UPDATE:
Developers behind Whimsy Cookie Co.'s Little Rock location say the shop's opening has been pushed back to early next year.
The Memphis-based company said its first franchise location will now tentatively open Jan. 26 at 401 S. Bowman Road on the city's west side. It had originally been set to open by Christmas.
ORIGINAL STORY:
Whimsy Cookie Co.’s planned shop in Little Rock is one of several the expanding company hopes to open within the next five years in Arkansas.
The Memphis-based business currently has one brick-and-mortar shop open but dozens more are being developed as the business’s co-owners embark on franchising opportunities nationwide.
In December, founder Laurie Suriff and her financial adviser husband, Aaron, will open their first franchise shop in Arkansas' capital city. The owners also have their sights set on Jonesboro, Fayetteville and just across the state line in Texarkana, Texas.
“By far, we found that Little Rock would be an easy car ride over to, and the real estate was quite easy to find,” Laurie Suriff told Arkansas Online in a recent phone interview.
Their Little Rock search landed them in a leased 2,000-square-foot location in a shopping center at 401 S. Bowman Road. Suriff said the business already has a strong following in central Arkansas and that the region is "a good place to start" their expansion.
"We're not trying to be Mrs. Fields," but the hope is to be a national chain, Aaron Suriff said. The company has received franchise inquiries from 11 states, including Arizona and Colorado, though most interest is in Southern states, according to the owners.
As for the concept, Laurie Suriff said it's a largely holiday-driven business but offers year-round treats with whimsical designs and unique flavors.
Among Whimsy’s offerings are a signature sugar cookie as well as an assortment of gooey butter cookies such as chocolate, red velvet, strawberry, birthday cake and lemon.
Whimsy Cookie Co. began in 2007 out of the Suriff family kitchen, catering to a variety of events.
“It quickly blew up in my home, and I knew at that point that I would have to make a decision,” Suriff said of the initial launch.
In 2012, she became business partners with Collins Tuohy after a tailgate order for Tuohy's brother, Baltimore Ravens football player Michael Oher, was well-recieved according to the company's website.
The operation moved into a 500-square-foot shared kitchen and later to a 1,000-square-foot commercial kitchen before the opening of the "Whimsy House," the shop's current location at 4704 Poplar Ave. in Memphis.
Now, the focus is shifting to franchising through holding company Pink Laurie Brands. Each of the stores will focus less on customized orders — at least at first, Suriff said. They will also not offer parties like the flagship Memphis store.