Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory found an unexpected niche when it began opening stories in casinos, such as this one in California’s Fantasy Springs Casino.
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory may have gambled in 2007 when it opened its first resort casino location, but the odds are with them now as they’ve seen success in these non-traditional spaces. As Senior Vice President of Franchise Development Greg Pope noted, “You go into these resorts and there is always a line of people in our stores. It’s fun to see our brand fit into a niche I didn’t expect.”
Indeed, the company signed its fourth casino franchisee in 2017, Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California. Fantasy Springs’ Vice President of Hotel and Food & Beverage Jay Chesterton “was a big fan of Rocky Mountain Chocolate and had frequented our stores around the U.S.,” said Pope.
According to Tony Sanza, Fantasy Springs food and beverage director, the resort casino had “dead space with some couches” that wasn’t bringing in revenue, and it was located next to a Starbucks. Now, “it’s a great revenue source, easy to operate and the product is wonderful,” he said. “It’s great to have that amenity to offer our gamers and guests. And when they leave, it’s on the main fairway where they can pick up a gift before they go home.”
Sanza reported the location does about $50,000 to $60,000 in revenue per month out of the 250-square-foot space.
Pope said like all of Rocky Mountain’s non-traditional locations, “we take time to invest and cultivate relationships with the key decisionmakers. With casinos, it’s typically the F&B team or their CEO. Once they’re on board, we help them with specific material to present their idea to their tribal councils for final approval.”
Greg Pope
And casinos take good care of their customers, he added. “Casinos really know who their customer is, and cater to them with all of their rewards programs to make sure they come back. So, it comes down to adding a unique offering. Visually you have that entertainment—50 percent of the chocolate is made in the store—and then you have the gift and snack components.”
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory has other non-traditional locations in “tourist streetfronts, beach environments, airports, ski areas” and the like. “The message is we are catering to a unique shopping environment,” Pope said.
Sanza said he would advise casinos and other resort F&B teams to look for a franchise brand that provides great support, since casino operators are not traditional franchisees. A Rocky Mountain Chocolate representative visited and walked the space, he said, helping to design a store that was built out in a couple of weeks in the small area. Plus, Sanza and his team traveled to Rocky Mountain headquarters, just like any other franchisee, for training.
“Being new and not knowing what to expect, and putting yourself out there as a franchisee, that’s a big thing,” he said. “You really do need the support.”
Would Sanza look at bringing in other franchise brands now? “We’d love to, but we’re out of real estate,” he said, laughing.
