News
Wow Wow Hawaiian Lemonade making franchise push
February 24, 2020
Wow Wow Hawaiian Lemonade is riding a wave of expansion after recently moving its home base from Hawaii to Arizona. With four franchise locations in the Phoenix area, the company is opening 18 additional units through strategic franchise partnerships in the next 18 months. The new franchise locations will create approximately 200 jobs, according to a company press release.
In 2012, Wow Wow was founded as a farmer's market stand in Hawaii, but after growing in popularity with locals and tourists, the lemonade stand transitioned to a brick-and-mortar restaurant in 2014 and began offering locally sourced, handcrafted, healthy food options like super-food acai bowls, avocado toasts and overnight oats. Since day one, Wow Wow has also been fervently committed to sustainability. Guests can order their lemonades or smoothies in a re-usable Mason jar and receive a discount on their next purchase if they bring the Mason jar back to reuse.
Fast forward to 2019 when investors C&G Franchise Development, led by John Choi and Klaus Grimm, bought the brand, moved its headquarters to Scottsdale and put a focus on franchising. They appointed franchisee Tim Weiderhoft, who had served as VP of franchise development at Arizona-based Massage Envy, as CEO.
"With its 350 days of sunshine a year, Arizona is the quintessential market for expansion for Wow Wow Hawaiian Lemonades," Weiderhoft said in the press release. "Plus, just last year lemonade was named the Official Drink of Arizona! We are proud to grow in our home state and offer Arizonians the opportunity to grow a business with unlimited potential."
Weiderhoft, who is charged with growing the brand throughout The Grand Canyon State, is targeting qualified franchise partners to open restaurants in Old Town/South Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, Biltmore/Arcadia, downtown Phoenix, Flagstaff and Tucson.
Already working toward the goal of introducing 18 locations in the next 18 months, there are five locations in different stages of the development, with Wow Wows opening in Lake Pleasant, Surprise, Moon Valley, Gilbert and Peoria by year's end. The Lake Pleasant eatery will open this spring at 24775 N. Lake Pleasant Parkway, Suite 101, in Peoria.
