The Patels also are opening stores in Fairfield and in Liberty Twp. in Butler County. They currently own 18 locations in Cincinnati, four in Chicago, and will be opening a store in Austin, Texas.
Roma Patel said the store has hired 25 full- and part-time employees and has spent the past few years in training to prepare for Friday’s soft opening. She said a more formal grand opening is being planned for late August.
Operating hours for the store will be 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays; and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays, she said.
Tropical Smoothie Café features a mix of fruit smoothies made with water and ice, not yogurt or milk, Patel said. The menu also includes wraps, flatbreads, sandwiches and salads, she said.
“We have a good food menu,” she said. “About 60% of the business are smoothies with 40% in food sales.”
Patel said she has always been interested in the Springboro market, adding she did have to convince the corporate franchise office that the city will be a viable location. She said her friend owns Bubbakoo’s Burritos in the next building at Springboro’s Wright Station.
“We’ve been looking for an opportunity in Springboro for the past four years for a location with a drive-thru window,” she said. “Hopefully we’ll do well here.”
While the Patels won’t have a drive-thru window, their store is across Founders Drive from the new amenities recently constructed at Wright Station. This location should provide plenty of opportunities for walk-up traffic during concerts and other events.
She said the couple opened their first Tropical Smoothie Café in Blue Ash in 2013 after acquiring the Cincinnati territory. The Patels entered the Dayton region after buying a store and region from the previous owner in 2018. In the Dayton region, they own stores on Far Hills Avenue, on Wilmington Pike, and in Miamisburg.
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