Sponsored by Kent Precision Foods
Few things are more delightful than frozen treats. As a dessert or snack, soft serve provides a delicious, refreshing treat for consumers, and incremental sales for foodservice operators. Trends such as nostalgia, all-day snacking, and growing interest in nondairy foods can drive sales in frozen treats. Offering an iconic brand can be even more effective in appealing to these consumers.
Now more than ever, people love dessert. According to the 2023 Desserts Keynote Report from Datassential, 45% of operators saw an increase in overall dessert sales over the past year. The report also notes that nearly all consumers enjoyed a dessert within the past week, and 63% had one within the day before the survey. This provides opportunities for operators to add a check-boosting item to lunch and dinner sales, and to attract snack sales any time of day.
The key is to stand out amid a growing arena of treat sales. Consumers have many choices for desserts and snacks, including for frozen treats, so operators must offer familiar favorites that are also innovative. Here are some tips for driving frozen treat sales.
Rely on an iconic brand
People prefer trusted, familiar products and brands. According to a McKinsey & Company report, The State of the U.S. Consumer Spending, consumers harbor a more positive outlook about the economy than they did last year. That optimism results in an unwillingness to trade down, as fewer shoppers reported switching to lower-priced brands in Q1 2024 compared to Q4 2023. People are willing to spend on the brands they know and love, the report notes.
The demand for favorite brands is not only a result of improving economic times. Consumers turn to iconic brands because of nostalgia, trust, and knowledge that the experience will be a positive one. For example, DOLE SOFT SERVE® is renowned among fans for its true-to-fruit taste. The refreshing and creamy dessert is available in 10 crowd-pleasing flavors: pineapple, pomegranate, orange, raspberry, lemon, strawberry, mango, lime, cherry, and watermelon.
“DOLE SOFT SERVE® is like a special item you get at a very memorable place,” says Raymond Reyes, who with his wife, Fen Reyes, founded the poke chain Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar®.
The menu at Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar®, which has more than 20 locations in California, Hawaii, Texas, and Utah, features poke, boba teas, and DOLE SOFT SERVE®. The frozen treat is something that people are familiar with, and which attracts new customers. “DOLE SOFT SERVE® is offering somewhat of an icebreaker to folks that have never had poke before,” Reyes says.
Offer dessert as a snack 
Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar® has opened several locations in Walmart stores, replacing legacy burger restaurants, and recently opened a location at Universal Studios in Hollywood. “When families come in, the parents buy poke bowls for themselves and DOLE SOFT SERVE® for the kids,” Fen Reyes says. “There is something for everyone.”
Visual cues help drive sales. Each location of Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar® has four digital menu boards, one each for poke, boba tea, DOLE SOFT SERVE®, and limited time offers (LTO). In addition, customers can see the soft serve in its appetizing colors, as the soft-serve machines can dispense two flavors plus a twist.
Another selling point of DOLE SOFT SERVE® is that it is dairy-free, which appeals to consumers looking for an alternative to ice cream. Most of Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar’s boba teas are also dairy-free, Fen says, so DOLE SOFT SERVE® is a perfect match. The locations plan to run a summer LTO with pineapple DOLE SOFT SERVE® and boba teas, called a Sharkii Tea Float. These special menu items use products that the stores already have available, so there is minimal prep work and no added food costs. “It’s a nice little refreshing tea drink with fruity flavors,” Raymond says. “We are prepping people for summer.”
DOLE SOFT SERVE® is available as a dry mix that is easy to prepare, as operators simply whisk the mix with cool water and use the required soft-serve machine. The mix is operationally efficient and requires very little storage space, and yields 8 gallons per case.
For more information, visit www.dolesoftserve.com/contact.cfm.
