Auntie Anne’s is a chain of pretzel shops in America. The company was founded by Anne F. Beiler and her husband, Jonas, in 1988 and operates through the franchising model. Besides pretzels, the company is known for serving dips, beverages, and the Pretzels & More Homemade Baking Mix.

The Auntie Anne’s franchise is spread over 1,200 locations, including shopping malls, outlet malls, universities, airports, parking/rest areas, travel plazas, train stations, military bases, and amusement parks. Since 2010, the company has operated under the slogan “Pretzel Perfect.”

Let’s dive into the company’s history, locations, and trademarks.

Auntie Anne’s History

Auntie Anne’s can trace its origins to a Downingtown, Pennsylvania Farmers Market stand, from which the company grew explosively through the ‘90s.

Anne Beiler was raised in an Amish-Mennonite community located in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She attended a traditional Amish school until the 8th grade, where she would meet Jonas Beiler, who she would eventually marry at age 19.

The couple would soon add a daughter, Angela Joy to their family. Tragically, the child died at 19 months in a farming accident, leading the couple to drift apart. Anne suffered from a deep depression and eventually reached out to a pastor for help. This pastor would manipulate and abuse her for years.

Once Anne had the courage to tell Jonas about the pastor’s abuse, the couple would begin to heal together. Through this healing, Jonas realized that he wanted to help others suffering in his community. He set his sights on offering free counseling services to the Amish community and Anne wanted to support him while he did just that.

A friend told Anne that a store within the Farmer’s Market in Downingtown, PA was for sale. She took a $6,000 loan from her in-laws to purchase the 12-by-20-foot stand which sold pretzels, pizza, and ice cream. Anne, who had 30 nieces and nephews, dubbed the stall Auntie Anne’s when it officially opened in February 1988.

Anne almost gave up on selling pretzels, as the recipe she purchased with the store wasn’t very good. Her husband suggested that they experiment with some extra ingredients. These experiments produced softer and sweeter pretzels and within months, sales had skyrocketed.

Anne started franchising her business in 1989, her brother, Jake Smucker, becoming the first franchisee. He opened a shop in Middletown, Pennsylvania. That same year, the company began to appear in malls. As more franchisees joined, primarily friends and family, Auntie Anne’s popularity grew. In 1990, they recorded revenues of $1 million.

In 1989, the company only had eight stores. By the end of 1991, the number had increased more than ten-fold to 90. Auntie Anne’s opened its 100th store in 1992 and its first train station location was opened in New York City in 1995.

By the close of 1995, the company had 344 stores.

Auntie Anne’s started international expansion in 1995, with franchisees averaging $300,000 in revenue annually and $100 million in total for the company. The first international location was in Jakarta, Indonesia, where very few people had heard of pretzels.

Auntie Anne’s was acquired in November 2010 by Focus Brands, a portfolio company of Roark Capital in Atlanta.

Auntie Anne’s International Locations

Auntie Anne’s has over 600 international locations spread mainly over Europe. These include Russia, Greece, and the United Kingdom. In 2004, the company had 17 locations in Sydney, Australia.

Its locations in Asia include Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, South Korea, Brunei, Philippines, Thailand, Turkey, Japan, and Indonesia.

In the Americas, Auntie Anne’s has stores in the Bahamas, Honduras, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, Chile, Brazil, and Guatemala. The company also has stores in Egypt and South Africa.

Auntie Anne’s also announced plans to open stores in China.

To coexist with the locals’ sensibilities, Auntie Anne’s alters its recipes for its international locations. A great example of this can be found in Malaysia, where the recipe was altered to make it halal.

Auntie Anne’s Trademarks

Auntie Anne’s has obtained or sought federal registration for about seven trademarks. These include “AUNTIE ANNE’S,” “AUNTIE ANNE’S PRETZEL PERFECT,” and “PRETZEL PALS.”

Auntie Anne’s obtained federal trademark registration for AUNTIE ANNE’S on December 15, 1992, and uses this trademark for its coffee, flavored and sweetened pretzels, soft pretzels, and restaurant services.

In November of 2007, Auntie Anne’s also obtained federal trademark registration for “AUNTIE ANNE’S PRETZEL PERFECT” for use with its restaurant services.

Auntie Anne’s sought federal trademark registration for “PRETZEL PALS” on September 21, 2021. The company intends to use the trademark for its pretzel-based products, such as soft pretzels and flavored and sweetened pretzels.