Name: 30 歲的首席執行官離開華爾街，收購了陳舊的冷凍酸奶連鎖店--現在它的年收入已達 2100 萬美元 (30-Year-Old CEO Left Wall Street, Bought Stale Frozen Yogurt Chain—Now It Brings In $21 Million/Year)
Uploaded: 2025-09-14T14:32:06.000Z
Duration: 10 min 58 s

It's a self-serve frozen yogurt company with 16 rotating flavors and over 50 toppings.

這是一家自助式冷凍酸奶公司，提供 16 種輪換口味和 50 多種配料。

Most of its 40 locations are on the East Coast.

其 40 個網點大部分位於東海岸。

This was $10.75 and well worth it. $9. $12.

這是 10.75 美元，非常值得。$9. $12.

The business was founded in 2008 by Solomon Choi, but in 2022, Neil Hirschman took over as CEO.

該公司於 2008 年由 Solomon Choi 創立，2022 年由 Neil Hirschman 接任首席執行官。

Turning around a brand that everybody thought was done growing is the kind of challenge I thrive on.

扭轉一個大家都認為已經發展到盡頭的品牌，正是我樂於接受的挑戰。

I knew through my personal experiences we could revive this category and grow frozen yogurt into something it never even has been in the U.S.

通過我的親身經歷，我知道我們可以重振這一品類，將冷凍酸奶發展成美國從未有過的品類。

And so I knew I had to have the brand so that I could prove out this model and turn 16 Handles into a national household name.

是以，我知道我必須擁有這個品牌，這樣才能證明這種模式，並將 16 Handles 打造成全國家喻戶曉的品牌。

When Neil was 23 years old, he left his career in finance in pursuit of a job that was more hands-on.

尼爾 23 歲時離開了金融行業，轉而投身實踐性更強的工作。

Since he was a regular 16 Handles customer, he decided to become a franchisee.

由於他是 16 Handles 的常客，他決定成為加盟商。

And when I sat down with their CEO and their CFO at the time, I realized that they had sort of gone a little bit stale with the brand.

當我與他們的首席執行官和首席財務官坐下來時，我意識到他們的品牌已經有點過時了。

In a way that their customers could sort of feel, that was very exciting to me.

It showed that with new energy and new ideas, there was room to push the needle and innovate a little bit.

這表明，有了新的活力和新的想法，就有了推動和創新的空間。

Neil bought his first 16 Handles franchise in the Murray Hill neighborhood of New York City for about $555,000 when he was 23 years old.

尼爾在 23 歲時以約 55.5 萬美元的價格在紐約市默裡山社區買下了他的第一家 16 Handles 特許經營店。

When he took over as CEO of the brand in 2022, the demand for frozen yogurt was declining each year.

2022 年，當他接任該品牌首席執行官時，冷凍酸奶的需求量正在逐年下降。

I think initially the decline in frozen yogurt was just about the diversity of options that consumers had in the marketplace.

我認為，最初冷凍酸奶的衰落只是因為消費者在市場上有了多樣化的選擇。

Now you see a consumer that is once again starting to think more about healthier options and frozen yogurt is starting to grow in relevance again.

現在，消費者又開始考慮更健康的選擇，冷凍酸奶的相關性又開始增強。

Here's how Neil Hirschman turned a stale frozen yogurt business into a company that brings in about $21 million a year.

尼爾-赫希曼（Neil Hirschman）是如何將陳舊的冷凍酸奶生意轉變為年收入約 2100 萬美元的公司的。

Neil acquired his first 16 Handles franchise when he was 23 years old in April 2019.

2019 年 4 月，尼爾在 23 歲時獲得了他的第一個 16 Handles 特許經營權。

There was, you know, simple things like the bathroom wasn't working right and the machines weren't all, you know, maintained to the best that they could be with new park kids.

有一些簡單的事情，比如衛生間不能正常使用，機器也沒有全部保養到最佳狀態。

It was just like looking at things with a fresh set of eyes that really helped change the needle and it did make the store much more profitable and even increased revenue throughout that first year.

就像用一雙全新的眼睛看待事物一樣，這確實有助於改變指針，也確實使商店的盈利能力大大提高，甚至在第一年就增加了收入。

I acquired the Murray Hill store with three sources of funding.

我用三個資金來源收購了默裡希爾商店。

I used an SBA loan from the government, a seller's note from the seller, as well as personal savings I had saved up from my time in finance.

我動用了政府提供的 SBA 貸款、賣方提供的賣方票據以及我在金融行業工作時積攢的個人積蓄。

I was able to take about $160,000, which effectively was all the cash I had saved up at that point, and put it into this investment for the 16 Handles in Murray Hill.

我能夠拿出大約 16 萬美元，這實際上是我當時積攢的所有現金，投入到默裡山 16 Handles 的投資中。

The first thing I did was speak to all the employees about what worked well, what didn't work well.

我做的第一件事就是與所有員工討論哪些工作做得好，哪些工作做得不好。

And then the second thing is I met all the customers.

第二件事是我見到了所有的客戶。

I worked the register for full shifts days in and days out and watched what people were getting, watched what people were saying, asked them about their experience.

我從早到晚都在收銀臺值班，觀察人們拿到了什麼東西，觀察人們說了些什麼，詢問他們的體驗。

And through that, I learned the business from the inside.

通過這些，我從內部瞭解了這個行業。

And after three months of working every shift open to close, I felt really good about the brand and my ability to remodernize the stores, re-energize the staff.

經過三個月從開門到關門的輪班工作，我對這個品牌和我改造店鋪、為員工重新注入活力的能力感到非常滿意。

And so about four months later, I acquired two additional stores in Chelsea and the East Village before then beginning to build additional stores throughout Manhattan.

是以，大約四個月後，我在切爾西和東村又收購了兩家店，然後開始在整個曼哈頓建立新店。

By early 2022, Neil decided to put in an offer to purchase 16 Handles.

2022 年初，尼爾決定出價收購 16 Handles。

2022 年 8 月，他接任首席執行官一職。

Neil says he is the majority owner of 16 Handles.

尼爾說他是 16 Handles 的主要所有人。

YouTube comedian Danny Duncan also owns a stake in the company, along with several other minority investors.

YouTube 喜劇演員丹尼-鄧肯（Danny Duncan）和其他幾位少數投資者也持有公司股份。

The hardest part of acquiring 16 Handles was getting the financing to actually fund the transaction.

在收購 16 Handles 的過程中，最困難的部分是獲得實際交易資金。

I went traditional routes and nontraditional routes and almost gave up a few times because even through SBA, it was just very difficult to get banks coming out of COVID to look at a new business and an asset purchase like this and value it favorably.

我走過傳統路線，也走過非傳統路線，有幾次差點放棄，因為即使通過 SBA，也很難讓 COVID 出來的銀行看重一家新企業和這樣的資產購買。

When we closed on the transaction to buy 16 Handles, I was the largest franchisee at 27 years old and I owned six locations around New York City.

當我們完成收購 16 Handles 的交易時，我 27 歲，是最大的加盟商，在紐約市擁有六家分店。

I decided to do something that was a little bit controversial and different than other brands where I didn't absorb the stores that I personally owned into the franchise to become corporate stores.

我決定做一些有點爭議的事情，與其他品牌不同的是，我沒有把我個人擁有的商店吸收到特許經營中，成為公司商店。

I decided to remain a franchisee of 16 Handles because I want our future franchisees and our existing ones to know that I'm in it just like them.

我決定繼續成為 16 Handles 的加盟商，因為我想讓我們未來的加盟商和現有的加盟商知道，我和他們一樣，都是加盟商。

Neil still owns and operates six 16 Handles stores across New York City.

尼爾仍在紐約市擁有並經營著六家 16 Handles 商店。

Frozen yogurt exploded in popularity in the early 2000s, but fell out of favor over the last several years.

冷凍酸奶在 2000 年代初大受歡迎，但在過去幾年中逐漸失寵。

不過，這種情況已經開始發生變化。

In fact, in the year ending July of 2025, total frozen yogurt servings are up 10% year over year. 10% is a big deal in context of an overall flat to slightly declining food service market.

事實上，在截至 2025 年 7 月的一年中，冷凍酸奶的總供應量同比增長了 10%。在餐飲市場總體持平或略有下降的背景下，10% 的增長是個不小的數字。

If we were to sort of zero in on just the last three months ending July, servings are up 32% year over year.

如果我們把目光鎖定在截至 7 月的最近三個月，那麼供應量同比增長了 32%。

So there's clearly a resurgence happening.

Neil believed in the potential of a resurgence when he purchased 16 Handles.

尼爾在收購 "16 Handles "時，相信了它重新崛起的潛力。

This may be controversial, but when I bought 16 Handles, everyone told me that frozen yogurt was a dead sector, that we had seen the rise and it was the fall.

這可能會引起爭議，但當我買下 16 Handles 時，每個人都告訴我，冷凍酸奶行業已經死了，我們已經看到了它的崛起，現在是它的衰落期。

I know that with the right energy, with the right product mix and the right innovation, this sector is primed for growth.

我知道，有了正確的能量、正確的產品組合和正確的創新，這個行業就能實現增長。

Our system wide sales in 2024 were $20.6 million.

2024 年，我們的全系統銷售額為 2060 萬美元。

Our system wide sales for the first half of 2025 were $12.5 million.

2025 年上半年，我們的全系統銷售額為 1250 萬美元。

Our projected 2025 system wide sales are $28 million.

預計 2025 年全系統銷售額為 2800 萬美元。

When I first took over 16 Handles, the franchise was profitable, but stale.

我剛接手 "16 Handles "時，加盟店雖然盈利，但經營狀況不佳。

Since then, we've greatly improved the revenues across the system at our same stores, as well as brought in additional revenue streams, both through new stores and through new products in our store like the edible cookie dough.

從那時起，我們大大提高了整個系統內相同店鋪的收入，並通過新店鋪和店內新產品（如可食用餅乾麵糰）帶來了額外的收入來源。

Neil says that the retail cookie dough pints added about $200,000 to 16 Handles' system wide revenue in the past 12 months.

尼爾說，在過去的 12 個月裡，零售餅乾麵糰為 16 Handles 整個系統增加了約 20 萬美元的收入。

The pandemic further impacted restaurant frozen yogurt consumption.

大流行病進一步影響了餐廳冷凍酸奶的消費。

One of the things the pandemic did is it made the American consumer a little bit more indulgent in their behaviors.

大流行病造成的後果之一，就是讓美國消費者的行為變得更加放縱。

And so when we did look for sweet treats, for example, we went towards some of those more really sugary baked goods or dirty sodas.

是以，當我們尋找甜食時，比如，我們會選擇一些含糖量更高的烘焙食品或髒兮兮的蘇打水。

Now that we're several years removed from that and the public narrative has once again shifted to health and wellness and weight loss and the purity of foods and beverages, we're beginning to focus once again on functional foods.

現在，我們已經過去了幾年，公眾的話題再次轉向健康、保健、減肥以及食品和飲料的純度，我們開始再次關注功能性食品。

I guess at some point I feel like it's a little more healthier than having ice cream.

我想在某種程度上，我覺得這比吃冰淇淋更健康一些。

As we get older, you need to eat healthier.

隨著年齡的增長，你需要吃得更健康。

Many consumers believe that frozen yogurt is a healthy alternative to ice cream.

許多消費者認為，冷凍酸奶是冰淇淋的健康替代品。

I think that there are in some cases there might be some protein in frozen yogurt, whereas ice cream there might not be as much.

我認為，在某些情況下，冷凍酸奶中可能含有一些蛋白質，而冰淇淋中可能沒有那麼多。

But frozen yogurt still has a considerable amount of sugar.

但冷凍酸奶仍然含有相當多的糖分。

So you have to be careful about how much sugar might be in various frozen yogurt options.

是以，您必須注意各種冷凍酸奶中可能含有的糖分。

The serving size for 16 Handles frozen yogurt is two thirds of a cup, which is around 20 grams of sugar and 140 calories.

16 Handles 凍酸奶的食用量為三分之二杯，約含糖 20 克，熱量 140 卡路里。

Well, if you look at a soda like a Coca-Cola, that also in one cup of Coca-Cola, that also has about 20 grams of sugar.

好吧，如果你看看像可口可樂這樣的汽水，一杯可口可樂中也含有約 20 克糖。

So just like I would tell a patient of mine not to have soda multiple times in a week, I'd probably tell them not to have frozen yogurt multiple times in a week.

是以，就像我會告訴我的病人一週內不要多次喝蘇打水一樣，我可能也會告訴他們一週內不要多次喝凍酸奶。

At 16 Handles, you fill up a cup with frozen yogurt and toppings and pay per ounce.

在 16 Handles，你可以用杯子裝滿冰凍酸奶和配料，然後按盎司付費。

我想應該是 9、12 美元和一些零錢。

I mean, I got a lot, so it was kind of expensive.

我的意思是，我買了很多，所以有點貴。

I got a lot, so I think it was a good price for what I got.

我買了很多東西，所以我覺得物有所值。

Some of our customers come in and might only get a dollar of froyo, but our average transaction is probably closer to $10 per cup.

有些顧客來的時候可能只買一美元的冰淇淋，但我們的平均交易額可能接近每杯 10 美元。

Generally, our competitors are everyone in the frozen dessert space.

一般而言，我們的競爭對手都是冷凍甜品領域的佼佼者。

However, we also see ourselves as a complement because a lot of the brands out there are going for that novelty, that once a week or once a month type product.

不過，我們也認為自己是一種補充，因為很多品牌都在追求新奇，追求一週或一月一次的產品。

Whereas we want those loyal customers who are coming either as a meal replacement or to finish off their meal three or four times a week.

而我們希望那些忠實的顧客，每週來這裡三四次，要麼作為代餐，要麼作為餐後消遣。

Despite the resurgence of frozen yogurt, there are potential hurdles ahead for 16 Handles.

儘管冷凍酸奶再次興起，但 16 Handles 仍面臨著潛在的障礙。

The food service consumer in general is still facing about a five-year cumulative inflation of about 34 percent.

餐飲業消費者總體上仍面臨著約 34% 的五年累計通脹率。

We're still dealing with some economic uncertainty that makes people cautious in their spending overall.

我們仍然面臨著一些經濟不確定性，這使得人們在總體消費上持謹慎態度。

Neal said that 16 Handles does not require specific prices at the franchisor level, but some of its franchisees have chosen to increase prices 5 to 8 percent since 2022. 16 Handles can differentiate from its competitors by offering non-traditional frozen yogurt flavors.

尼爾說，16 Handles 並沒有在特許經營商層面要求具體的價格，但自 2022 年以來，一些特許經營商選擇將價格提高 5% 至 8%。16 Handles 可以通過提供非傳統口味的冷凍酸奶來區別於競爭對手。

One of my main focuses is innovating on product to get customers really excited.

我的工作重點之一就是創新產品，讓客戶真正興奮起來。

So last year we did things like french fry frozen yogurt, butterbeer frozen yogurt, black matcha flavor in honor of the Squid Game series.

是以，去年我們做了炸薯條凍酸奶、黃油啤酒凍酸奶、黑色抹茶口味的酸奶，以紀念魷魚遊戲系列。

We've seen demand surging over the past two years for 16 Handles with same-stores daily increases above 10 percent for the last two and a half years now.

在過去兩年中，我們看到對 16 Handles 的需求激增，在過去兩年半的時間裡，同店日增幅超過了 10%。

And we really think that it's thanks to our product innovation, the new markets we're opening, choosing great locations and great operators.

我們真的認為，這要歸功於我們的產品創新、我們正在開拓的新市場、我們選擇的好地點和好運營商。

I think we're in the early stages of this rebound within frozen yogurt.

我認為，我們正處於冷凍酸奶反彈的早期階段。

The consumer is willing to look for frozen reward, that affordable indulgence that despite all the other consumer uncertainty just makes us feel a little bit better about our day.

消費者願意尋找冷凍獎賞，這種經濟實惠的放縱，儘管有其他消費上的不確定性，卻能讓我們的一天感覺更好一些。

Neil estimates that 16 Handles will grow to about 100 stores within the next two years and 200 stores within the next four years.

尼爾預計，16 Handles 將在未來兩年內發展到約 100 家門店，在未來四年內發展到 200 家門店。

I don't think other brands are able to keep up both with the value we can bring to the table as a large franchise brand and also just the experience and the keen attention to customer focus that even I take.

我不認為其他品牌能跟上我們作為一個大型特許經營品牌所能帶來的價值，也不認為其他品牌能跟上我們的經驗和對客戶的關注。

I'm currently owning six locations, so we're able to provide that.

我目前擁有六家分店，所以我們有能力提供這樣的服務。

30 歲的首席執行官離開華爾街，收購了陳舊的冷凍酸奶連鎖店--現在它的年收入已達 2100 萬美元 (30-Year-Old CEO Left Wall Street, Bought Stale Frozen Yogurt Chain—Now It Brings In $21 Million/Year)