Fact Sheet
Concept: Bruster’s Real Ice Cream is built on delivering a premium fresh-made product with a superior customer experience in a fun, friendly atmosphere where guests can gather to make memories and celebrate special occasions.
Bruster’s controls the product from cow to cone, focusing on freshness and making only what is needed to serve daily, which results in a premium product that is never deep frozen. It all starts with a proprietary homestyle mix made the old-fashioned way, with ingredients that are slow kettle processed and designed specifically to create the iconic Bruster’s flavors. Bruster’s owns a dairy in Titusville, PA, which produces its proprietary homestyle mix and delivers it fresh from the dairy to each store, where small artisan batches of decadent flavors are made by Certified Ice Cream Makers, right in the store where they are served.
"Mentoring Tomorrow's Leaders Today" is Bruster's community promise. Operators are expected to mentor and teach young adults the keys to successful entrepreneurship, while also being active and upstanding members of their communities.
Franchising: Bruster's offers flexible design options: free-standing and end-cap. Both fit the walk-up window model and can accommodate patio seating areas. If available, franchisees are encouraged to add a drive-thru for customer convenience. In colder climates, alternative designs are offered to account for customer comfort. More information can be found at https://www.brustersfranchise.com/.
Menu: More than 150 decadent recipes are available on rotation to comprise the Bruster's treat collection. At least 24 premium flavors are prepared fresh daily in each store where they are served, ready to be enjoyed in crunchy, handmade waffle cones (that also are made in-house), sundaes, candy filled blasts, and milkshakes. Customized sundaes, cakes and pies round out the menu. Complementing its freshly made ice cream, Bruster’s only uses premium add-ins and brand-name candies in its treats.
Getting to Know Bruster’s Real Ice Cream
- Headquarters: 730 Mulberry St., Bridgewater, PA 15009 (Suburban Pittsburgh)
- Locations: About 200 in the U.S. and Guyana; all are franchised with exception of the original store in Bridgewater, PA
- Founded: Bridgewater, Pennsylvania on July 13, 1989
- Years of Operation: 32
- System Sales: $106 Million (2021)
- Posted 8 consecutive years of same-store sales increases with cumulative growth at 66.59%
- Average Unit Volume: $634,673 (2021)
- Total Number of Franchise Owners: 175+ (2021)
Key Executives:
- Bruce Reed, Founder
- Jim Sahene, CEO
- Dave Guido, SVP of Franchise Support
- Jennifer Brinker, VP of Marketing
- Kim Ellis, VP of Franchise Development & Legal
- Greg Danziger, VP of Franchise Development
Company Highlights:
- Reported Same Store Sales Growth at +17.12% in 2021 – a 32-year company record
- Reported all-time sales records at 80% of store locations in 2021 – a 32-year record
- Launched electronic loyalty program, Sweet Rewards, in early 2018 and currently has 650,000+ members. Recognized by Newsweek in 2021 and 2022 on America’s Best Loyalty Program rankings in the Catering, Restaurants and Leisure: Ice Cream and Frozen Yogurt Stores category
- Launched third party delivery partnerships in 2018 and in-house online ordering platform for pick-up in 2021 to expand the brand’s offering
- Anticipating the opening of 30 new store locations in 2021
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UPDATED: March 2022