Smoothie King Corporate Headquarters Leaving New Orleans
Apr 30, 2018 04:57PM ● By Camille Mosley
(LA Radio Network) Smoothie King is moving its corporate headquarters out of New Orleans, and taking most of it’s 80 jobs to a new location in Dallas. Greater New Orleans Inc. President Michael Hecht says Smoothie King owner Wan Kim, who is Korean, wanted better access to his overseas holdings.
“Dallas is really the national headquarters for food and beverage franchises and the second is flight connectivity, particularly to Asia.”
The loss of an internationally recognized, home grown company, will sting for the New Orleans area. Hecht says the direct economic impact may be small, but…
“I think these issues of prestige and optics, which are real and do matter, are actually the bigger issue here.”
It’s a setback for New Orleans which has seen some big business wins recently, but Hect says it’s not an indicator of a greater shift away from the growing city. He says the city is still on an upward trajectory.
“I call this ‘the cha-cha of progress.’ It’s two steps forward, one step back, but you make progress.”
The Smoothie King Center will retain its name.
