Pretzel brand Auntie Anne’s and Carvel soft serve ice cream are heading to New Zealand, with the first dual-brand store opening in Westfield Newmarket this month.

The brands are owned by GoTo Foods, the global parent of Cinnabon.

Franchisee Kathan Parikh took Cinnabon to New Zealand in 2024 and is adding the two brands to his portfolio.

Parikh continues, “Westfield Newmarket was the location of our first New Zealand Cinnabon store, so it makes sense for our first Auntie Anne’s and Carvel store to be there too. The prime position, foot traffic, proximity to businesses, shopping and transportation hubs make it the perfect place to establish the new brands”.

Parikh will build a footprint for the three brands across New Zealand. Plans are already well advanced for the next store at Westgate which will be the first outside the US to combine Cinnabon, Auntie Anne’s and Carvel all on one site. A Manawa Bay store is coming later this year.

Carvel’s soft serve was born in New York in 1934 when Tom Carvel sold slightly melted ice cream from his broken-down ice cream truck. Today there are more than 350 locations around the world.

Auntie Anne’s has more than 2100 locations in 29 countries and territories globally, with stores in shopping centres, universities, airports, travel hubs and as food trucks. It was founded in 1988.

• This story was originally published on Franchise Executives.