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Baskin-Robbins Ice
Cream Company Inc
On 31
December 1973 J. Lyons (US Holdings) Inc,
a wholly owned subsidiary of J. Lyons
& Co, acquired over 2 million shares
of the Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream Company
from United Brands Limited. The
provisional consideration was
US$37,578,125. Of this $7,284,374 was paid
on 31 December 1973 and the remainder by
three promissory notes each for
$10,097,917, maturing on 30 December 74,
30 December 75 and 30 December 76. The
shares acquired represented 82.68% of
Baskin-Robbins stock.
Ice cream
parlors had been a popular concept in the
United States for many years but no one
had come up with the idea of premium
quality with delicious and exotic
flavours. Irvine Robbins, a former US Army
staff-sergeant and son of a dairy owner
from Tacoma, Washington, addressed these
issues and opened his first store in
December 1945 which he called Snowbird Ice
Cream. It embodied all his ideas of
quality and service and his ice cream
appeared in 21 flavours, many of which had
never been tasted before. In 1946 Robbins
went into partnership with Burton Baskin,
the two sharing their enthusiasm for
quality ice cream in a wide range of
flavours. Following their partnership they
opened a second store in Pasadena,
California, which they called Burton's Ice
Cream. The stores offered special seating
and customers were offered complimentary
taste spoons to sample the many
flavours.
By 1948
six stores had been opened, all supplied
with ice cream made to a rigid, standard
specification. However, they realized that
if more stores were opened they could not
maintain personal control themselves and
so they licensed operations to individuals
who would manage the stores to the same
high standard, a procedure known as
franchising. As they opened more stores
the company name was changed to
Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream. The number of
ice cream flavours was increased to 31,
one for each day of the month.
In 1949
with 43 stores in operation the new
company bought its first production plant
in Burbank, California. By the 1960s
Baskin-Robbins started to open stores
right across the United States and the big
31, the prominent symbol on all their
stores, was well on its way to becoming a
national trademark. In August 1971 the
first Canadian Baskin-Robbins store was
opened in Toronto. This move was made
possible by the selection of Silverwood
Industries Inc., a highly respected
company which served as Canadian
Franchisor. In late 1973 a new company,
Baskin-Robbins Japan Co Ltd was formed and
the process of opening ice cream stores in
Tokyo and Osaka commenced.
By the end
if 1973 Baskin-Robbins owned three main
plants at Burbank (California), Southbury
(Connecticut) and Bryan (Texas).
Additionally, Baskin-Robbins increasingly
contracted other ice cream manufacturers
across America to make their ice cream
under license and by 1974 these numbered
eleven. By this time, the Baskin-Robbins
manufacturing plants and the licensed
manufacturers were supplying 17 million
gallons of ice cream per year to 1,300
stores in the US. Some accounts record
that over the period 1948-1973
Baskin-Robbins had developed 401 different
flavours as well as cream desserts and
fountain items. In July 1974 they acquired
the Ideal Pure Milk Company.
The ice
cream market in the United States is more
developed than anywhere else in the world.
The British climate probably limits the
sale of ice cream to the warm summer
months only. Unlike the UK, where ice
cream is packaged to attract consumer
types, the Baskin-Robbins ice cream is
served in cornets, tubs and take-home
packaging direct from containers in large
display freezers. Their stores also have a
seating area for customers and high
emphasis is placed on service, hygiene and
attractiveness. The staff all wear a
standard uniform and look the part.
By 1990
the company had 2,400 stores of which
2,000 were supplied with their ice cream
direct by Baskin-Robbins and the remainder
by territorial franchise partners. Seventy
of the stores were company owned and
operated, all others are were franchised.
Outside the United States the Company has
approximately 1,000 stores in 43
countries. This makes Baskin-Robbins the
fourth largest international franchise
operation in the world. Sales are $300
million per annum and total retail system
sales are $860 million. In the same year
Baskin-Robbins started to develop a
network of 70 ice cream stores throughout
Mexico. This process started with two
stores in Mexico City and Monterey in
October 1990. A further six stores were
due to open before the end of 1990.
In March
1991, Baskin-Robbins Inc. acquired Gelato
Classico, a parent company of Caffe
Classico which ran a chain of 31
franchised cafes serving gourmet coffees,
Italian pastries, salads, soups,
sandwiches and ice cream. Based in San
Francisco, it was renames Caffe Classico
Inc. and operated as a stand-alone, wholly
owned subsidiary of Baskin-Robbins.
Kenneth P Henderson was appointed
President of Caffe Classico Inc. who
reported directly to William I Savel,
President and Chief Executive Officer of
Baskin-Robbins Inc.
In January
1990, J. Lyons & Co purchased the US
Dunkin' Donut business and one year later
experimented by opening a joint
Baskin-Robbins/Dunkin' Donut store in New
Castle, Delaware. The two products lines
are natural partners particularly as
together they have the potential of
attracting customers throughout the day
into the stores. As hot and cold lines the
two also complement each other
seasonally.
The Baskin-Robbins business
was formally merged with Dunkin' Donuts (the American Donut
business which Lyons owned) after Allied Domecq plc had
been sold to Pernod Ricard of France. The new businesses
became known as Dunkin' Brands Inc and in 2006, Dunkin'
Brands Inc was sold to the venture capitalists: Bain Capital
LLC, The Carlyle Group and Thomas H. Lee Parteners LP.
(Please note: Flavour has
been spelled in the anglicised style)
©
Peter
Bird 2003
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