News

TCBY awards top franchisees

March 16, 2011

Salt Lake City-based TCBY held its Brand Leadership Summit recently in Las Vegas, where the company honored franchisees and discussed goals for the future.

Moving forward, TCBY plans to heavily emphasize innovation and forward-looking customer experiences. To achieve these goals, TCBY will concentrate on digital media, its new website, the self-serve model and new store design.

The keynote speaker for the event was Howard Behar, former president of Starbucks Coffee Company North America and Starbucks Coffee International. Behar, a friend of TCBY CEO and president Tim Casey, acknowledged the fro-yo’s brand’s legacy and its potential to be a global leader.

Also during the event, TCBY honored its best franchisees from 2010. They include:

• The President’s Award, given to Brian Coury of Michigan, who performs at the highest operational level, contributes to the system and demonstrates a consistently positive attitude toward the brand.
• The Marvin Crow Award, named for the founder of the TCBY Franchise Association, was given to Todd Bertagnole of Wyoming, who has served as the association president for four years. This is the highest honor the TCBY Franchise Association bestows on a franchisee.
• The Operator of the Year, Ellie Rumbach, of Little Rock, Ark., has demonstrated a strong commitment to the brand through compliance with operational standards and full participation in marketing programs.
• The Rookie of the Yearrecognizes a franchisee who has entered the system during the last 12-18 months. This year’s honor went to Samual Batt.
• The Manager of the Yearconsistently delivers operational excellence and is committed to quality. Donna MacMillan hires exceptional people, and consistently delivers the best customer service experience.  Both Batt and MacMillan are from Charlotte, N.C., which has been a successful market for TCBY.
• The TCBY Best Customer Experience Award was given to the Bream family of Kansas City, Kan., for consistently going above and beyond good guest service.
• The Local Store Marketing Awardwas given to Charles Tiller of Tuscaloosa, Ala. for his effort in the community and excelling in local store marketing activities both inside and outside his store.

“We are so fortunate to have such a wonderful franchise system, with forward-looking franchisees across the country,” Casey said. “This was my first Brand Leadership Summit, and I was impressed with the participation and leadership that was shown in Las Vegas. We have an iconic brand, a solid franchise base and a vision to be the category’s clear global leader. The Summit reinforced the near-term potential in fulfilling that vision.”