As a long-time Smoothie King fan and health and wellness enthusiast, Ohio-based Smoothie King franchise owner, Anna Dey, had her sights set on Smoothie King long before becoming a multi-unit franchisee.
Like many of our Smoothie King franchise owners, Anna was intrigued by our purpose and products. An avid gym-goer and former bodybuilder, she was a frequent Smoothie king guest.
“I’ve been drinking the same smoothie for nearly ten years,” she said.
Smoothie King’s devotion to healthy living and quality ingredients is what makes our smoothie franchise stand out among the rest, Anna added.
Born to Be a Business Owner
“Growing up, I was always a businesswoman, and I’ve always wanted to start my own business,” she said.
After studying business in college, Anna worked in sales where she traveled roughly 500 miles a week. She quickly realized her job wasn’t the right fit and decided to switch paths.
With a passion for fitness and healthy living, she was determined to open a gym. Anna opened her first Anytime Fitness in 2012 with her father as co-owner.
“I knew this is where I was supposed to be,” she said, “I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur.”
Just Getting Started
After running the gym for five years, Anna was interested in adding more gym locations to her portfolio, however, no locations felt right. As she searched for other brands in the health and fitness space to invest in, she thought of Smoothie King.
“We were initially interested in opening a Smoothie King franchise, but we didn’t meet the financial qualifications,” she said.
Anna and her husband then found a smaller meal-prep and healthy food franchise, Clean Eatz, thanks to Anna’s friend Jackie, who had opened a location in Canton, Ohio.
“Jackie lied to me and made it sound easy, so I gave it a shot. If she had told me how hard it was, I wouldn’t have given it a try,” Anna joked.
Anna and Michael opened their Clean Eatz in 2018, almost exactly six years after she opened her Anytime Fitness.
It wasn’t long until Anna had established a health and fitness theme in her community, encouraging people to live healthy lifestyles.
Impacting the Community
As the face of healthy living within her community, Anna created The 24 in 24 charity event in 2015, where members of the community donate money to charity and run a mile every hour for 24 hours. The event has raised over $670,000 for kids who are battling life-threatening illnesses within the community.
“We invite our Wish Kids to come, and at the end of the run they put the medals around our runner’s necks. It’s amazing- they’re who we do it for,” Anna said.
The event typically draws a large interest from media and community members alike and they anticipate cumulative donations to reach $1 million in 2021.
Persistence is Key
With two businesses under her belt and a strong community backing, Anna decided to give Smoothie King another shot.
“We applied again, and this time, we got approved,” she said.
Anna is excited to continue helping people achieve a healthy and active lifestyle.
“It’s the right industry to be in. People are focusing more on healthy living,” she said.
Anna’s first Smoothie King opened in Painesville, Ohio, in January of 2021, and her second location is slated to open in June 2021. With a good team and support from the franchisor, she says business is smooth-sailing.
“Being a multi-unit franchisee for Smoothie King is simple,” Anna said. “With a good manager and teammates, it’s a very easy template to follow,” she said.
In true entrepreneurial fashion, Anna wants to add more Smoothie King locations to her portfolio, with plans to potentially expand the smoothie franchise throughout north Ohio.
Adding Smoothie King to your selection of health and wellness concepts not only creates a well-rounded portfolio but also offers up unique qualities in comparison to your current franchise investments.
