Self-serve frozen yogurt options continue to expand
Toppings at Sweet Frog. Photo by Dalila Softic for The Edge
Your choices for self-serve frozen yogurt are growing.
Yogurt Cafe opened late last month in the former location of Chocolate Paper near the corner of Electric Road and Brambleton Avenue. Up the road at Hunting Hills Plaza a franchisee is opening Menchie’s, a California company.
They join five other self-serve frozen yogurt shops in the region: Frogurt in downtown Roanoke, Sweet Frog at Towers Shopping Center, Sweet Pete’s at Ridgewood Farms Shopping Center in Salem, Frosty Parrot in Blacksburg, and BTO in Radford.
Mei Chen, owner of Yogurt Cafe, is no stranger to the food business. She’s worked in Asian restaurants most of her life, and her brother owns Cafe Asia at the Bonsack Kroger Shopping Center.
Chen previously owned an Asian market, China Taste, in Garden City in Roanoke and another store by the same name in Bedford County. She also owned Bejing, an Asian market in Rocky Mount and Mei China City at Westlake Towne Center in Moneta. She sold all those businesses to open the frozen yogurt shop.
Yogurt Cafe serves 10 flavors of frozen yogurt, plus toppings, for 45-cents an ounce. It also serves coffee and pastries.
Menchie’s, based in Encino, Calif., is opening a franchise store near the new Kohl’s. The franchise owner, Cary Broome, is a Roanoke County resident and a retired UPS worker.
Broome said that he’s been looking for something to do since he retired. The idea to open a franchise came to him last Thanksgiving, when he visited a Menchie’s in Maryland while visiting family.
“We’d never seen anything like it,” he said.
He bought the franchise agreement in January, but it’s taken nine months to locate the right spot for the shop, he said. He’s leasing a 2,500 square-foot space at the shopping center.
Broome expects to be open Dec. 1. He said that he hopes the shop will be a place for teens to hang out. He has a daughter who is a junior at Cave Spring High School, and right now she and her friends go to Buffalo Wild Wings to meet up.
He said he’s a little concerned about the competition from the other frozen yogurt stores that have opened this year, but has confidence in Menchie’s business model. He hasn’t settled on a price, but said it would be from 39 to 41-cents per ounce.
Have these self-serve frozen yogurt shops caught on with you and your families?
October 5, 2011 - 9:00 AM
Of the ones I have been to Sweet Frog is the best! They have a better selection than Frogurt thouugh I am sure Frogurt will continue to attract down town buisness. Yogurt Cafe is going to have to step up their game to stay afloat. They have less flavors, their toppings bar is tiny and they are pricing it higher than Frogurt or Sweet Frog.
Love Sweet Frog. Have been waiting for this since I tried one in Richmond last November. I like the frozen yogurt better than ice cream. If we could only get one in Salem I wouldn’t have to drive to Towers.
I absolutely love Sweet Frog!! I think it is by far the best out of the selections we have so far.
Yogurt cafe has an uphill battle. That location is horrible. You can’t really see if from 419 and traffic at Pizza Hut and Quiznos is not what it used to be. There are several reasons why Chocolate Paper moved and low traffic flow is one of them.
I find it hard to believe that there’s enough pent-up demand for frozen yogurt to support all these places.
Those of you who really like Sweet Frog, please stop by Sweet Pete’s in Ridgewood Farm and give it a try.
Sweet Pete’s also only charges 38 cents an oz.
Any idea what is going on with all the construction equipment and activity on Reserve Avenue next to the Cambria Suites (on the side close to the new medical campus)? I only saw it from 581 but it looked like some kind of activity was happening.
@Kristen
It’s like 1985 all over again, everyone and their brother is selling frozen yogurt.
Did we ever find out if all these froyo sites are all some franchise run by different folks? The one’s I’ve seen, all seem to have the same business plan. Sounds like a franchise salesman came though and sold a bunch of folks on this stuff. Also, Sweet Pete’s is awesome…but mostly that’s cause i can walk to it. =D
Amanda, Heard from someone who works in one of the businesses in Towne Square Shopping Center — that a frozen yogurt shop was going into the Old Subway location (near Pete’s Deli and Michaels).
@Roa10: I believe you’re talking about the 3-acre site that the city obtained through eminent domain. On that land was the building that housed Surfaces Inc., a flooring company. It was torn down and the land is being graded. Carilion now owns the land but has said it doesn’t need it, so it’s unclear what will happen with it. Here’s some more info.
@Will: They are all different businesses. What we’re seeing is the result of a trend that started a few years ago on the west coast. It’s popular among consumers because frozen yogurt is healthier than ice cream. And, it’s appealing to people looking to start a business because it’s a successful model, and the self-serve concept lowers employee costs. The idea is just now catching on here. It will be interesting to see which businesses survive.
@Zack Irby: Thanks Zach! I know that Sweet Frog has said it is looking for more locations. I talked with the owner this week and he said he didn’t have any news to share about that. I’ll keep my eye on it.
The frozen yogurt business is no different than any other “type” of business to hit a small town like Roanoke.
One opens and appears to be successful, so then another and another opens till there’s one on most every corner.
Take a look at Chinese restaurants, sign shops, pizza places, jewelers, wine shops/sellers, and on & on.
Then comes the sad part of the sorting out of which are able to stay in business, and which lose all they’ve invested & usually more.
Yay for the entrepreneurs, for they are a breed unto themselves…
it’s absolutely ridiculous how many frozen yogurt stores are going up. Especially since the successful ones in different cities follow a specific business model. I’m pretty sure that in a little over a year, Roanoke will be down to two. It’ll also be interesting to see how the frozen yogurt shops do when the major chains switch over to serving frozen yogurt as well.
There is simply no way all of these yogurt places will stay open in the long term. Not only are they competing with each, but also with all the ice cream places. I suspect Sweet Frog at Towers will do well because it’s a great location. Frogurt may survive because it’s by itself (for now) downtown. A location in Salem or Valley View may do well. Some of the others might not last a year.
What we really need is a good frozen custard place!! Rita’s in Blacksburge is wonderful. Talked to the owner down there and he would like to expand to the Roanoke Valley!
Just thought I’d let you know that there is a sign up for another SweetFrog location at Westlake.
@Shari: Very interesting. Thanks for sharing!
When these yogurt places start to fall, let’s not blame Roanoke or the economy for it. If there were this much yogurt demand, we’d have already had a couple.
I bet parking will be the main reason cited for yogurt store closings.