Mar 12, 2008 6:02 AM, PROMO Xtra

Smoothie King will roll its mobile kitchen to live events in 25 U.S. cities this spring and summer.

Smoothie King, a franchisor of stores selling hand-blended fruit drinks, has launched its second Smoothie King on the Go mobile tour, bringing a fully-equipped smoothie kitchen to live events around the country for the next six months.

The tour will stop in more than 24 U.S. cities from Tampa, FL, to San Francisco, with stops in Miami, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and New York—all metro markets with sizeable concentrations of the chain’s 500 franchise outlets. Smoothie King currently has outlets in 32 states and 25 stores in Seoul South Korea.

The company has brought back the “Orange KaBAM Van”—a mobile kitchen named for one of its most popular menu items—following last year’s successful live tour visiting fairs, festivals, sports events and other gatherings. ZAG Marketing is the event-based marketing partner for the tour.

Workers will be able to use fresh ingredients to blend one of Smoothie King’s signature drinks, the “Caribbean Way”, a combination of papaya, bananas and strawberries.

Meanwhile consumers can lounge in the “On the Go” café area surrounded by Smoothie King branding and be entertained by an emcee conducting fruit trivia contests and “Brain Freeze” quizzes.

The mobile unit will also make available information about Smoothie King products, franchises and charitable causes such as Play Every Day, a public-private partnership working to ensure that schoolchildren get an hour of physical activity every day.

Last year’s tour saw nearly 80,000 hand-blended samples and 60,000 Smoothie King coupons distributed in seven cities. Franchisees in the target cities saw such spikes in store traffic as a result of the tour that both the scope and duration were greatly expanded this year, the company said.

“Our company’s mission is to relentlessly influence more and more people to achieve a healthier lifestyle, Smoothie King president and co-founder Steve Kuhnau said in a statement. “By touring the country, we are making it easier for people to try our smoothies and learn more about how smoothies can complement any lifestyle.”

DON'T MISS AN ISSUE! PROMO Magazine provides insights into using promotion marketing as strategic, measurable component of an overall marketing mix. DON'T MISS OUT on "how-to" information on strategies and tactics successful marketers use to improve product sales and brand image. Renew your subscription Subscribe to the magazine Sign up for email newsletters

A panel of professionals answers your questions. Submit your questions.
		Michael McKelvie Gift Cards and Reward Cards
		Bob Bell Tie-in Partnerships
		Dave Hunt Rebates
		Bruce Hollander Sweepstakes
		Joel Parent Interactive
		Become an Expert More Info