Cold Stone, Tim Hortons expand co-brandingCold Stone, Tim Hortons expand co-branding

Ron Ruggless

SCOTTSDALE Ariz. Cold Stone Creamery and Tim Hortons said Friday the two chains would expand their months-old test of co-branded stores to as many as 50 units by this spring.

The chains recently co-branded in two Tim Hortons locations in Rhode Island with successful early results, officials said. Tim Hortons products will be offered in a Cold Stone Creamery location in Columbus, Ohio, near Ohio State University, opening this weekend.

Cold Stone Creamery is owned by Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Kahala Corp. and Tim Hortons is operated and franchised by Tim Hortons Inc. of Oakville, Ontario.

“The complementary nature of Tim Hortons’ morning-afternoon traffic with Cold Stone’s afternoon-evening traffic opens significant opportunity to drive additional revenue for franchisees without significant investment,” said Lee Knowlton, chief operating officer of Kahala.

He added that the majority of the co-branded stores will be franchised, although a few of the Tim Hortons locations could be company owned.

The two Rhode Island locations opened in Pawtucket on Nov. 5 and Woonsocket Nov. 13.

Kevin Blackwell, Cold Stone’s chief executive, said: “Successful results from our initial test stores suggest that bringing our concepts together will increase the customer bases for both brands, allowing further sales growth opportunities.”

Canada-based Tim Hortons has about 500 restaurants in the United States. Don Schroeder, president and chief executive of Tim Hortons, said the co-branding allowed the company to expand its presence into the U.S. market.

Existing Cold Stone Creamery and Tim Hortons locations in Michigan, Western New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Maine and Connecticut will be identified and reconfigured to offer both brand’s offerings. Once a store is identified as a potential co-branded site, the franchisee will be approached with the opportunity to expand their menu with the complementary brand.

Cold Stone Creamery operates more than 1,450 locations worldwide. Tim Hortons has about 3,300 restaurants in Canada and the United States.

Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected].