By Lynn Koller
Reprinted from: Florida Real Estate Journal - February 16, 2004
Florida's projected population growth, warm climate, and abundance of strip malls have at least two of the major smoothie bars keeping a close eye on the state. Both Los Angeles-based Robeks and Atlanta-based Planet Smoothie are currently scouting locations in Florida.
Smoothies are frozen fruit concoctions that may contain any number of additional ingredients, including nutritional supplements. Smoothies generally appeal to the young, urban market, looking for good taste, nutrition, and lifestyle benefits ‹ and often ignoring that many smoothies are nothing more than over hyped desserts. The smoothie bar concept became popular in the mid-1990s and has continued to grow.
Smoothies are still a miniscule portion of the $306.6 billion in sales from commercial eating and drinking places ‹ about $1.5 billion including juice bars and dessert stores, according to Dan Titus, president of Juice Gallery, a smoothie consultancy located in Chino Hills, Calif. Nevertheless, anyone who has tasted blended pineapples, strawberries and blueberries with a potent protein blast at just the right moment can appreciate the magnetism of the smoothie.
Robeks Corporation will soon open its first Florida location in Brandon and plans to have about 125 stores in Florida within the next seven years, according to Tom Cason, regional director for the area between Naples and Manatee County. He anticipates that his region, which he manages with his wife Carol, will contain about 25 stores. Currently, Robeks has 44 stores, with seven of those outside of California. Florida will have about five regional directors, and each must own one or more stores. The rest in the region will be franchises. Cason is focusing on Tampa/St. Petersburg, Orlando, Miami, Fort Pierce, Jacksonville and Panama City.
Cason says that Robeks has a high-end look and feel, similar to Starbucks. As such, it takes more capital for a franchisee than some of its competitors. Robeks requires around $250,000 in minimum assets and $100,000 in liquid assets, and it offers SBA financing. Cason estimates that the average ticket is $5, and customers return two to three times per week. By contrast, it takes about $130,000 for a Planet Smoothie franchise, according to Chris Morocco, partner at Planet Smoothie.
When selecting locations, Cason likes about 1,000sf, but can go between 600sf and 1,200sf. Dan Titus points out that while smoothie bars typically use about 1,000sf, they often only require about 200sf of space. However, most strip centers cannot accommodate such a small size. Cason says that smoothie operators look for convenience, high traffic and a large business or anchor in a strip center that brings people back several times a week.
"Our concept is that people aren't going to drive 10 miles to get our smoothie," Cason says.
But, Cason says that smoothie bars are good tenants.
"(Smoothie bars) fit into a lot of places," Cason says. "Landlords love us because we don't hold up traffic. We have a good look and energetic feel. It creates a draw into shopping centers, and we don't compete with many other businesses. Most developers have really been positive in responding to what we've been offering."
Cason states that Robeks also looks for areas where there are residential neighborhoods as well as businesses.
"We're very interested in working with schools, community groups, and little leagues. We want to be a part of the community," says Cason. "It's a key part of our corporate strategy."
Robeks' will have to compete with Planet Smoothie for Florida's smoothie aficionados. Since its inception in 1995, Planet Smoothie, owned by Atlanta-based Raving Brands, has built 130 stores nationwide, with 50 under development including 15 in Orlando, Tampa, and South Florida. According to Chris Morocco, 1,000 Planet Smoothies will dot the nation within five years.
"We're on an aggressive growth track for the next few years," Morocco says. "We're expanding into the warmer climates ... the Southeast and even on the West Coast and Hawaii."
Planet Smoothie looks for locations similar to Robeks, and also considers locations of its parent company's three other food-service brands -- Mama Fu's Noodle House, Moe's Southwest Grill and PJ's Coffee and Wine Bar -- in the site selection process.
"We do try to leverage our other brands, and that helps us secure some prime real estate. There are several instances where we're doing the four concepts in the same strip," Morocco says.
Morocco says that the company is considering taking a freestanding building, combining with "the coffee concept" and sharing a drive through.
Another non-traditional location for Planet Smoothie is Gold's Gym in Virginia. Morocco says that the company is choosy about this type of arrangement, and prefers large clubs with outside entrances to the smoothie bar.
Not every smoothie franchise is enamored with Florida. Mike Barney, director of real estate for Mr. Smoothie, based in Rockport, Md., says that his company has no plans to enter the Florida market anytime soon. Mr. Smoothie has 35 stores scattered between northern New York state and Myrtle Beach, S.C. Its modis operandi is to stay indoors.
"Florida is tougher real estate for us, because you don't shop in indoor centers," Barney says from his Syracuse, N.Y., office. "Florida uses strip centers. We'd have to develop a concept for a strip center or find a really good location in an indoor center. Our malls are the apex of where all people congregate in the Northeast. You don't have to escape from weather (in Florida), so you don't have to escape into the mall."
Barney says that the company has considered some Florida sites, but not made any deals.
"We're definitely pursuing Florida, but haven't found anything that we're comfortable with yet," Barney says.