Offering a variety of healthy smoothies, wraps, sandwiches and flatbreads, restaurant expected to open in June
Tropical Smoothie Café, a leading fast-casual concept known for its better-for-you food and smoothies with a tropical twist, has signed a lease within Lansdowne Center in the Arbutus section of Baltimore County. The franchise company, which operates nearly 700 locations across the country, is expected to open in June. Tropical Smoothie Café joins the restaurant tenant mix at the mixed-use project on Washington Boulevard (Maryland Route 1) that includes Chick-Fil-A, Dunkin Donuts, the International House of Pancakes, America’s Best Wings, Panda Express and Moe’s Southwest Grill. The 500,000 square foot project is owned by Venture B.G., LLC and is managed by David S. Brown Enterprises, Ltd.
Ken Bernstein of David S. Brown Enterprises represented the landlord and Joe Fleischmann of Segall group represented the tenant in this transaction. The franchise group is owned by Pallavi Vyas, who currently operates two Tropical Smoothie Café locations in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Tropical Smoothie Cafe presently operates 13 restaurants throughout the Maryland area and two in Baltimore County, with a location opening last year in Boulevard College Center, which is also owned and managed by David S. Brown Enterprises. The national chain continues to search for expansion locations throughout Maryland, with growth plans calling for the addition of up to 25 new locations within the state over the next two years.
Lansdowne Station is anchored by a number of destination big-box stores including a 230,000 square foot Wal-Mart Supercenter, Petco, Office Depot and LA Fitness and features complementary retailers and restaurants. The office portion includes a three-story, 58,000 square foot building which is partially leased by Saint Agnes Hospital and includes approximately 150 hospital employees.
“For the past several months, we have been searching for a high-traffic area in this section of Baltimore County that attracts both local residents and office workers,” explained Pallavi Vyas. “Lansdowne Center caught our attention based on the presence of Wal-Mart, LA Fitness and Saint Agnes Hospital because each drives people to the center at different parts of the day plus weekends. The existing restaurants achieve extremely high sales volumes and we believe our concept will complement the options offered to the local community.”
Tropical Smoothie Cafe has operated for more than twenty years and offers an array of classic, superfood and kid’s smoothies including kiwi quencher, mango magic, blueberry bliss, as well as flavors packed with spinach, kale, acai and pomegranate. Sandwich and wraps options feature chicken apple club, chipotle chicken club, tropical chicken salad and hummus veggie. Also available are salads, flatbreads and breakfast items. Last year, the restaurant launched a revamped menu offering that includes supergreen Caesar wrap, chicken bacon ranch flatbread and Baja chicken wrap or bowl.
By 2020, the franchise which emphasizes menu items prepared with fresh, natural and high-quality ingredients, expects to have more than 1000 locations open around the country.
More than 135,000 people reside within a five-mile radius of Lansdowne Station including 145,000 households with an average household income exceeding $51,000.
“Consumers want healthy eating options, which can be seen by examining the changing menus items offered by major fast-casual restaurants and Tropical Smoothie Café has been leading this trend nationally,” stated Ken Bernstein of David S. Brown Enterprises. “The fast-casual chain is recognized for its better-for-you and fresh ingredients and they are performing exceeding well at Boulevard College Center. We expect similar results in the Arbutus area and are confident in the franchise skills of Pallavi Vyas to execute a successful plan.”
David S. Brown Enterprises, LTD., founded in 1933 and headquartered in Owings Mills, MD, is a full-service real estate company providing leasing, sales and management services. For additional information, visit www.davidsbrown.com.
