Focus Brands, the parent company of Auntie Anne’s and Jamba has announced the new opening of a Jamba and Auntie Anne’s co-brand location, featuring the first Auntie Anne’s drive-thru in brand history.

The location in Wylie, Texas, part of Auntie Anne’s commitment to move beyond traditional mall locations for greater brand accessibility, will feature elements of both brands, including design and menu boards. Jamba’s menu complements the pretzels and snacks offered at Auntie Anne’s.

“Consumer research shows that our guests want access to Auntie Anne’s outside of the mall. While we were already underway with identifying ways to enhance our brands’ accessibility, the study results confirmed our strategy to co-brand this location with Jamba,” says Brian Krause, chief development officer of Focus Brands. “Considering how the pandemic has changed consumer preferences, we recognize the importance of building our off-premise offerings and evolving our development capabilities to provide franchisees with additional opportunities, including co-brand locations that have potential for enhanced revenue. We’re pleased to have an excited franchisee on-board to open the Wylie Jamba and Auntie Anne’s co-brand location and look forward to adding more to our pipeline.”

Auntie Anne’s continues to explore locations out of the mall, including drive-thru locations, co-brand locations, locations near colleges and universities and mobile food trucks. Additionally, Jamba is receiving interest from franchisees looking to add Auntie Anne’s to their existing stores.

“Auntie Anne’s has become synonymous with malls and airports, but for some time we’ve been looking for opportunities to grow outside of those traditional locations to give our guests greater access to a brand they love,” says Kristen Hartman, specialty category president of Focus Brands. “Today, we have a number of Auntie Anne’s streetside locations paired with Cinnabon and Carvel. The opportunities that become available when we leverage the power of our full portfolio are endless. I’m incredibly excited to see that through co-branding we are able to add the drive-thru experience to the Auntie Anne’s portfolio and can’t wait to see how guests respond to this enhanced accessibility.”