Gloria Jean's Coffee K Cups

Gloria Jean's Coffee was founded by Gloria Jean Kvetko in 1979 in Chicago, USA. Gloria Jean's Coffees began as a small coffee and gift shop in Chicago USA which now has over 110 locations throughout the U.S. Gloria Jean's Coffees USA is owned by Diedrich Coffee, Inc located in Irvine, California. In 1995, Nabi Saleh, a businessman internationally regarded for his coffee knowledge and expertise[citation needed], and Peter Irvine, former Managing Director of advertising agency DDB Needham, visited the United States to sample the Gloria Jean's Coffeesbrand. Saleh and Irvine identified the opportunity for this brand in Australia, purchasing the international licensing rights from Diedrich Coffee, Inc. Saleh and Irvine established Jireh International Pty Ltd, the company that holds the right to franchise Gloria Jean's Coffees in Australia, and most recently purchased the rights to the Gloria Jean's Coffees brand for all other countries from Diedrich Coffee, Inc. (with the exceptions of the USA and Puerto Rico).

In late 1996 Jireh International Pty Ltd opened the first Gloria Jean's Coffees store in Miranda, Sydney, and two weeks later another in Eastgardens, also in Sydney. These stores were set up to test the concept in the Australian market. In early 1998, Gloria Jean's Coffees Australia franchised its first store and within six years had opened 185 stores owned and operated by more than 100 franchisees. In 2003, a franchise opened in Darwin; this meant that the brand was now established in every Australian state and territory.

The company which currently oversees Gloria Jean's Coffees in the United States is Diedrich Coffee. It was announced in May 2009 that a company affiliated with one of the directors of the Australian company (Nabi Saleh) intends to purchase the US operations from Diedrich Coffee.

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Tips for getting the most out of your brewing machine and k cup experience.
Some of these are specific to brewing hot cocoa, others are generic - whether it's coffee, hot chocolate, or K cup tea, the same applies.

Tip #1
Always shake the K cup before placing it into the system. This allows the water penetrate evenly.

Tip #2
Don't waste perfectly good cocoa. After you have brewed your hot cocoa, peel back the foil on the k cup and add any remaining hot cocoa mix into your cup and stir.

Tip #3
When switching between hot chocolate and coffee, follow manufacturers instructions - typically this involves running a single brewing cycle to flush out remnants of the chocolate. Otherwise your first cup of coffee might taste a bit chocolaty.

Tip #4
Just because the coffee was made by a K cup machine, doesn't mean you cannot add some fun stuff to it. Think heavy whipping cream, shaved chocolate, peppermint flavor, marshmallows, cinnamon, drop in a candy cane or cinnamon stick, or just plain Half & half, to name a few. Possibilities are endless