Smoothie King Franchises Inc. 2009 Annual Franchise Conference Held in Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Smoothie King Franchises Inc. held its 2009 Franchise Conference June 12 and 13 near their Covington, Louisiana-based headquarters at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside Hotel. Themed Believe It Achieve It, the conference featured keynote speaker Troy Hazard, corporate speaker and author of The Naked Entrepreneur: A Millionaire’s Journey from Fear to True Wealth. Over 300 Smoothie King franchisees and executives were in attendance.

“We firmly trust that if you believe it you can achieve it”

“In spite of a difficult economic environment, we are celebrating our 36th year, and I am pleased to report the continued expansion and success of Smoothie King,” said Steve Kuhnau, co-founder, president and CEO. “Most importantly, we are continuing with our mission to not only offer great tasting smoothies, but to help more people achieve a healthier lifestyle.”

During the conference award ceremony, franchisees Roger and Stephanie Wilder III (Denham Springs, Louisiana) were awarded Franchisee of the Year. David and Dawn Cotrone and Raleigh and Kim Dumas (Bradenton, Florida) received New Franchisee of the Year; 45 other franchisees were also awarded for their outstanding achievement.

Smoothie King has been ranked the number one juice bar franchise for 16 years by Entrepreneur magazine. Since January 2009, Smoothie King has added 32 new stores in the United States and internationally surpassing 600 stores across the globe.

With 70 stores opened last year, Smoothie King ranked ninth among top franchises, 51st in growth and 83rd in system size according to AllBusiness.com.

“We firmly trust that if you believe it you can achieve it,” said Cindy Kuhnau, co-founder and vice president of Smoothie King. “We are excited about new franchise openings and new smoothie products and offerings launching this summer.”

About Smoothie King Franchises Inc.

Smoothie King is a privately held, New Orleans-area-based franchise company and the premier Smoothie Bar and Nutritional Lifestyle Center in the industry. Smoothie King offers guests the original nutritional fresh-blended smoothie and healthy retail products, including sports beverages, energy bars, healthy snacks, vitamin supplements, herbs, minerals and other sports nutrition products. Smoothie King opened its first store in 1973 and started as the first franchised smoothie bar/health food store in the United States in 1989, and currently has more than 600 units operating in 32 states and the Republic of Korea. For more information, visit www.smoothieking.com.