Cold Stone Creamery Continues International Growth With Entrance Into Turkey

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., June 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The international development of Cold Stone Creamery^® continues to accelerate in 2013 with its growth into Turkey. The important milestone of entering the brand's 25^th country also comes during the year Cold Stone Creamery celebrates its 25^th birthday.  Kahala^®, the parent company of Cold Stone Creamery, has signed a Master Franchise Agreement with Ulker Golf with a goal of opening 15 stores in the market over the next five years.  Teaming up with another first-class Master Partner has enabled Cold Stone Creamery to spread America's most innovative ice cream concept worldwide.

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Ulker, the leading food and beverage brand in Turkey, has been a part of the daily lives of many Turkish families since 1944. They started with the production of a single biscuit and now manufacture a wide span of products such as chocolate, candy, chewing gum, dairy products, carbonated beverages, fats and oils, soups, ketchup, mayonnaise, coffee and baby food; which has now entwined in the day-to-day lives of Turkish consumers. The ice cream brand of Ulker; Ulker Golf is the biggest local ice cream producer in Turkey. With their second factory in construction to begin production in 2014, their total production capacity will increase to 160 billion liters a year. Today, 2.5 billion Ulker Golf products are consumed throughout the world.

"We have been following the striking success of Cold Stone Creamery for a while now and believe in the business idea. As ice cream per capita consumption increases in Turkey constantly, we identified a consumer insight that is very important; Turkish consumers are now ready for more sophisticated flavors and customized icecream experiences," said Orhan Ozokur, Chairman of the Ulker Golf board. "We trust that this partnership with Cold Stone Creamery will be quite popular as the brand offers a unique premium ice-cream experience where consumers can create a customized flavor of their preference on the spot. We believe that Turkish guests will love the delicious and entertaining Cold Stone Creamery experience."

Just like Cold Stone Creamery, Ulker Golf strives to deliver excellent customer service and together they will create a strong partnership in their conveyance of the Ultimate Ice Cream Experience™. Cold Stone Creamery sets out to continually deliver on the brand promise and to make people happy worldwide with their popular product. Ulker Golf similarly strives to create happiness for people all over the world with the services and products they provide.

"Partnering with Ulker Golf has been a great pleasure for us at Cold Stone Creamery," said Michael McGill, President of International at Kahala. "They are an established, well-known brand, in which we know will be able to push Cold Stone Creamery beyond our expectations in Turkey. Ulker Golf's exceptional resources, dedication to their values and commitment to their community are distinctly demonstrated in their work and values. We are excited for them to join the Cold Stone Creamery family."

Cold Stone Creamery has continued to make a strong impact in achieving their international development goals. This current expansion will increase the number of countries Cold Stone Creamery resides in to 25. The international growth of Cold Stone Creamery began in November 2005 when the company opened its first international store in Tokyo, Japan. Today, Cold Stone Creamery stores are operating in more than 420 international locations and in 25 different countries including South Korea, Kuwait, the Philippines, Trinidad, Nigeria, Egypt and Brazil.

About Cold Stone Creamery
Cold Stone Creamery delivers the Ultimate Ice Cream Experience through a community of franchisees who are passionate about ice cream. The secret recipe for smooth and creamy ice cream is handcrafted fresh daily in each store, and then customized by combining a variety of mix-ins on a frozen granite stone. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Cold Stone Creamery is a subsidiary of Kahala, one of the fastest growing franchising companies in the world, with a portfolio of 15 quick-service restaurant brands. Cold Stone Creamery operates more than 1,500 locations in 25 countries.

For more information about Cold Stone Creamery, visit www.coldstonecreamery.com.

For more information about Kahala, visit www.kahalamgmt.com.

SOURCE Cold Stone Creamery