Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
This is Chris Redgrave, the new voice for Zions Bank Speaking on Business.
The Taylor family and their Kaysville-based Yogotogo are just one of the reasons why Utah is bucking the unemployment trend. Not only is the Beehive State's unemployment rate significantly lower than the national average — around 7.2 percent as opposed to 9.5 percent nationally — but it has added more than 12,000 jobs since June 2009.
At least a few of those jobs can be attributed to JD and Amy Taylor who saw JD's unemployment as the ideal time to launch a new business. He lost his job as the chief executive officer of an Ogden-based company in May 2009. With a family to support, JD knew he needed to quickly find a source of income.
The Taylors had observed the frozen yogurt craze sweeping through California while on a family vacation. He and Amy felt a shop like those they visited would be a good fit for Utah. This started an intense period of planning and research to check Utah's frozen yogurt market and determine how their own shop might do. All the work paid off when the Taylor family opened Yogotogo in Kaysville early last summer.
Yogotogo is a self-serve frozen yogurt bar that offers 60 rotating flavors of yogurt, 10 at a time. Guests can fill a cup with as much yogurt and as many toppings as they want then pay by the ounce. Guests create their own quality yogurt treats with premium yogurt, fresh fruit and name brand toppings.
One of the distinguishing characteristics of Yogotogo is that it opens at 9 a.m. to serve the breakfast crowd. The Taylors have developed several blended yogurt drinks, such as the On-the-Go-Yo, for customers on their way to work, and the Pro Yo, which is a protein shake mixed with yogurt and great for frequent gym attendees. The Taylors have worked hard to create a comfortable environment. They wanted Yogotogo to have a more conversation-friendly vibe so they decided against installing large TV screens in their shop. And the effort seems to be working
Although launching a new company is never easy, JD and Amy say opening Yogotogo encouraged them during challenging times. It kept them engaged in something positive and helped them move forward. They hope to help their customers have a positive experience during each and every visit.
For Zions Bank, I'm Chris Redgrave, speaking on business.
