The ice pick chain celebrated its 80th natal day this year !
1. IT WAS FOUNDED BY A PAIR OF BROTHERS DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION.
Curtis and S. Prestley Blake — who were just 18 and 20 years former at the fourth dimension — opened Friendly Ice Cream in Springfield , Mass. in 1935 . The brothers borrowed$547from their parents for the shop , where they sold two - scoop cones at 5 penny each . The brothers ' contrasting personalities later led to a brief fall out , but it was also their secret to achiever .
" My mom used to say if Pres have the business alone , he would n’t have any employee , " Curtis , then 97,told theBoston Globein 2014 . " If I owned the business sector alone , I would give it all away to the employees . "
2. FOOD WAS ADDED TO THE MENU FOR THE SECOND LOCATION.
Their first shop only put up ice cream , but when they opened a second localisation in West Springfield five twelvemonth by and by , food was added to the menu . The first savoury offering : A straight hamburger patty on crispen bread known as the Set Up . In the decade since , the original was replaced with a standard burger , but the Set Up stay the favourite of founder Pres Blake .
3. FRIENDLY’S WAS CLOSED FROM 1943—1945.
The brothersclosed up shop for two yearsduring World War II — but kept their locations , promising to reopen “ when we win the war . ”
4. FRIENDLY’S ICE CREAM MIGHT BE THE SECRET TO A LONG LIFE.
The Blake brothers ’ momma , Ethel , lived to be 97 twelvemonth honest-to-god . Her sons eat ice ointment every day — both like hot chocolate , Pres also love burnt umber — and both are still hold up 80 eld after founding Friendly ’s . Now well past retreat age , the brothers have stay on busy and alive . Prestley lionize his centenary birthday last year with a black - draw bash at his new - completed$7.5 million replication of Thomas Jefferson ’s Monticello . And Curtis , now 99 , stock aschool for learning disabled children .
5. THE ‘S’ CAME LATER.
Even after they started franchising , the Blake brothers ’ strand was promise just " favorable . " The genitive case did n’t get bestow untilthe late 1980s , when Donald Smith , who had already brought his business savvy to McDonald ’s andPizza Hut , buy the concatenation for $ 375 million and made the computer menu full - military service along with changing the name ever so slightly .
6. THE FAMOUS FRIBBLE USED TO BE CALLED THE “AWFUL AWFUL.”
The formula for the original Friendly ’s shake , which was clear-cut for using trash milk , was licensed from the Bond ice ointment shop chain in New Jersey in the forties . There , caption has it , a customer taste the frothy concoction and described it as “ horrendous openhanded and awful good”—inspiring the nameAwful Awful . In the 1960s , Friendly ’s started to expand into New Jersey , and want a new name so as not to infringe on Bond ’s territory , since the local chain own the Awful Awful name . Friendly ’s hold a designation contest and three client who suggested “ Fribble ” received $ 100 each . In the mid-1990s , the Fribble recipe was transfer to include soft serve ice cream and revamped again two year ago when Friendly ’s swop to intemperate Methedrine cream .
7. IN 2013, FRIENDLY’S WENT RETRO.
The switch from soft service to hard chalk cream in their famed Fribble was one of a whole pot of changes Friendly ’s made in 2013 as the brandattempted to find financial footing . In 2011 , the ice emollient chemical chain had been forced to hold bankruptcy and close 100 locations . John M. Maguire , who had previously worked forPanera Bread , was hired to revamp the troupe with new décor , better euphony , bigger portion size , burgers cooked to parliamentary law , and a fresh nidus on customer service . Many of the elements they incorporated in the new aim and fare were barrack by the early day of Friendly ’s .
8. FRIENDLY’S HOLDS THE WORLD RECORD FOR LARGEST DESSERT PARTY.
Friendly ’s Guinness World RecordfromRegan Original VideoonVimeo .
The company celebrated its 78th birthday in 2013 by set the Guinness World Record for the expectant sweet company . The minimum amount of time to represent a “ party ” is 15 moment , so794 guestssat down for a one-fourth - hour of ice cream use up at the Friendly ’s military headquarters in Wilbraham , Mass. , violate the old record of 740 people set the year before in Nebraska . Prestley Blake and his family were among the phonograph recording - place meeter , although his brother Curtis was not .
9. THEY SELL A LOT OF PRE-PACKAGED ICE CREAM.
The chain is still in the process of building back up their restaurant presence in the viewing of filing for failure , but they do great business in the grocery computer storage aisle . In 2014 , Friendly ’s produce over52 million48 - apothecaries' ounce carton of ice emollient , overcompensate 63 flavors . But , as you ’d gestate , vanilla is their most democratic feeling .
