Better Blend, the Kentucky-born protein smoothie and bowl chain, opened its first Florida storefront at 955 East Brandon Boulevard on June 6, with franchisees Mike and Hillary Faustini running the location as the anchor of a planned three-store Tampa Bay buildout.
The Faustinis were already in the market before the brick-and-mortar opened. Their two Blendmobile food trucks have been working Tampa Bay events, and the Brandon store now functions as the operational base for that mobile program — a structure that gives the franchise a permanent address and a commissary anchor in one location.
The brand has a specific origin: founder Isaac Hamlin, a first-team SEC All-American rugby player, launched Better Blend in Kentucky in 2018 after wanting a protein smoothie that performed like a recovery drink without tasting like one. The menu centers on protein-forward smoothies and bowls formulated to lead with protein and skip the sugar load common across the smoothie category. Eighteen locations across three states later, the company is making its first move into Florida.
Brandon as the entry point — rather than a denser Tampa corridor — tracks with the ground the Faustinis have already covered through the event circuit. The established food-truck presence gives them a customer base they have been building across the region before acquiring a permanent address.
Two additional Tampa Bay storefronts are in the pipeline, per the operator's Instagram, with locations and timelines not yet announced. The Brandon opening is the first signal of how the Faustinis intend to distribute the buildout — and whether the franchise scales along the suburban Hillsborough east corridor or moves closer to the city's denser commercial districts.
