Häagen-Dazs has held a beloved place in our supermarket freezers for years now. But, surprisingly, the American brand has had a much harder time establishing and keeping its own physical ice-cream parlours in the UK.
The ice-cream giant has around 850 branches around the world, but none of them are here in Britain. It shut the doors on its last permanent UK branch in 2015, though it has reappeared every so often in the form of pop-up shops. Almost ten years later, Häagen-Dazs is finally plotting a major comeback.
The brand, which describes its products as ‘the ice creams of ice cream’, wants to open 25 new stores across the UK in the next five years. According to Franchise World, Greater London is the current frontrunner for its first location.
Existing Häagen-Dazs outlets serve a pick of 24 its premium classic flavours, like strawberries and cream or salted caramel, as well as seasonal specials and limited editions. Its menu also offers drinks, pastries and cake, so every kind of sweet tooth is catered for.
As part of its UK relaunch, the brand is seeking franchise partners and says that they must have a passion for three things: ‘continuing to empower its reputation of excellence, providing its customers with the highest quality ice cream in the world, and providing its franchisees with exceptional support and successful opportunities’.
Speaking of making a comeback – Wilko is set to open 300 new UK stores despite collapsing into administration only a few months ago. And in other big openings news, Popeyes wants to double its number of UK stores this year, while fellow fried chicken chain Chick-fil-A is hoping to make its British debut by 2025.
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