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Sad story, although I never thought you can make much money with this franchise. I love the icecream but IMo the overhead cost are too high. Fresh fruit is expensive, employees need their income and that on a $ 4.- ice cream...you have to sell a lot of ice cream and for many Americans it is very expensive to go there with a family of 4....spending aprox. $ 16.- for 4 ice creams!!, but they taste.....
I used to live close to a Cold Stone and a Marble Slab ice cream shops....and I regularly avoided them in favor of getting the kids a cone from McDonalds. It's really all the same to them and saves me about $12. Better yet just get some at the store and scoop your own.
People wonder why Starbucks is having a hard time. If they charged a reasonable price for a cup of coffee they'd probably sell more of it.
Everything has gotten wildly expensive these days. When I was growing up I would never have thought I'd see $1 for a bottle of water. The profit margin on that has to be huge.
We had a neighbor in my development who started a Cold Stone in a very posh area. He sold out before everything went so badly here in Florida and now he is moving to a nicer neighborhood.
The state of the economy has forced the Marble Slab that I loved so much to close. There used to be one also down my Disney but its been so long since I was down there I don't even know if its still there.
Yesterday we were at a mall that had a Cinnabon in it. The kids wanted a cinnamon bun, but at $3.49 each I said forget it! I thought to myself "Gosh, I can make a whole pan of cinnamon buns for that!".
I don't understand a reply like this. Sure you can go home and make a pan of Cinnamon rolls for less then $3.49. you can also buy a huge bag of potato's and make fries, why go to McD's. You can also buy a bag of flour, tomato sauce and cheese for a few bucks and make your pizza instead of $10-15. You do realize supermarkets make their money on very thin margins, because you buy more there and they have many more customers. Places like cold stone, jamba juice. Sure their margins may be higher on the food side, but once you pay rent, payroll, utilities, taxes, the net profit on that $4.00 treat is 25 cents if they are lucky.
*I own my own Frozen Yogurt shop and it's a pity when people come in shocked at paying $2-$4 for a cup of Froyo with fresh fruit and toppings. It's as if all the stuff in the store felll from the sky for free. Rent is free, utilities is free. Man if I only had to pay for food costs, I'd be making over 6 figures!!!
Learn to make your own ice cream. Toast and chop your own nuts, hand whip your whipped cream. The domestic arts are like gold. Self sufficiency is essential in these hard times. Pay for real vanilla extract. Treat yourself to most excellent ice cream at least every 14 days.
spending aprox. $ 16.- for 4 ice creams!!, but they taste.....
Well, when I was at the Orange County fair I paid $10 for a beer that was in a cup, I don't think $16 for 4 ice creams is expensive at all, I think the ice cream for $4 is much more worth it than a Starbucks latte that costs the same.
Yes, they are, but like many franchises they exist simply because the zees signed a personal guarantee, so many are operated at a loss rather being forced into personal bankruptcy under the default penalties. Hence you will often find the operator works at a full time job elsewhere to make ends meet.
I reviewed ColdStone several times for my clients and always counseled against engaging with them.
There is one within walking distance of my house. We go a couple times a month. It's delicious but definitely pricey. We never get out of there for less than $25.
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, but they taste.....
Then just don't go out
