The Wildberry Smoothie Company opened recently in west Fayetteville. | Photo by Emily Holverson.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Wildberry Smoothie Co. Founder Wade Crews says he wants to serve people “real food.” That means real fruit, local honey and no syrups or fillers. The shop opened its doors Aug.18 on Wedington Drive and is bringing the community more options for healthy, locally made smoothies.
Wildberry offers vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options with locally sourced ingredients.
Crews saw first-hand how much added sugar and processed ingredients were going into smoothies that are advertised as healthy.
“My first job as a kid was actually Tropical Smoothie, and I was like, “This is not healthy.’”
This inspired Crews to make smoothies that not only taste good but are good for you.
“The food industry in general is designed to confuse everybody, when you walk in somewhere it’s mainly about colors,” Crews said. “A lot of people don’t know that the color red makes you hungry – think Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Domino’s.”
Crews expressed his concern for individuals being “tricked” by marketing tactics and false advertisements.
“At the end of the day, if someone comes in to buy a smoothie, they’re getting a healthy smoothie here, and if they go to other places, they’re probably not,” Crews said. “There’s no trickery here – even though it’s October.”
Wildberry is partnered with other local companies: Onyx Coffee, Pink House Alchemy, and Savoy Tea.
“People don’t understand the impact of local businesses and local shopping but its immense.” Crews said. “We take pride in our local partners and being a part of the city of Northwest Arkansas.”
According to Crews, partnering with local businesses cuts down on shipping costs and carbon emissions.
When creating the menu, every smoothie and bowl went through different iterations and tests. According to Crews, the Wildberry team would host 40-50 people to try the smoothies and get feedback.
The PCB, a peanut butter chocolate and banana smoothie, was the first smoothie Crews ever made. “That one holds a place in my heart because it took me ten years to figure out the recipe,” he said.
The menu includes smoothies, bowls, and grab and go products, and the coffee menu includes matcha and chai.
“Let’s say you come in with a few friends, well you may love smoothies, but one of your friends may not so we just want to have something accessible to them too,” he said.
There are more than eight different smoothie options in Fayetteville from franchises to local businesses, with competitors Smoothie Q and Smoothie King both opening this year as well.
“Our competitive advantage is that we work harder for our guests, I’d rather have ten people come in everyday that love it, than people just coming in and out,” Crews said. “We’re going to be pouring into a business and pouring into the community, if Wildberry can be successful in helping the community then [we] will be successful in our business.”
Wildberry is located at 3484 W. Wedington Dr., in Fayetteville. The hours are from 7 a.m.- 8 p.m. daily.
“I’d like to become a beacon of health, happiness and community, and I think those are all super important for humans,” Crews said. “We’re really excited for the community to get to enjoy Wildberry.”