Jamba, Inc. today provided an update on its key BLEND plan initiatives and progress in the company's fiscal 2010 year. The Company showed solid progress on key strategic priorities, including the expansion of food, successful commercialization of consumer products and global franchise expansion.
“Despite the competitive activity in the smoothie category during 2010, we continued to maintain our status as one of the most recognized leaders in the smoothie category and to grow our awareness as a health and wellness brand," said James D. White, Jamba’s chairman, president and CEO.
The QSR chain shared its 2010 accomplishments relative to BLEND plan priorities:
- Deliver improved comparable Company-owned store sales: Fiscal 2010 showed four quarters of sequential improvement in comparable Company-owned store sales versus fiscal 2009, including the return to positive comparable Company-owned store sales of 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010. Results reflect sequential improvement in comparable Company-owned store sales in six of seven quarters and the first positive quarter of Company-owned comparable stores sales since 2007.
- Build/expand our menu across all day parts: Major programs that strengthened the Company's business model included the expansion of its beverage and food menu offerings across all day parts, specifically the introduction of seasonally relevant limited time offerings, such as its new Superfruit and Probiotic Fruit and Yogurt smoothies; a hot beverage platform, featuring hot coffee, tea latte’s, hot chocolate and organic artisan teas from Mighty Leaf™, all or a portion of which are now available in more than 384 locations; the expansion of food offerings, including testing of new snack items and baked goods to more than 300 locations; the expansion of its renowned oatmeal platform to over 650 locations; the launch of a new breakfast daypart platform in select California markets; and the launch of a new specialty frozen yogurt platform called Whirl’ns™ Frozen Yogurt for the evening daypart.
- Accelerate the development of franchise and non-traditional stores: The Company made significant progress in the transition to a more franchise-oriented organization, expanding the Jamba brand into 23 states total with the opening of a new store in Louisiana and with the refranchising of 105 Company-owned stores as part of our refranchising initiative. The Company signed agreements to open franchise stores in three new markets including New Orleans, Boston, and Indiana and expects to expand into Connecticut in early April 2011. The Company also signed its first major international development agreement with SPC Group in South Korea. SPC Group opened their first franchise store on January 31, 2011 in the Incheon International Airport.
- Build a licensing growth platform: At the end of fiscal 2010, the Company had entered into nine licensing agreements and licensees had commercialized four consumer packaged goods product lines. In particular, Jamba-branded frozen novelties, manufactured under license by Oregon Ice Cream, and the At-Home Smoothie Kits, manufactured under license by Inventure Foods, were collectively in over 10,000 points of distribution by the close of fiscal 2010. In February 2011, Nestlé USA launched its all-natural, fruit-based, energy drinks in the Northeast and the Company expects the remaining four product lines to be in retail distribution by end of the second quarter 2011, including product lines developed through agreements with One Natural Experience (O.N.E.) for coconut water fruit juice beverages, with Zola for functional daily Brazilian Superfruit shots, with Johnvince Foods for all-natural, boosted trail mixes and with Sundia Corporation for functionally boosted fruit cups.
“Even though we faced a challenging operating environment during 2010, we made significant progress on our long-term BLEND plan. Jamba’s performance in 2010 makes us confident about the outlook for 2011," noted White.
Jamba, Inc. (NASDAQ:JMBA) is a holding company and through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Jamba Juice Company, owns and franchises JAMBA JUICE® stores. At the end of 2010, Jamba Juice had 743 locations consisting of 351 Company-owned and operated stores and 392 franchise stores. jambajuice.com
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(03-10-11)
Source: Business Wire
Copyright: Kandessa Media. All rights reserved.
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