Our founders, Donald and Susan Sutherland, have a passion for ice cream! They searched everywhere for ice cream that was “smooth and creamy”, rather than the traditional hard-packed or soft-serve varieties. In 1988, after coming up empty in their search, they opened the first Cold Stone Creamery® in Tempe, Arizona. Using only the finest ingredients, the Sutherlands produced the highest quality ice cream available…making it fresh each day in their store. Every ice cream creation was then made to order for each customer by blending in mix-ins on a frozen granite stone (the Cold Stone!), and served in a fresh-baked waffle cone. Word soon spread far and wide among ice cream lovers that Cold Stone Creamery’s® ice cream was the best, and the revolution began! In 1995, the first franchise store opened in Tucson, Arizona, followed by the first out-of-state store in Camarillo, California.