Rocky Mountain gets into The Grove for store expansion

Nicole Mezzasalma

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Airport retailer The Grove has secured the exclusive rights to open Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory stores in all airports in the US where there are no existing stores in operation or in development

Airport retailer The Grove has signed a deal for the exclusive rights to open Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory shops in all airports in the US where there are no existing stores in operation or in development. The agreement excludes Denver International, Minneapolis/St. Paul International, Charlotte (NC) International, Salt Lake City International, Phoenix International, and Philadelphia International airports. The Grove already operates Rocky Mountain stores at Dallas-Fort Worth International and Atlanta International airport.

Rocky Mountain COO Bryan Merryman said the company’s agreement with The Grove was a highlight of the quarter. The business issued an increase in profits for the quarter ended August 31 of 28% to $1.3m, compared to $1m a year earlier. Revenues for the period were up 10% from 2006 to $7.5m.

Merryman said: “This is an exciting development for our company because retail stores that are currently operated by franchisees at airports, in general, outperform the average Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory store by a factor of more than two-to-one. We currently have nine retail airport locations in operation and plans call for at least eight additional airport stores to be operating under the agreement with The Grove within the next two years."