Well, America certainly seems to be mad about smoothies. One San Francisco seller, Jamba Juice, has grown to 250 outlets and has already snapped up a smaller player. Smoothie King Franchises Inc., based in Kenner, La., has 204 outlets in 20 states. But trendy foods don't necessarily make good candidates for fast-food chains. After all, millions of pounds of french fries are consumed every day, yet there aren't any big chains of french-fry stands.
Smoothies are cold, wet, sweet, nutritious and, to many people, delicious.
Unlike Coca-Cola or Dove Bars, smoothies aren't the result of a manufacturing or laboratory innovation. Anyone who ever tossed fruit, juice and ice into a blender could call himself a creator of the smoothie. Orange Julius, based in Minneapolis, has sold its smoothie-like juice concoctions since the 1920s. But it wasn't until the early 1990s that the chain, now controlled by Omaha investing sage Warren Buffett, started calling one of its drinks a smoothie. With no consensus on exactly what constitutes a smoothie, makers take liberties.