Tropical Smoothie Cafe continued its impressive growth in 2021 with a same-store-sales increase of 42.3 percent during Q2, and a year-to-date same-store-sales increase of 38 percent, for a two-year same-store-sales increase of 29percent at the end of the quarter.
Also during Q2, the company opened 38 new cafes and signed 105 franchise agreements, which included two large multi-unit deals with existing franchisees. To date this year, Tropical Smoothie Cafe has opened 63 locations, signed 200 franchise agreements and is on pace to open 130 cafes in 2021.
Dedicated fans of the brand propelled sales for the quarter and tried limited-time offerings in droves, beginning with the guest-favorite Dragon Fruit Smoothie. The Mango Berry Cosmo Smoothie and Watermelon Mojito Smoothie also broke sales records as nearly 20% of all June orders included one of the cocktail-inspired smoothies.
As a thank-you to its loyalty members, Tropical Smoothie Cafe also celebrated National Smoothie Day on June 21 with $1 smoothies. The deal drove eight times more signups than a typical nonpromotion day and resulted in more than 32,000 new app downloads.
“We are driving sales and excitement around our brand with new products, great offers for our loyalty members and convenient ordering through our digital channels,” says Charles Watson, CEO of Tropical Smoothie Cafe, LLC. “This quarter, a record-breaking 75 percent of our signed agreements came from existing franchisees, which shows they are the heart of our brand and dedicated to our future growth.”
“The passion the brand has for innovation, culture and putting both franchisees and guests first creates a successful atmosphere that I want to continue to grow with,” says Rylan Miller, one of the largest Tropical Smoothie Cafe franchisees, who recently signed a multi-unit deal to develop more than a dozen Tropical Smoothie Cafes across the Carolinas and Georgia.
Interested franchise candidates should have business experience, along with a minimum net worth of $350,000, which includes $125,000 in liquid assets. Candidates who meet these preliminary qualifications will need to make an initial investment ranging between $257,500 and $560,500. The franchise currently boasts an average unit volume (AUV) of more than $840,000 — the highest in the company’s 24-year-history — with the top 50 percent reporting an AUV of more than $1 million.
