, Cold Stone Creamery opened its first franchise store in Tempe, Arizona. In May 2007, Cold Stone Creamery merged with Kahala Corp to form Kahala-Cold Stone, which collectively owns 13 brands. 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 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. Cold Stone Creamery: Scoop It Up, a simulation video game developed by Zoo Publishing, was released for the Wii in 2009. 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.
Externally, a 2008 licensing agreement with Jelly Belly had a line of jelly beans flavored like some of Cold Stone’s most popular ice cream flavors. There have been allegations by independent franchises that Cold Stone’s business practices have put them at a competitive disadvantage. These former franchises claim that the parent company opens locations too close to each other, requires expensive remodeling and overstates potential revenues and income. In June 2008, The Wall Street Journal examined the issue. 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. In December 2010 lawyers from Cold Stone Creamery threatened a lawsuit over some of the contents of a then-upcoming documentary by CNBC. 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. 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. The two-story building has classroom space, a product development laboratory kitchen, and a training store.
Cold Stone, Tim Hortons expand co-branding”. Slabs Are Joining Scoops In Ice Cream Retailing”. 11 Chock-Full Facts About Cold Stone Creamery”. The Cold Stone Creamery Location finder”.
Cold Stone Creamery – About Our Job facts”. Cold Stone Creamery gets the scoop on Thailand”. Nairobi’s Latest Novelty: High-End Mac and Cheese, Served by Whites”. Kahala-Cold Stone CEO leaving job after 12 years”. Cold Stone Names New Chief Executive Officer”. Tim Hortons, Cold Stone to create new stores”.