Tropical Smoothie Cafe, also referred to as ''Tropical Smoothie'', is a restaurant franchise in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It operates more than 1400 locations nationwide. On June 10, 2024, Blackstone announced that equity funds it manages completed the acquisition of the franchisor.

History

Tropical Smoothie began as a smoothie shop in 1993 along the panhandle of Florida. Tropical Smoothie Franchise Development Corporation was founded in 1997 in Destin, Florida, and the first franchised store opened in 1998 in

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of and the only incorporated municipality in Leon County, Florida, Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Fl ...

. Tropical Smoothie Cafe is currently headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1999, they introduced a line of food items including sandwiches and wraps. As more locations opened, the individual Cafes redesigned their store decor to offer a beach house theme with bright white walls, an open kitchen concept, vibrant colors, and tropical artwork. In 2006, Tropical Smoothie Cafe opened their 200th store in

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

. They opened their 800th location in

Arlington Heights, Illinois Arlington Heights is a village in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County Illinois, United States. A northwestern Chicago metropolitan area, suburb of Chicago, it lies about northwest of the city's downtown. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

, in 2019. The founders and original owners, Eric and Delora Jenrich and David Walker, came from franchise backgrounds and used that knowledge to grow Tropical Smoothie Cafe. As they grew, they recruited others from the food industry. In 2012, private equity firm Buckhead Investment Partners (BIP) bought a controlling interest in Tropical Smoothie Cafe. Eric Jenrich and David Walker remained on the board of directors, and former

Chief Operating Officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...

Mike Rotondo was promoted to replace Jenrich as chief executive officer in 2012 until his departure in 2018. BIP partner Scott Pressly, who was a financial and strategic adviser to the chain since 2007 served as the chairman until 2020. The brand was acquired by private equity firm Levine Leichtman Capital Partners (LLCP) in September 2020. Charles Watson is the chief executive officer. Between 2019 and 2021, the company was the title sponsor of the Frisco Bowl.

Tropical Smoothie Cafes sales are made up of 50% smoothie sales and 50% food sales system wide. In May 2013, Tropical Smoothie Cafe began offering a vegan, non-GMO meat substitute called Beyond Meat. Beyond Meat is made of a blend of fava bean protein, pea protein, flours, and fiber. In July 2013, Tropical Smoothie Cafe announced that Beyond Meat would become a permanent fixture on the menu at certain locations.

References

{{Fast-food chains of the United States 1993 establishments in Florida American companies established in 1993 Destin, Florida Fast casual restaurants Fast-food franchises Juice bars Restaurant chains in the United States Restaurants established in 1993 Smoothie chains in the United States 2024 mergers and acquisitions

History

Menu

References