THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 14, 1996 TAG: 9604120334
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARGO MATEAS, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines
It looks like fans of the Suffolk Dairy Queen will have to wait a while longer for their favorite hot eats and cool treats.
Franchise owner Mitch Sandlin said the delay in rebuilding in Suffolk is due to his efforts to secure a new location for the restaurant.
``We are looking at relocating next to Long John Silvers,'' Sandlin said last week. Sandlin indicated the new location is more accessible to traffic and will have a larger customer base, due to the nearby Farm Fresh shopping center and Wal-Mart.
Sandlin also is fielding offers on the old property, which burned down Dec. 1 of last year due to an electrical shortage, while he completes the permit process on the new site - about half the size of the former 3,500 square foot facility. Customers won't notice the difference, because the old building's footage mainly comprised storage space, Sandlin said.
The corporation currently is developing other locations in Norfolk, Chesapeake, Churchland and Ghent.
``We really have the luxury of not having to hustle right back in business,'' Sandlin said, ``due to benefits derived from business interruption insurance, which pays the same amount to the company each month as their average monthly sales. It has provided us with the opportunity to investigate all our options while building these other locations.''
Some of the possibilities for the Suffolk Dairy Queen include cutting back to ice cream service alone; combining the dessert counter with another fast food chain; and operating the franchise out of a convenience store setting and returning to the former style of operation, which included food and desserts.
Mitch Inc., which operates four other Tidewater locations, opened the Suffolk Dairy Queen in March of 1990. It consistently ranked in the top ten percent of national Dairy Queens in sales, according to Sandlin.
``We are dedicated to our Suffolk patrons. The Suffolk Dairy Queen will be back up by the end of the year.''
The Franklin Dairy Queen, located at 1031 Amory Drive, recently was awarded the franchise's Golden Crown award for lead sales achievement in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions for the second consecutive year.
The restaurant, in its 24th year, ranked 52nd in total sales out of 5,000 franchise competitors nationwide in total sales.
Sandlin said in a news release that the company plans to reward the Franklin and surrounding patrons by beginning a $100,000 renovation later this month. by CNB