---
title: "The Crimson White: University of Alabama Alumni Grows Smoothie King in Alma Mater"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/3a9ce093-57fb-400d-98c3-ec951ad44c0f
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/the-crimson-white-university-of-alabama-alumni-grows-smoothie-king-in-alma-mater-1914
category: "Beverage & juice"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Beverage & juice"
published: 2015-06-24T21:16:51.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T22:34:27.455Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/8d777f385d3dfec8815d20f7496026dc5419.jpeg
---

# The Crimson White: University of Alabama Alumni Grows Smoothie King in Alma Mater

**TL;DR:** University of Alabama alumnus Chris Thomas grows Smoothie King in Florida with his father, leveraging their combined business experience. Chris Thomas and his father were attracted to Smoothie King due to its healthy menu offerings.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2015-06-24. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/the-crimson-white-university-of-alabama-alumni-grows-smoothie-king-in-alma-mater-1914).*

## Story

Chris Thomas began his professional career with Smoothie King in his sophomore year at The University of Alabama and was involved in opening the store inside the Student Recreation Center. After undergrad, Chris obtained his master’s degree and went into business with his father. Chris’ academic background and his father’s experience as a McDonald’s franchisee proved to be a great combination.

They were attracted to Smoothie King because of its fresh, healthy menu offerings.“We felt like we wanted to do something more healthy,” Thomas said in an interview with The Crimson White. “We settled in Florida and took the opportunity to go visit with franchises there.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- unit expansion (topic)
- McDonald's (company)
- Florida (location)
- Smoothie King (company)
- franchisee growth (topic)
- healthy menu (topic)
- University of Alabama (location)

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/the-crimson-white-university-of-alabama-alumni-grows-smoothie-king-in-alma-mater-1914). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/3a9ce093-57fb-400d-98c3-ec951ad44c0f).