Could An Auntie Anne's Food Truck Be Coming To Your Area?
Many Americans know the joys of walking through a mall with a hot, soft pretzel or other doughy creation from the popular, ubiquitous Auntie Anne's. With hundreds of locations in outlet shopping centers, airports, and malls across the U.S., Auntie Anne's has been serving up fresh pretzels for more than 30 years, according to its website. The famous pretzel was created by Anne Beiler in 1988 at a Pennsylvania farmer's market. You can now find pretzel bites, pretzel dogs, pretzel twists, and classic hot pretzels in various flavors at Auntie Anne's across the nation.
With more consumers using the internet than ever before, many brick-and-mortar stores have either closed or are heading towards bankruptcy, The Balance Small Business notes, and malls have been hit particularly hard. As Auntie Anne's began to see a decrease in mall traffic affecting its income, the pretzel franchise decided to branch out, and began a small food truck line in 2018 (via Restaurant Business).
The Auntie Anne's food truck fleet is growing
Franchise owner Linda Reed opened her first Auntie Anne's 28 years ago in Glendale, California, and has recently added a food truck to her enterprise. "Well, you know, the retail landscape has changed dramatically. So, this was an opportunity to ... get to the places where there's lots of people and lots of things happening in Los Angeles," she told QSR Magazine.
As QSR reports, Reed's food truck venture has proven successful. She explains the truck is used mostly for big events, such as concerts, and it has brought in upwards of $10,000 per day. The Auntie Anne's food truck success is not limited to California, as married couple Sam and Brian Hardesty own two Auntie Anne's food trucks in Kentucky, and plan to continue to grow their fleet and serve the surrounding states.
While you may not have noticed an Auntie Anne's food truck in your area yet, don't despair, there may be one heading your way soon. The Auntie Anne's website shares that the pretzel trucks are "popping up everywhere" and you can search for a truck by location. If you are passionate about pretzels, the website even offers a food truck catering option for private events.