A low calorie dessert franchise plans to sweeten the Baltimore region.
Tasti D-Lite franchise owner Benjamin Pascal plans to open at least four stores in Maryland by spring. The first of these will open by the end of October at the Park Plaza shopping center in Severna Park. The center's anchor tenants include Dress Barn, Bill Bateman's Bistro and Jo-Ann Fabric & Craft.
The 2,100-square-foot store at 580 E. Ritchie Highway will double as the local headquarters for the headquarters for the Franklin, Tenn., chain. Pascal will use the space to train franchisees and house marketing and administrative staff.
Pascal is eyeing Towson, Baltimore City and Annapolis for the remaining stores. He has yet to secure the locations but says he is looking at standalone locations and strip malls, rather than enclosed mall spaces. Most stores average between 800 and 1,000 square feet. Each store requires about a $250,000 investment in franchise fees and real estate.
Pascal has awarded Tasti D-Lite franchises in Bel Air, Chevy Chase and Washington, D.C.
Eventually, Pascal would like to open at least 25 stores in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Delaware over the next decade, with about 15 of these in Maryland.
Started in New York in 1987, Tasti D-Lite today has 50 stores in the U.S., South Korea and Mexico.
Tasti D-Lite sells frozen desserts composed entirely of skim milk. Though doesn't have enough milk fat to be called ice cream, but the consistency is similar to soft serve ice cream, Pascal says. Each four-ounce serving of the stuff contains between 70 and 100 calories and about 5 grams of sugar.
The stores' 115 flavors include banana fudge, carrot cake, green tea, pomegranate and pumpkin cheesecake. The shops also sell smoothies and shakes.
Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Benjamin Pascal, Tasti D-Lite