Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Restaurants |
Founded | 2001 |
Headquarters | , |
Key people | Jim Holthouser (CEO)
ContentsCDO) |
Subsidiaries | Auntie Anne's Carvel Cinnabon Jamba Juice McAlister's Deli Moe's Southwest Grill Schlotzsky's |
Website | www |
GoTo Foods (formerly Focus Brands) is an American company that currently owns the Schlotzsky's, Carvel, Cinnabon, Moe's Southwest Grill, McAlister's Deli, Auntie Anne's and Jamba brands. It is located in Sandy Springs, Georgia, and operates over 5,000 stores.
Focus Brands began as a holding company for Carvel Corporation.[ citation needed ] It purchased Cinnabon and the international operations of Seattle's Best Coffee from AFC Enterprises in November 2004, combining the three brands under its Focus Brands affiliate. [1] Focus Brands purchased Schlotzsky's from Bobby Cox Companies in 2006, less than two years after Bobby Cox had purchased the brand from bankruptcy.
On August 11, 2007, Focus Brands announced that it purchased the Moe's Southwest Grill brand from Raving Brands. [2]
In October 2010, Focus Brands acquired the mostly mall-based franchiser Auntie Anne's, a maker of pretzels. [3]
In June 2017, Kat Cole was named Chief Operating Officer. [4]
On August 2, 2018, Focus Brands announced that it would acquire Frisco, Texas based smoothie-maker Jamba, formerly known as Jamba Juice. [5] The acquisition was completed on September 14, 2018. [6]
In February 2020, Jim Holthouser was named Chief Executive Officer. [7]
In February 2024, the company announced it was rebranding under the new name GoTo Foods. [8]
Cinnabon, Inc., is an American chain of baked goods stores and kiosks, normally found in areas with high pedestrian traffic such as malls, airports and rest stops. The company's signature item is the cinnamon roll. As of December 2017, there are more than 1,200 Cinnabon bakeries operating in 48 countries. Its headquarters are in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States.
Jamba Juice, doing business as Jamba, is an American quick-service restaurant and juice bar chain that sells blended fruit and vegetable juices, smoothies and other food products. The first Jamba Juice location, originally named Juice Club, opened in 1990 in San Luis Obispo, California. Jamba is owned by Focus Brands, an affiliate of private equity firm Roark Capital Group, which completed its acquisition in 2019. The company has more than 850 locations operating in 36 states in the United States, and also has locations in Australia, Japan, the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, and Indonesia.
Moe's Southwest Grill, referred to informally as Moe's, is an American fast casual restaurant franchise chain that was founded in Atlanta, Georgia on December 9, 2000 by Raving Brands. The name "Moe's" originated as an acronym for "Musicians, Outlaws and Entertainers", and this theme led to the music-related artwork found in the original design.
Carvel is an American ice cream franchise owned by GoTo Foods. Carvel is best known for its soft-serve ice cream and ice cream cakes, which feature a layer of distinctive "crunchies". It also sells a variety of novelty ice cream bars and ice cream sandwiches. Its slogan is "America's Freshest Ice Cream".
Schlotzsky's is an American franchise chain of restaurants, specializing in sandwiches and pizza. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Schlotzsky's has more than 330 franchised and company-owned locations throughout the United States. Most locations are in the south and southwestern United States, but the company is expanding into areas across the country, particularly the north and southeast.
McAlister's Deli is an American chain of fast casual restaurants founded in 1989 in Oxford, Mississippi, by retired dentist Dr. Don Newcomb. There are currently over 500 locations in 29 states. The menu includes deli sandwiches, "giant spuds", soups, salads, and desserts, as well as catering items such as sandwich trays and boxed lunches. The chain is also known for its McAlister's Famous Sweet Tea, which is available by glass or gallon.
Robeks is a smoothie franchise chain headquartered in Los Angeles, California, US. Founded in 1996 by David Robertson, a former investment banker, as of January 2021, the company has 83 franchise locations.
Naked Juice is an American brand that produces juices and smoothies. The company is based in Monrovia, California and is owned by PAI Partners. The first Naked Juice drink was produced in 1983 and sold in California under the name "Naked Juice", referring to the composition of no artificial flavors, added sugar, or preservatives. Distribution has since expanded, and Naked Juice products are distributed in the United States, as well as in Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and France, among others.
Auntie Anne's is an American franchised chain of pretzel shops founded by Anne F. Beiler and her husband, Jonas, in 1988. Auntie Anne's serves products such as pretzels, dips, and beverages. They also offer Pretzels & More Homemade Baking Mix for those who want to make their pretzels at home. The chain has more than 1,200 stores around various locations, such as in shopping malls and outlet malls, as well as non-traditional retail spaces including universities, parking/rest areas, airports, train stations, travel plazas, amusement parks, and military bases. Their slogan as of 2010 is "Pretzel Perfect".
Smoothie King Franchises Inc. is an American privately held company that operates a chain of retail stores that specialize in selling smoothies. Founded in 1973, the company was bought by a South Korean franchisee in 2012. In the late 2010s, the company was focusing on whole and unmodified ingredients.
Tropical Smoothie Cafe, also referred to as Tropical Smoothie, is a restaurant franchise in the United States. Tropical Smoothie Cafe operates more than 1300 locations nationwide.
Kahala Brands is a wholly owned subsidiary of Canada-based MTY Food Group Inc. of Montreal, Quebec. Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, Kahala is one of North America's largest holding company of franchise fast food restaurant companies. In May 2016, the publicly traded Canadian MTY Food Group announced a friendly takeover deal with the Kahala Brands. MTY agreed to pay about US$300 million to acquire Kahala. The two companies generated nearly $2 billion in revenues in the previous year. Jeff Smit was chosen to lead the US operations of MTY.
Juice It Up! is a franchised raw juice, bowl and smoothie bar company. It has 130 locations open or under development across California, Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon and Texas. Juice It Up! delivers real fruit handcrafted fruit and veggie smoothies, fresh squeezed raw juices, acai and pitaya fruit and smoothie bowls, and cold-pressed bottled juices and shots, as well as healthy snacks. Chris Britt and Ed St. Geme are the company's principal owners. The company is based in Newport Beach, California, and originated in 1995.
Uncle Maddio's Pizza Joint is a fast casual restaurant chain serving pizzas, salads and sandwiches with its headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.
Katrina "Kat" Cole is an American businesswoman. She is the CEO of AG1, formerly known as Athletic Greens. She was previously the chief operating officer and president of North America for Focus Brands and the president of Focus Brands' subsidiary Cinnabon, an American chain of retail bakeries specializing in cinnamon buns. Earlier in her career, she was the executive vice president of Hooters.