Mrs. Fields At 30 Gets A Make-Over

For its 30th year, Mrs. Fields is testing a new store design that features softer lighting, wider display cases, a new menu and gourmet coffee to broaden its appeal. If it is successful, the chain is expected to role out many of the changes through its network.

The changes appear to be paying off at its prototype at a suburban Cleveland, Ohio store inside the Westfield Great Northern shopping mall.

The LA Times observes, "Since Sept. 7, the remade Ohio location has seen a sales increase of about 60% from the same period last year, said Jim Bird, franchise operations director for Santa Ana-based Pacific Hospitality, the franchisee that oversees the North Olmsted store and 26 other Mrs. Fields shops that are mostly on the West Coast. "