Marble Slab Creamery - Wikipedia

American ice cream parlor chain Marble Slab Creamery

A Marble Slab Creamery location at the River Oaks Shopping Center
Formerly	Cones & Cream (1983–1986)
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Restaurant
Genre	Ice cream store
Founded	1983; 43 years ago (1983) in Houston, Texas
Founders	Sigmund PennTom LePage
Headquarters	Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Number of locations	391 (2021)
Area served	United States (including Puerto Rico, Guam) Canada, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates
Key people	Andy Wiederhorn (CEO, FAT Brands)
Products	Ice cream desserts, cakes, pies, shakes, smoothies, frozen yogurt
Parent	FAT Brands
Website	marbleslab.com

Marble Slab Creamery (Marble Slab) is an American chain of ice cream shops owned by FAT Brands. Its corporate offices are in Atlanta, Georgia.

There are more than 391 stores in various countries,[1] all independently owned and franchised.[2]

History

[edit]

Marble Slab, which began as a single unit operation called Cones & Cream,[3] was founded in Houston by chefs Sigmund Penn and Tom LePage in 1983. They were inspired by Steve Herrell of Herrell's Ice Cream in Boston, who pioneered the mixing approach to ice cream toppings.[4] In 1986, Marble Slab became the first ice cream treatery to use a frozen granite slab to blend mix-in toppings into the ice cream.[5][failed verification] Later that year, Marble Slab was bought by Ronnie Hankamer of Texas, who laid the groundwork for the brand's franchising concept.[5]

In the late 2000s, Marble Slab expanded beyond its southeastern presence and has been recognized as a fast-growing franchise. In 2007 it was ranked in Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500 (#93), Fastest-Growing Franchises (#72), and America's Top Global Franchises (#75).[6]

As an independent company it had its headquarters in the Westchase area of Houston, Texas.[7] After the NexCen acquisition, initially the brand's headquarters were in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia.[8] In July 2010, NexCen announced the sale of its franchise business to Global Franchise Group, LLC, an affiliate of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners.[citation needed] Global Franchise Group is now owned by Lion Capital LLP and Serruya Private Equity.[citation needed]

Ownership changes

[edit]

In February 2007, Global Franchise Group purchased Marble Slab Creamery taking the company off the stock market. Since its acquisition the chain has been a franchise brand with MaggieMoo's Ice Cream and Treatery and Great American Cookies.[9]

On June 28, 2021, Global Franchise Group announced that it would be acquired by FAT Brands, owners of Fatburger and Johnny Rockets.[10] The acquisition was completed on July 22.[11]

On January 26, 2026, parent company FAT Brands filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in an effort to shed billions of dollars in debt. The company listed assets and liabilities between $1 billion and $10 billion.[12]

Products

[edit]

The chain specializes in serving homemade ice cream.[citation needed] The chain serves a variety of other desserts including ice cream cakes, sundaes and milkshakes as well as smoothies.[citation needed]

References

[edit]

1. ^ [1] Archived 2010-10-27 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on 2008-10-19.
2. ^ "57. Whataburger". Franchise Times. 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
3. ^ Nation's Restaurant News
4. ^ Shannon Jackson Arnold (2004). Everybody Loves Ice Cream: The Whole Scoop on America's Favorite. Emmis Books. ISBN 9781578601653. Retrieved March 27, 2008.
5. ^ a b Franchise Solutions Marble Slab Creamery -The Freshest Ice Cream On EarthTM Archived 2008-07-24 at the Wayback Machine, Franchise Solution, Retrieved on 2008-03-27
6. ^ "Start a Marble Slab Creamery Franchise in 2024". Entrepreneur. Retrieved March 27, 2008.
7. ^ "Facts at a Glance. Marble Slab Creamery. June 14, 1998. Retrieved on February 24, 2010.
8. ^ Contact Us." Marble Slab Creamery. Retrieved on February 26, 2010.
9. ^ "Marble Slab And MaggieMoo's Merge Concepts". Foodservice Equipment Reports Magazine. September 12, 2011. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
10. ^ Inc, FAT Brands (June 28, 2021). "FAT Brands Inc. Agrees to Acquire Global Franchise Group for $442.5 million". GlobeNewswire News Room. Retrieved September 1, 2021. {{cite news}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
11. ^ Inc., FAT Brands (July 22, 2021). "FAT Brands Completes Acquisition of Global Franchise Group". GlobeNewswire News Room. Retrieved September 1, 2021. {{cite news}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
12. ^ Ronalds-Hannon, Eliza (January 26, 2026). "Fatburger Owner Files Bankruptcy in Latest Casual-Dining Demise". Bloomberg. Retrieved January 26, 2026.

External links

[edit]

• Official website

Portals:

• Texas
• Companies
• Food

v t e Global Franchise Group
Great American Cookies Hot Dog on a Stick MaggieMoo's Marble Slab Creamery Pretzelmaker Round Table Pizza Shoebox New York

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