The Two SKUs

Cold Stone Creamery is rolling out two limited-time Creations across its roughly 1,500 global locations — nearly all of them in the United States — effective now through November 17, 2026, in what the brand frames as its core fall promotional window. The move continues a familiar quick-service playbook: anchor seasonal relevance with one returning fan-favorite and one net-new build to drive trial among existing and lapsed guests.

The returning Creation, Going Bananas for JELL-O® Pudding, combines JELL-O® Banana Cream Pudding Ice Cream with NILLA® Wafers, banana, and whipped topping — a nostalgia-forward SKU that leverages co-branded ingredient recognition. The new addition, Crumb and Get It, pairs HONEY MAID® Graham Cracker Ice Cream with cookie dough, HONEY MAID® Graham Crackers, and cookie butter. Both lean on licensed Mondelēz International sub-brands — JELL-O, NILLA, and HONEY MAID — to reduce consumer friction and signal flavor cues before the first spoonful.

Franchisee and Brand Implications

For Kahala Brands, the Scottsdale-based parent that operates nearly 30 quick-service and fast-casual concepts across approximately 3,000 locations in 35 countries, seasonal LTO cadence is a primary lever for same-store traffic. Cold Stone's franchise-heavy model means promotional lift depends on operator execution at the store level, where mix-in inventory management and crew training determine whether limited-time builds hit margin targets or erode them through waste.

"We're excited to bring back the Going Bananas for JELL-O® Pudding Creation while giving guests something new to try with the Crumb and Get It Creation," said Courtney Maxedon, Vice President of Marketing and Digital Strategy at Kahala Brands. The dual-track approach — one known quantity, one novel item — is consistent with industry research showing that LTO programs combining recall-driven and discovery-driven SKUs outperform single-item launches on both repeat visit rate and social sharing.

Broader QSR Context

The fall dessert segment has grown increasingly competitive as full-service and fast-casual operators expand into seasonal indulgence. Ice cream and frozen treat chains have responded by tightening LTO windows and deepening co-branding arrangements to capture earned media from ingredient partners' own marketing budgets. Cold Stone's use of HONEY MAID and JELL-O reflects the wider industry trend toward ingredient co-branding that effectively splits promotional costs between franchisor and CPG partner.

For foodservice operators and retail-adjacent franchisees tracking the frozen dessert category, the November 17 end date sets a roughly 11-week run — long enough to generate trial across multiple dayparts but short enough to preserve scarcity signaling. Investors and multi-unit franchisees watching Kahala Brands' portfolio performance will look to same-store sales data in Q4 filings to gauge whether the fall LTO cadence translates into measurable traffic gains.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.