“Auntie” may be a local colloquial term of respect for older women, but nope, Auntie Anne isn’t local.
You know the smell. That warm, buttery scent that hits you the moment you walk past the store. It’s unmistakably Auntie Anne’s. If you’re a fan of pretzels, especially the cinnamon sugar-coated ones, chances are you’ve picked up a twisty snack from this kiosk at some point.
Its roots lie far away in Pennsylvania, United States, where Anne Beiler and her husband Jonas began selling baked goods at a small stand in a farmer’s market in 1988. “Auntie” Anne started baking pretzels to help fund her husband’s vision of providing free family counselling services to their community. From there, she discovered her true calling as an entrepreneur, growing the business from a humble market stand into the world’s largest soft pretzel franchise.
In 1992, Singaporean Alice Sulaeman and her husband attended a business conference in Las Vegas, where they met Beiler and her team. The couple were invited to consider opening a franchise in Asia.
While they weren’t ready at the time, they returned to the US in 1994 and agreed to take on the international franchise rights for Asia, including Singapore and Indonesia (where Sulaeman is originally from). The brand’s first international outlet opened in Indonesia in 1995, followed by Singapore at Parkway Parade in 1996 – a store that still stands today.
