Two frozen yogurt players are tweaking their concepts to spice up franchise growth.
The chain 16 Handles on Thursday announced the debut of a new prototype unit in Naples, Fla., kicking off what the brand hopes will be growth outside New York City.
In 2022, the 35-unit self-serve yogurt shop brand was acquired by New York entrepreneur Neil Hershman, now CEO, and YouTube star Danny Duncan, who is the chain’s chief creative officer. Since the acquisition, the franchise brand has units in development in New Jersey, Massachusetts, Texas, South Carolina and, now, Florida, the company said.
The Naples location is owned and operated by franchisees Alex Nicholas and Jib Reagan, and it opened in May. The new store design includes a modular topping bar, which gives operators more flexibility with toppings while still maintaining the perception of endless options.
The soft-serve machines use less electricity and allow for a more consistent product with less labor. And the prototype has updated design elements highlighting the slogan “Choose Wildly.”
Hershman in a statement said, “Our goal is to have many more successful store openings just like this one until we become the No. 1 soft serve and frozen yogurt chain nationwide, just like we already have in the Northeast.”
Meanwhile, in Texas, Red Mango this week unveiled an expanded menu for its Café concept, which offers a lot more than froyo. The first Red Mango Café to open in Dallas, where parent company Brix Holdings is based, debuted Thursday with a menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Breakfast offerings include dishes like various egg-and-bacon filled tortillas, as well as avocado toast and offerings like the Jammed-Up: toasted sourdough loaded with lemon-honey ricotta, apricot jam, sliced almonds, fresh basil and lemon slices.
At lunch and dinner, the menu includes a line of flatbreads, dubbed Café Flats, featuring naan bread with various toppings, like the Spicy Mad Red, topped with arrabiata sauce, mozzarella, kalamata olives, oregano, Parmesan and olive oil.
The chain’s signature frozen yogurt and toppings are also on offer, as well as cold-squeezed juices.
“At Red Mango, we take pride in allowing guests to ‘Treat Yourself Well’ all year long with healthy and delicious meals to satisfy any craving, and that’s what we wanted to build on with these offerings,” said Sherif Mityas, Brix Holdings CEO in a statement. “We’re excited to introduce our new expanded café menu to Cityline-Richardson, which will be a key component for future Red Mango Café locations.”
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