TCBY (The Country's Best Yogurt) is an American

chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A c ...

frozen yogurt Frozen yogurt (also known as frogurt or by the tradename Froyo; ) is a frozen dessert made with yogurt and sometimes other dairy and non-dairy products. Frozen yogurt is a frozen product containing the same basic ingredients as ice cream, but ...

stores. It is one of the largest U.S. retailers of

soft-serve Soft serve, also known as soft ice, is a frozen dessert, similar to ice cream but softer and less dense due to air being introduced during freezing. Soft serve has been sold commercially since the late 1930s in the US. In the US, soft serve is ...

frozen yogurt.

History

In 1981, Frank D. Hickingbotham opened the first TCBY in

Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...

. TCBY began franchising the following year, and by 1984 there were over 100 stores. Prior to 1984, the company's name was "This Can't Be Yogurt," but a lawsuit from a competitor,

I Can't Believe It's Yogurt! Brice Foods was a company based out of Dallas, Texas, and was the parent of the frozen yogurt Frozen yogurt (also known as frogurt or by the tradename Froyo; ) is a frozen dessert made with yogurt and sometimes other dairy and non-dairy product ...

, forced TCBY to create a new name from its initials, eventually using "The Country's Best Yogurt". TCBY began co-branding with

Taco Bell Taco Bell is an American-based chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California. Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican-inspired foods, includi ...

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

, Subway, and

Burger King Burger King (BK) is an American-based multinational chain store, chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida–based res ...

in 1995. In 1991 TCBY moved into the tallest building in Arkansas,

Simmons Tower Simmons Bank Tower is a 40-story skyscraper located at 425 West Capitol Avenue in downtown Little Rock, Arkansas. At high, it is the tallest building in Arkansas.Mrs. Fields acquired TCBY in early 2000 and became Mrs. Fields Famous Brands. The combined company relocated headquarters to

Broomfield, Colorado Broomfield is a consolidated city and county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. Broomfield has a consolidated government which operates under Article XX, Sections 10-13 of the Constitution of the State of Colorado. The Broomfield populatio ...

in 2012. In 2001, there were 1,777 TCBY locations across the country. By 2011, after several waves of closings, there were 405.

Products and promotions

TCBY offers

in a variety of flavors. The chain typically serves hard scooped and soft serve yogurt, while newer concept stores only offer soft serve. The new concept stores follow a self-service model, with customers being charged by weight. Soft serve yogurt comes in Golden Vanilla, Chocolate, and White Chocolate Mousse flavors, in addition to various rotating flavors. TCBY also serves drinks such as Berriyo yogurt

smoothies A smoothie is a beverage made by puréeing ingredients in a blender. A smoothie commonly has a liquid base, such as fruit juice or milk, yogurt, ice cream or cottage cheese. Other ingredients may be added, including fruits, vegetables, non-dai ...

and Frappe Chillers. In September 2010, TCBY announced the test launch of breakfast and lunch meal replacement bowls, parfaits and smoothies made from non-frozen "fresh"

yogurt Yogurt (; , from tr, yoğurt, also spelled yoghurt, yogourt or yoghourt) is a food produced by bacterial Fermentation (food), fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yogurt are known as ''yogurt cultures''. Fermentation of sugars in t ...

called Yovana-Simply Yogurt in two self-service company stores in its headquarters of

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

. 2010 also saw the opening of a prototype store in Salt Lake City, operating under a different business model. Instead of customers ordering and being served in a traditional fashion, they serve themselves using any combination of available yogurt flavors, add their own mix of fruit or candy toppings, and pay by the ounce. In May 2011, TCBY launched Super Fro-Yo, a reformulated version of its yogurt with a more nutrient-rich profile. The company brought down the fat content of its yogurt to below 2 percent, so it can be labeled

low fat Diet food (or dietetic food) refers to any food or beverage whose recipe is altered to reduce fat, carbohydrates, and/or sugar in order to make it part of a weight loss program or diet. Such foods are usually intended to assist in weight loss or ...

. On January 10, 2012, TCBY launched a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

frozen yogurt product. TCBY is the first frozen yogurt chain to offer Greek frozen yogurt. Every year, TCBY offers mothers across the nation a free frozen yogurt on

Mother's Day Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family or individual, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world, most commonly in the ...

, and fathers a free frozen yogurt on

Father's Day Father's Day is a holiday of honoring fatherhood and paternal bonds, as well as the influence of fathers in society. In Catholic countries of Europe, it has been celebrated on 19 March as Saint Joseph's Day since the Middle Ages. In the United ...

Store giveaway

In October 2009, TCBY launched the "This Could Be Yours: The Great TCBY Store Giveaway," a contest that rewarded one person with their own TCBY store. To enter, contestants submitted a video, no longer than two minutes, explaining why they should be the recipient of their very own TCBY, why their town is the perfect location, and what they have to offer the brand. Submissions were judged on creativity, a sense of business acumen and originality. Originally, videos were accepted until November 30, 2009, but the deadline was extended until March 31, 2010. On May 26, 2010, it was announced that the winners of the contest were Jared and Sarah Greer of

Fayetteville, Arkansas Fayetteville () is the second-largest city in Arkansas, the county seat of Washington County, and the biggest city in Northwest Arkansas. The city is on the outskirts of the Boston Mountains, deep within the Ozarks. Known as Washington until ...

. The Greers opened their store in April 2011 in

Rogers, Arkansas Rogers is a city in Benton County, Arkansas, United States. Located in the Ozarks, it is part of the Northwest Arkansas region, one of the fastest growing metro areas in the country. Rogers was the location of the first Walmart store, whose corpo ...

with TCBY's new self-serve prototype and store design.

References

External links

*
TCBY Franchises
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tcby Brand name frozen desserts Restaurants established in 1981 Ice cream parlors Fast-food chains of the United States Frozen yogurt businesses 1981 establishments in Arkansas Companies based in Broomfield, Colorado 2000 mergers and acquisitions Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008

History

Products and promotions

Store giveaway

See also

References

External links