Great American Cookies facts for kids
.svg) |
|
|
Trade name
|
Great American Cookie |
|---|---|
| Wholly owned subsidiary | |
| Industry | Food Bake shop |
| Founded | 1977 Dunwoody, Georgia, U.S. |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
|
Number of locations
|
371 (February 20, 2022) |
|
Area served
|
United States Bahrain Saudi Arabia |
| Products |
|
| Parent | FAT Brands |
Great American Cookie Co., also known as Great American Cookies, is a popular chain of stores in the United States and other countries. They are famous for making delicious, freshly baked cookies, especially their big cookie cakes. Most of their stores are found in malls. The company started in 1977 and has its main office in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Story of Great American Cookies
.svg)
How It All Began
Great American Cookies was started by two friends, Michael J. Coles and Arthur Karp. They each put in $4,000 to begin a business selling cookies. Their idea came from a special family cookie recipe that belonged to Arthur Karp's wife. In 1977, the very first Great American Cookies store opened in Atlanta's Perimeter Mall.
Growing Bigger
The first store in Perimeter Mall quickly became popular. It was a big success in its first month! Just one year after opening, the company started letting other people open their own Great American Cookies stores. This is called franchising. By 1985, the company was earning $100 million each year. It had become the biggest cookie store chain in the United States.
In 1985, Michael Coles decided to make the company's name shorter. It was first called "The Original Great American Chocolate Chip Cookie Company." He changed it to "Great American Cookie Company," and later planned to shorten it even more to "Great American Cookies." Coles said that the old, longer name was good for a small, local company, but not for a big national one.
New Owners Over Time
In 1998, Michael Coles sold the company to Mrs. Fields Famous Brands. At that time, Great American Cookies was still making over $100 million in sales. Later, in 2008, a company called NexCen Brands Inc. bought Great American Cookies. This company also owned other popular food brands like Marble Slab Creamery and Pretzelmaker.
Since 2010, Great American Cookies has been part of a group called Global Franchise Group. Then, in 2021, Global Franchise Group announced that it would be bought by FAT Brands. FAT Brands also owns other well-known restaurants like Fatburger and Johnny Rockets. The sale was completed in July 2021.
