Tropical Smoothie began as a smoothie shop in 1993. Tropical Smoothie Franchise Development Corporation was founded in 1997 in Destin, Florida. The first franchised store opened in 1997 in Tallahassee, Florida.
In 1999 they created a niche in the smoothie category by introducing a line of high quality food items. A year later they teamed up with the well known Boar's Head brand to be the exclusive smoothie cafe chain to offer their meat, cheese, and soups to their customers. After growth there was a need to enhance the total customer experience. They redesigned their store's decor to offer an upscale tropical theme with bamboo walls, palm trees, bright colors, and original Bob Stedman artwork creations.
The franchise celebrated its 10th year anniversary in 2007 and is opening a new store at a pace of every 6–7 days.
