Ready for Pickup: GoTo Foods Expands Global Reach Through Licensing

This year, GoTo Foods has extended some of its food and beverage brands beyond the norm through licensing. Formerly known as Focus Brands, the company, based in Atlanta, Ga., is a global multichannel food service brand. Through its affiliate brands, GoTo Foods is the franchisor and operator of more than 6,700 restaurants, cafes, ice cream shops and bakeries in all 50 states and over 60 countries and territories. 

Chance are one of your senses knows the brands GoTo Foods represent:  pretzel company, Auntie Anne’s; soft-serve ice cream shop and cinnamon roll haven, Cinnabon; coffee brand, Seattle’s Best Coffee; smoothie company, Jamba; as well as chain restaurants, Moe’s Southwest Grill, McAlister’s Deli and Schlotzsky’s. 

With such a diverse portfolio, the GoTo Foods licensing team rolled out some noteworthy collaborations this year. Auntie Anne’s introduced Knead, a perfume with the scent of an Auntie Anne’s store filled with freshly baked pretzels, which took social media by storm. Those with a sweet tooth rejoiced when recent collaborations with the candy brand, Warheads, extended to its cinnamon rolls and Chillatta cold drinks. Halloween revelers could dress up as a package of Cinnabon or Auntie Anne’s thanks to the collaboration with Spirt Halloween. 

Related:The Top Global Licensors Report 2024

Kerri Christian, senior vice president, international and retail channels licensing, GoTo Foods, talks about the company’s planning of its licensing program – and what’s to come.  

Kerri Christian, senior vice president, international and retail channels licensing, GoTo Foods.

License Global: What is GoTo Foods’ strategy behind licensing for some of its brands? 

Kerri Christian: Our mission is to expand global access points for our brands, increasing relevance and driving consistent growth while enhancing overall brand health. At the heart of this strategy is our commitment to providing consumers with more opportunities to enjoy the brands they love, all while ensuring they receive a premium experience across various formats. 

We take a strategic approach in selecting partners, focusing on industry leaders with strong go-to-market capabilities in the categories we explore. Our decisions are always made with our core business and franchisees in mind; we would never pursue products or opportunities that could undermine or negatively impact our franchisees. 

Our multichannel strategy offers numerous benefits, including increased brand awareness, enhanced customer loyalty, supply chain efficiencies, contributions to our advertising fund and opportunities for innovation. 

How involved was the company for the Auntie Anne’s perfume, which went viral on social media? 

Related:Special Report: Food and Beverage Licensing Stays Hot

The Auntie Anne’s perfume was a fantastic PR activation that truly captured attention, and we’re thrilled with its success. Our multichannel brand strategy is anchored on building brand love with consumers through experiences that encourage customers to connect with our family of brands in new ways and long-term partnerships that build brand equity. 

Do you incorporate flavor/taste profiles when it comes to working with another brand for licensed products? 

Absolutely! We prioritize our core flavor profiles when developing licensed products. Our research and development team excels at integrating these signature tastes into innovative formats, ensuring that consumers receive the familiar experience they expect from our brands. This commitment to flavor integrity is key to delivering satisfying products that resonate with our audience. 

Auntie Anne’s collection of pretzels.

GoTo Foods is No. 29 on our Top Global Licensors Report at $1.5 billion in retail sales of licensed consumer products. What do you think has been the key to your success? 

While we are No. 29, we are the second-largest food and beverage company on that list. Our success in licensing stems from a strategic approach to selecting the right partners and leveraging consumer insights to inform our business, category and product decisions. As we’ve focused on building world-class brands in F&B, we have also built a dedicated, best-in-class licensing team that manages all aspects of the process – from R&D and quality assurance to marketing, insights, business development and account management. This comprehensive approach ensures we consistently deliver exceptional products and experiences that resonate with consumers.  

Related:Auntie Anne’s Releases Fragrance

Jamba has done branded apparel, smoothies and cosmetics. Will there be more wellness-branded products coming out? 

We’re actively exploring new opportunities for Jamba in the retail space. In 2025, we’ll launch a range of Jamba-branded functional health and wellness products in grocery stores. Jamba is an iconic brand that resonates with consumers, and we believe there’s plenty of potential to expand our offerings in this area.  

Jamba Fruit-Flavored Snacks.

Carvel celebrated its 90th anniversary this year. Will the brand expand its licensing beyond F&B partnerships with candy brands like KitKat and Oreo? 

We always look at new expressions and opportunities to share brand equity and create a unique product offering. Our focus remains on expanding our brands into categories that resonate with new and existing customers. We see tremendous potential to leverage our brands in new categories. We’re exploring ways to expand Carvel’s nostalgia and popularity beyond food and beverage as we recently celebrated its 90th anniversary. We’ll introduce Carvel’s treats into a wider array of consumer experiences by seeking partnerships that align with our values and resonate with our customers.  

What do GoTo Foods Retail Channels have in store for 2025 and 2026? 

We want our brands to be within arm’s reach of consumers for any occasion. And that’s what multichannel brand-building is all about. We plan to expand our business through new partnerships and innovative products. We’re also looking to tap into incremental channels like K-12 and enhance our professional services offerings. Our goal is to enrich our portfolio of licensed brands, all supported by our dedicated team at GoTo Foods. 

This story was taken from the December 2024 issue of License Global. Read the full issue here ...