3 Spoons, Waco’s newest frozen yogurt shop, hosts its grand opening Saturday in the Central Texas Marketplace.
3 Spoons celebrates grand opening with free treats
By Ariadne Aberin
Staff Writer
Saturday boasted sweets for the sweet and cold for the cold at the grand opening of a new frozen yogurt shop, 3 Spoons Yogurt, at Central Texas Marketplace.
Frozen yogurt has been extremely popular among college students, said owner Heather Beltrand.
“The first 3 Spoons actually started in College Station,” Beltrand said.
She said a businessman named David Mebane was looking for a business to open and students from the Mays Business School at Texas A&M suggested he open up a frozen yogurt shop.
“It was a big success,” Beltrand said.
She said two more 3 Spoons franchises will be opening in College Station and more franchises will be opening in other college towns across the nation, such as Knoxville, Tenn.
Beltrand also said Waco is a good location for the new franchise.
“They’ve tended to put the stores in college towns, and we really liked Waco. We thought it was a good mix of college students and everybody else,” Beltrand said. “It included everyone we thought we wanted to reach out to.”
Beltrand said frozen yogurt has become popular among students for various reasons.
“It’s a fun environment, a fun place to hang out, and [frozen yogurt] is healthy,” Beltrand said. “I personally have a hard time finding a good snack, and I think that this is perfect.”
The employees and customers seem to feel the same way.
“Working here is really great,” Kim said. “It’s a family environment, and our priority is just to keep everything looking nice.”
3 Spoons Yogurt offers 14 frozen yogurt flavors, seven of which change weekly.
“We moved here from Austin and there was a place like this in Austin that we loved to go to,” Kristin Getterman, customer at 3 Spoons, said. “We’re excited to find a place in Waco like it.”
Getterman’s husband, Smith, agreed. “It’s great, and it helps that it’s new and clean.”
Smith added that his experience at 3 Spoons Yogurt greatly surpassed his previous experiences at other frozen yogurt shops.
Beltrand also said that in addition to serving frozen yogurt, 3 Spoons Yogurt does profit shares with various organizations through a fundraising program they have called “Spooning With.” Beltrand said the “Spooning With” program involves 3 Spoons Yogurt setting up a specific time to support an organization.
People who come to 3 Spoons Yogurt during that period can say they’re “Spooning With” the organization being sponsored. At the end of the time period, the receipts are collected and a check is written for the organization.
“We like to team up with student organizations, non-profit organizations, community organizations, just to give back to the community,” Beltrand said. “It’s a win-win situation for both sides.”
The grand opening day was a busy one, and the customers seemed to enjoy their experience at 3 Spoons Yogurt. The event featured many opportunities for discounts and free items.
Josh Kim, employee at 3 Spoons Yogurt and junior at Baylor, said 3 Spoons gave free frozen yogurt cups to the first 100 people starting at 1 p.m.
After the free 100 cups, customers were allowed to draw spoons with different discounts, such as $1 off a purchase or winning a free 3 Spoons Yogurt T-shirt.
“We want everybody to walk in happy and leave happy, and that’s what I really love,” Beltrand said. 3 Spoons Yogurt is open from noon to 12 a.m. on Monday through Thursday and from noon to 1 a.m. Friday through Sunday and is located in at 2440 West Loop, Suite A9.
