By Dana Perelberg ’20

Only a few years ago, Westport was full of frozen yogurt. Between Pinkberry, Sweet Frog and Top This, Westporters had multiple places to choose from to fulfill their froyo cravings. However, as of September 2018, all three locations have closed down.

In 2014, Pinkberry was the first location to go, followed by Sweet Frog in March of 2018 and now Top This in September 2018. The once popular dessert is now no longer prevalent in Westport, with the closest location being 16 Handles in Fairfield.
“Frozen yogurt was a trend because it was thought to be healthier,” Ginger Ellis ’20 said, citing the dying down of the trend as a reason why the shops have closed.

There are also many ice cream places around Westport including Sunny Daes which is less than five minutes away from the newly closed Top This.

“I think people just prefer hard ice cream because they realized they’re[frozen yogurt and ice cream] both pretty unhealthy,” Ellis said. Others also said that the closing of the frozen yogurt could be due to the changing seasons causing fewer people to want to buy cold desserts.

“Summer is now over and no one wants to eat [frozen yogurt] in the winter so there’s no more interest in it,” Grace Cooper ’20 said.
Another possible reason for the closing is the rise in people ordering from the app ‘Ubereats’ which offers an assortment of desserts has caused many people to stop driving places when they want sweet treats.

According to Recode, Ubereats is the fastest growing meal delivery service in the U.S. Ubereats has been helpful for companies with partner with it, however that is not an option for many frozen yogurt places considering they are self-serve. So, they are only relying on the customers coming in, which is dwindling.

Still, many Staples students are upset about the closing of frozen yogurt stores in Westport.
“I’m sad that [Top This] is gone,” Elizabeth Hogen ’19 said. “I didn’t necessarily like Top This, but I love frozen yogurt in general.”

After this closing, frozen yogurt lovers like Hogen will have to drive 20 minutes in order to get their frozen yogurt fix, as the treat is no longer being sold in Westport.