Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Investors go loco for fro-yo

Pinkberry Inc. is a frozen yogurt chain that was founded in January of 2005. It was founded in Los Angeles, California but has since expanded to own and run seventy three stores in California and New York. Pinkberry has become an increasingly popular desert and snack parlor since 2005, growing to a multi franchise company. In October of 2007, the venture capitol firm Maveron backed Pinkberry with $27.5 million in funding. For the first half of 2009, Pinkberry was also ranked on Vitrue's Top 25 Most Social Restaurants, along with other popular franchises such as McDonalds and Starbucks. In addition, Pinkberry has also found it's way into pop culture, making appearances on popular television shows such as Gossip Girl and appealing to the celebrity crowd.

Frozen Yogurt is an emerging trend in the Hotels, Restaurants and Leisure Industry. In addition to Pinkberry, other notable frozen yogurt companies are Mr. Yogato's, Yogurberri, Berri Good and Red Mango. Red Mango is Pinkberry's main competitor, with it's new expansion plan to open 550 stores throughout the US.

The arrival of the Frozen Yogurt trend created a significant competition not only between the various brands, but also between other desert places. The growing popularity of frozen yogurt has had an effect on the emergence of new ice cream parlors and desert brands. In a sagging economy, companies such as Pinkberry and Red Mango seem to not be suffering, but rather flourishing. Investors and venture capitalists alike are continuing to push money into the frozen yogurt industry, and they are reaping the rewards. In five years, Pinkberry has moved from a small company to a multi-national franchise. The emergence of companies such as Pinkberry and Red Mango has people wondering, is frozen yogurt the new ice cream?

http://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2009/04/23/investors-sweet-on-frozen-yogurt-chain-pinkberry/?KEYWORDS=pinkberry

2 comments:

  1. I like the way you started off by talking about the introduction of frozen yogurt and then stating how it affects other desert places. I believe you had good points and love how you ended your post. However, I'm personally not a big fan of frozen yogurt. I think that the introduction of frozen yogurt has a possible impact on desert places but your arguments seem to over-exaggerate the situation. There's nothing better than vanilla ice cream.

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  2. the introductions talk about the details about the frozen yogurt and the history of Pinkberry. But im wondering why the Pinkberry can stand out among these much frozen yogurt shops. What make it special from others. By the way, Pinkberry made the best frozen yogurt in the world. It is supper good!

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