A combined Cold Stone Creamery and Wetzel's Pretzels shop is on its way to Burtonsville Crossing, with permanent signage already installed next to the shopping center's TJ Maxx storefront. The dual-branded location is planned, but no opening date has been announced.
The pairing was first revealed through a leasing listing from developer EDENS, according to The MoCo Show. Wetzel's Pretzels menu at the new spot is expected to include classic salted pretzels, Wetzel Dogs, Dog Bites, Pizza Bitz, sweet options, and fresh lemonades, while Cold Stone will offer its customizable ice cream creations mixed on a frozen granite slab with toppings like candy, fruit, nuts, and baked goods, per the same outlet's report.
This isn't an isolated move for either brand. Wetzel's Pretzels also has additional locations planned for Westfield Wheaton and Westfield Montgomery, while Cold Stone already operates shops in Gaithersburg, Germantown, Olney, and Silver Spring and has another location planned at Wintergreen Plaza in Rockville, the report notes.
A National Playbook Behind the Local Pairing
The Burtonsville combo shop fits into a much bigger corporate strategy. In May 2026, parent franchisor Kahala Brands launched a national push to open at least 17 co-branded Wetzel's Pretzels and Cold Stone Creamery locations in 2026, aiming to capture multiple dayparts and squeeze more operational efficiency out of quick-service real estate, according to Restaurant Dive. Co-branding is intended to help franchisees capture more dayparts and improve operational efficiency with complementary sweet-and-salty menus, the outlet reports.
Both chains operate under common ownership through MTY Food Group, which completed its roughly $207 million acquisition of Wetzel's Pretzels in December 2022, according to MTY Food Group. Cold Stone Creamery traces back to 1988 in Tempe, Arizona, founded by Donald and Susan Sutherland and now headquartered in Scottsdale under MTY subsidiary Kahala Brands, per Mashed. Wetzel's Pretzels was founded in 1994 in Pasadena, California, by Rick Wetzel and Bill Phelps and had grown to more than 350 locations across 25 states before the MTY deal, according to PitchBook. Hoodline previously covered a similar pairing when a co-branded shop was set to open in San Antonio on June 24, 2026.
From Vacant Strip Mall to Retail Hub
The dessert-and-pretzel shop is the latest addition to a shopping center that spent nearly a decade largely empty. Burtonsville Crossing is a 130,000-square-foot center built in 1985 that developer EDENS overhauled into an open-air gathering space with an 8,000-square-foot central plaza, according to Supermarket News. The Maryland Board of Public Works backed the effort with $3.5 million in state capital grant support approved in August 2023, viewing the project as a catalyst for East County economic development.
Sprouts Farmers Market opened a store there on January 19, 2024, marking the grocery chain's first Metro Washington location. TJ Maxx followed in March 2024 with a 23,790-square-foot store built after roughly $2 million in interior and exterior renovations to a space once occupied by Dress Barn, per The MoCo Show.
What Else Is Filling In Around the New Shop
Wonder has since secured a $700,000 building permit, filed in July, to construct a delivery-and-takeout kitchen concept between Haraz Coffee House and Eggspectation, according to The MoCo Show.
For now, Burtonsville shoppers will have to keep an eye on that new signage next to TJ Maxx. The shop is planned, but no opening date has been formally scheduled.
