The first Bruster’s Real Ice Cream outpost is coming to Kissimmee late this fall, franchisees Walter and Janet Strickland confirm. This will be the franchise’s fourth Orlando area outpost.
The couple moved from St. Louis to Kissimmee upon retiring but quickly realized they weren’t wired for the sit back and relax retiree lifestyle. Already seasoned business owners who offered services ranging from a Christian center to a beauty salon, the duo decided to look into franchise opportunities. The couple agreed that ice cream could never go out of style in a sunny state like Florida, and eventually settled on Bruster’s because, unlike many other ice cream franchises, it uniquely offers homemade ice cream made in-house daily. Their outpost concept will be a countertop with patio seating.
“Once we got here, we weren’t the retired type to not have an agenda, so we started looking into different franchises to invest in,” she tells What Now Orlando. “Being in Florida, we said ice cream is always a good thing.”
While there are already three outposts in the Orlando area, this will be the first within a 45-minute drive for residents of Kissimmee. Its other Orlando outposts are in Altamonte Springs, Clermont and Winter Springs. It was first opened by Bruce Reed in Bridgewater, Pennsylvania, in 1989, and it now has over 200 independently-owned outposts in 22 states around the country, as well as in Guyana and South Korea.
It offers at least 24 flavors at a time made fresh daily, rotating between over 150 handcrafted ice cream flavors ranging from its signature PB Cup Overlead with Reese’s to its Toffee Bar. It also offers 17 dairy-free, vegan flavors made with oat milk, as well as other artisanal desserts.
The franchise prides itself on making ice cream the old-fashioned way with a slow kettle process that makes it thick, creamy and fresh. It also makes their waffle cones and bowls in-house.
