Frozen yogurt shop coming to Dinkytown

While living in Korea for three months, sisters Gloria and Susan Kang discovered a frozen yogurt craze that’s quickly making its way from the west to the east coast of the United States — and now to the Midwest.
“People have been lining out the doors for this thing,” Gloria Kang said. “That’s why we were interested.”
The Kangs, who both graduated with psychology degrees from the University of Minnesota last year, will soon open their very own frozen yogurt shop, Fru-Lala, in the spot formally occupied by The Hot Spot in Dinkytown.
Construction on the space, including electrical work, remodeling and the arrival of furniture and fixtures, will begin later this week. There is no official opening date yet.
After traveling around the country in search of tips for their shop, the Kangs decided upon a pick-your-own-toppings setup, which will include an assortment of fruits, nuts, coconut flakes and possibly cereal. They’ll start off with four frozen yogurt flavors, including the staples: classic tart and green tea. One or two flavors will alternate in accordance with what the customers tend to like or dislike, Gloria Kang said. The shop will also serve coffee.
Gloria Kang said she doesn’t think the cold weather will affect business — rather, she said, she worries about being slow during University breaks.
“It’s a very trendy concept,” she said. “I feel like people will want to see what it tastes like and want to see what it’s all about, so we’re actually not very worried about the winter and coming in later.”
Irv Hershkovitz, co-owner of the building Fru-Lala will occupy, said that while he doesn’t think the timing is perfect, there aren’t many places to get dessert in Dinkytown, and his family has to go all the way to Macy’s for frozen yogurt.
The Kang sisters, who are receiving financial help from their parents to start the business, have been single-handedly performing the necessary market research, finding vendors and working within their networks to develop the concept.
“With the economy being bad, they wanted us to experience how a business is ran,” Gloria Kang said of her parents’ guidance. “They’re actually having us start out -ground up.”