VONS UNIT ADDS CINNABON AS IN-STORE BAKERY OPERATOR

ROSEANNE HARPER

ARCADIA, Calif. -- Vons Cos. here has brought in a well-known maker of branded cinnamon rolls as an in-store operator at a unit in Laguna Niguel, Calif.

The manufacturer is Seattle-based Cinnabon World Famous Cinnamon Rolls bakery, which operates most of its 278 bakeries in shopping malls. The company is known for giant, iced cinnamon rolls that retail from $1.80 to $1.99 each.

The business arrangement is that of a landlord and tenant. A spokeswoman for Cinnabon said the terms of the agreement are confidential.

For Vons, the addition of Cinnabon is a first. The chain expects to add a second Cinnabon bakery in another location later this year, said Vons' spokeswoman Julie Reynolds. She declined to say which unit would get the second Cinnabon bakery.

Phil Hawkins, senior vice president for 325-unit Vons, said in a statement late last month that "Cinnabon bakeries provide a value-added service to our customers. The aroma of baking cinnamon rolls and the entertainment Cinnabon provides is a welcome oasis for shoppers."

Both Vons units have existing in-store bakeries. Asked if the nationally known brand-name cinnamon roll operation was expected to bring additional bakery sales to those departments, Reynolds said, "We expect Cinnabon to be both a draw and to generate additional sales."

She added that the Cinnabon operations planned for this year are somewhat of a test. The chain will "wait and see how these do" before rolling the operations out to more units, she said.

The Cinnabon bakery in the Laguna Niguel Vons is situated at the left front corner of the store where Vons' in store bakery is also located.

The manufacturer opened its first bakery in a supermarket in 1992, in a unit of Genuardi Super Markets, Norristown, Pa. Cinna-bon also has bakeries in units of Smitty's Super Valu, Phoenix; Olson's Food Stores, Mountainlake Terrace, Wash. and Fred Meyer Inc., Portland, Ore.