Sean Cangelosi is not your traditional Smoothie King franchisee. For one, he owns multiple non-traditional stores, including Smoothie King’s first and only 24-hour hospital location and another Smoothie King store on a college campus. Both are among the top-performing in the system.

Sean’s journey to franchise ownership also followed a non-traditional path. After leveraging his football scholarship to receive his undergraduate and subsequent MBA, Sean wanted to stay close to his alma mater in Ruston, Louisiana to give back to the local community. Making his first foray into franchising, Sean opened the area’s first Smoothie King catering to students and area residents.

Smoothie King: Fulfilling a Purpose on Campus

After a successful run in Ruston, Sean sold that store and moved to Baton Rouge where he opened a Smoothie King store outside Louisiana State University. After attracting interest and business from LSU students and faculty, he negotiated the opening of the first on-campus Smoothie King.

“I noticed my off-campus store would receive a lot of LSU foot traffic, and that was a great indicator of future success,” explained Sean. “There would definitely be a lot of demand for a concept like ours if we were just able to open up inside the school. I knew I would have loved something like that when I was in college, so I wanted to make it happen.”

Sean’s LSU Smoothie King Location prominently resides inside the school’s student union, where it provides students with a better-for-you alternative to deep-fried fast food options offered elsewhere on campus. Despite opening up two competing locations within a mile of each other, Sean saw both stores flourish nonetheless.

“My off-campus Smoothie King store was completely unaffected by the student union location,” added Sean. “Mainly, our on-campus sales come from the pre-paid ‘meal point’ system that students pay for at the beginning of the year. Students often find they have an abundance of meal points and end up using them at restaurants on-campus to avoid wasting them.”

Serving Hospital Staff & Patients at Brand’s First 24-Hour Store

In addition to the LSU campus location, Sean and his business partner Patrick Fritscher also own a store inside Our Lady of the Lake Hospital in Baton Rouge. The location, which opened in 2015, operates 24/7 to match the needs of the hospital staff and its patients.

“We were trying to get into that location for close to a decade because it was such a great fit for our brand,” said Sean. “Doctors and other hospital staff are in a hurry, and people are sick and need nourishment. Smoothie King is a quick and easy meal option that works for everyone. Instead of serving greasy fries to people who are sick, we’re offering nutritious smoothie options as a more balanced alternative at the hospital.”

While Sean found that more LSU students drink smoothies as a snack or as part of a larger meal, the hospital clientele utilizes it as more of a meal replacement option.

“We sell a lot more vegan and protein-based smoothies than we do at any other location. We offer the hospital a different better-for-you food option. Both doctors and patients really appreciate it.”

Because of its inherent 24-hour nature, the hospital creates a steady flow of all-day traffic, especially increasing in the later hours. After the cafeteria and other restaurants close down for the day, the staff working the graveyard shift is in need of something to help keep them going through the late-night hours.

“Janitorial and maintenance staff, as well as doctors and nurses, rely on us to help provide a quick meal option so they can get right back to work.”

Meeting the Smoothie Demand

Sean’s Smoothie King stores serve up our “Smoothies With A Purpose” to help achieve our mission of inspiring people to live a healthy and active lifestyle. Sean’s creative non-traditional locations fulfill these critical needs in their communities.

How do you plan to fulfill the demand in your area? Learn more about becoming a Smoothie King franchisee here and download our Franchise Kit.