Cold Stone scoops into Bremerton

Brothers Devin and Kirk Louden hope to make ice cream a hot item in Bremerton. The local businessmen have added a Cold Stone Creamery franchise to their ventures. Located at 100 Washington Ave., it opens Sept. 3 with a grand opening set for Sept. 11. A second Cold Stone Creamery is expected to open spring 2005 in Silverdale.

Its location has not yet been determined.

“When I first went into one I was blown away,” Devin said. The rich ice cream and fixings mixed in prompted him to grab some pamphlets on how he could own a Cold Stone Creamery.

The Loudens hope to bring the “ultimate ice cream experience” to their customers by following lessons learned at Cold Stone Creamery’s Ice Cream University, a two-week training course.

The ice cream, frozen yogurt and sorbet are made fresh daily. Customers then customize their ice cream and yogurt with “mix-ins,” including fruit and nuts, pie fillings, brand name chocolate and gummy candies, cookie dough, soft freshly baked brownies and more. Crew members fold the mix-ins and the ice cream together on a granite stone set at 16 degrees.

They’ll also serenade you.

Yes, the 25 employees didn’t just interview, they auditioned for a job there. With each order employees will sing a song about the ice cream, customer or Cold Stone Creamery.

When it came to selecting a location for their new venture, the Bremerton

Harborside was the obvious choice Devin said.

“This is where I grew up as a kid. This was where we went see a movie, go shopping for clothes or eat out with my family,” he said.

Although the ice cream business is new territory for the Loudens, they are no strangers to doing business in Kitsap. Until January of this year the brothers owned the N.W. Golf Range on Waaga Way. They also own Rocket Golf and a couple of espresso stands, also in Central Kitsap.

Cold Stone Creamery is an independently owned franchise system based in Scottsdale, Ariz. There are more than 550 stores operating in the United States and Caribbean with plans to establish 1,000 stores by 2004. For information visit www.coldstonecreamery.com.

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