A new sign added in front of Airpark Plaza last week generated excitement as it indicated Famous Dave’s as well as a Cold Stone Creamery was coming to Milford. This week Cold Stone confirmed that it was planning to open in Milford.
“We only have preliminary information to share at this point,” Michelle Molson, Senior Public Relations Manager at Kahala Brands, said. “Construction will start soon. We do not have an exact date on when the store will open to the public.”
Over the past month, clearing began on a vacant lot next to Walmart and since the company stated “construction” would begin soon, it is possible a new building will be added to the retail complex to house both Cold Stone and Famous Dave’s. At press time, Famous Dave’s had not returned requests for comment.
Cold Stone Creamery began as the vision of Donald and Susan Sutherland who searched for ice cream that was smooth and creamy, not hard-packed of soft-serve. Unable to find exactly what they wanted, the couple opend the first Cold Stone Creamery in Tempe, Arizona in 1988. The ice cream was of premium quality, containing 14 percent milk or butter fat, two to three times the industry average. It also had less air pumped into the product during manufacturing.
The company thrived as it not only sold ice cream, but a concept with customers designing their own creations. Customers could add candy, nuts, syrups and other ingredients which crew members then blended using spatula-like utensils on a frozen granite slab. This created more of an experience that blended with the smell of freshly baked waffle cones and brownies. The goal was to create an old-fashioned ice cream parlor feel.
The attempt was a success and the couple opened their second store in 1990 in Phoenix. Over the next five years, more stores were added along with Chief Executive Officer Ken Burk an d Doug Ducey as president. Ducey created the franchise model with a low initial fee of $42,000 and recommended storefront sizes of around 1,100 square feet to keep overhead low. By 2000, Cold Stone had grown to 100 stores in 16 states.
When the Milford store opens, it will join two franchises in Newark as well as one in Dover.
