Weekday afternoons in early April is still “offseason” and was an appropriate time for me to sit down and talk with YoChoice frozen yogurt business owner, Andre’ LaGrande. However we were happily interrupted a couple of times by customers looking for that mid-afternoon snack and energy boost.
Going in I had wrongly assumed that YoChoice was a franchised network business, but was surprised to learn that Andre’s shop is a stand alone business that he opened back in July 2010.
André is a product of our NE Portland neighborhoods, attending Alameda Elementary, Beaumont MS and Grant High schools before heading down to Eugene to attend college. Work opportunities took him south to San Luis Obispo, CA for many years, where the seed for his own yogurt business was planted. On his lunch hour he would venture to a local frozen yogurt shop and be blown away that you could get as much or as little as you wanted and fully customize your dish on each visit——an experience that started him thinking. As with many ideas, it took awhile to germinate. As the cost of living increased dramatically in SLO (home to CalPoly for you March Madness fans) and the call of the Northwest grew stronger, Andre’ decided it was time to return home. For a few years he worked in the health club business, while still hanging on to his yogurt business dream——all the while narrowing his focus on the NE area of Hollywood and Fremont in particular. When a woman’s beauty boutique moved from the Fremont site (he really loved the bright and airy look of the space), he came out the winner of a small bidding war – and then the real work began!
As his business was not a franchise opportunity everything was unique and custom designed. Andre’ went to classes and seminars offered by suppliers and frozen yogurt equipment manufacturers, contracted a design and construction firm and started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Andre’ admitted he made many early mistakes and pushed forward up a steep learning curve. He vastly underestimated the time commitment as do many new business owners, but has stayed the course.
André used a local muralist for some of the initial wall art and is currently displaying works from local photographer Kirk DuBose, emphasizing the local neighborhood link of his business.
As the sound of a compressor kicking in got my attention, André explained that the bulk of yogurt in the dispensing machines is kept at 32 degrees; only near the nozzle is it cooled down to about 17 degrees to give it more stiffness as it flows into the dish. So you can pile it on high and test your hand-eye coordination for artistic expression. Vanilla and chocolate flavors remain the big sellers, but André varies the other four selections (such as adding a couple of green yogurts around St. Patrick’s Day) periodically.
Also, the myriad of toppings undergoes subtle changes as André tries new ones while keeping the established favorites in supply. You can also enjoy board games while visiting YoChoice as Andre has placed many old favorites under the glass table tops—— the “Sorry” pieces get the biggest workout. Andre remains convinced he made the right decision and looks forward to nicer weather and the welcome din of neighborhood families and kids, excitedly making their custom concoctions around the topping bars.
Of course I couldn’t go away empty handed and made a dish-to-go for my 3-year-old grandson. Oh, did I mention that we were working hard on “sharing” lessons that week?