“Oh, hot damn, that is a hot Schmackary!” exclaims Paul Rudd’s character, Ben Glenroy, in the latest season of Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building.”
That cookie, dubbed the Death Rattle Cookie after the name of the new Broadway play from Martin Short’s Oliver Putnam character, becomes an essential element in the third season’s plot, extends the cookie store’s connection to Broadway and also serves to amplify a brand that recently signed its first franchise agreements.
Zach “Schmackary” Schmahl opened the first Schmackary’s in 2012 in Manhattan’s Theater District after starting the business with online and delivery sales out of his apartment. The cookie shop has caught the attention of Broadway stars such as Lin Manuel Miranda, Kristin Chenoweth and Neil Patrick Harris. It also caught Alex Laracy’s attention.
Laracy, who learned about the franchise opportunity after connecting with franchise development firm Fransmart, said he took his young son to the flagship store and “he loved it, he loved the cookies.” After meeting with Schmahl and his husband, Chief Operating Officer Jonny Polizzi, “I was really sold on the leadership,” continued Laracy, who signed a five-unit deal to develop Schmackary’s in New York City.
Alex Laracy will develop five Schmackary’s shops in New York City, first targeting the area near New York University.
The brand, which has flavors ranging from the classic chocolate chunk to sweet corn and even candied yam, will also enter New Jersey after signing an agreement with Richipal Bindra and Harsharan Kaur, who are starting with one store.
After working in TV production and content development roles for ESPN and the NBA, Laracy was a co-owner of DotBox, a digital marketing agency he sold “for a nice profit.” He later co-owned eco-friendly food packaging company GreenBox, which appeared on “Shark Tank” and in 2020 was acquired by Pratt Industries. Schmackary’s, he said, presents an opportunity to “build on something that’s already been a success.”
“I’ve always had a passion for food. I love to cook, but owning a restaurant in New York City, in Manhattan, to have success here is about as likely as winning the lottery,” he said of the competitive—and expensive to operate in—restaurant scene. A small-footprint cookie shop, though, with a neighborhood feel that has multiple revenue streams such as catering and delivery, plus a coffee program, proved attractive.
“It’s the type of place that really sticks with you. The in-store experience and Midwestern hospitality that they’ve instilled,” said Laracy, a reference to Schmahl’s Nebraska roots. Laracy noted he lives a block away from a Crumbl Cookies store, and while he likes the product, “the in-store experience is not something to look forward to.” Crumbl locations, of which there are more than 800, are designed to fulfill digital orders, with no seating.
Zach Schmahl launched Schmackary’s from his apartment in 2011 and the following year opened the first retail shop.
Total sales from the Schmackary’s flagship store surpassed $2 million in 2022, which the company in its franchise sales material notes beats Crumbl’s average unit volume of $1.8 million.
Related: Specialty Cookie Franchises Chase Growth-and Their Competitors
“Customers vote with their wallets, and I’d dare anyone to lay their numbers down against ours,” Fransmart CEO Dan Rowe told Franchise Times earlier this year. “Crumbl is the only real competition Schmackary’s has when it comes to sales. We’re going after the No. 2 spot in cookies, understanding that Crumbl is at the top right now.”
Rowe believes Crumbl has oversaturated its markets. “Our goal is to have slightly fewer locations in each market to keep sales and profits high for our franchisees,” he said.
Other cookie franchises pushing expansion include Dirty Dough and Cookie Plug, along with the likes of legacy brands Mrs. Fields and Great American Cookies. And Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer invested last year in Chip City, another NYC-based concept.
Laracy, for his part, noted the popularity of the cookie segment as a positive: “It’s a category that will never go out of style.”
He considered other franchises in the specialty dessert space but wasn’t convinced the business model was sustainable. “I just felt it was more of a special occasion destination versus Schmackary’s. People will go every day to get a cookie.”