Cheeseology's many classes teach customers how to make cheese from scratch.
Experiential brands are growing in popularity as people look to make memories with friends and family—and perhaps learn a new skill.
There are plenty of options for those looking for a unique date, party or corporate bonding activity: from bowling, pickleball and golf simulators to paint-and-sip outings, ax throwing and cooking classes.
Paul and Kelly Hays are adding to that mix with their cheesemaking franchise, Cheeseology. Similar to a paint-and-sip experience, Cheeseology’s art is cheese and the wine options rotate monthly, with the option to add on wine flights.
Launched last year, Cheeseology had a rocky start.
“I had a lot of misconceptions—we’ll build it and they will come,” said Paul Hays. The realization that that’s not always the case sparked a heavy focus on marketing and social media. The pair overstaffed their location in Tampa, Florida, at first. “We staffed for capacity. And it’s like, yeah, we didn’t have capacity.”
After spending “a ton of money” on two marketing agencies and hiring an internal marketer, Cheeseology decided it was best to keep things simple.
Kelly and Paul Hays founded Cheeseology last year.
“We have our retail people who are young and they have some downtime. Why don’t we have them take some pictures and some videos and they post that,” Hays said. Its Instagram account just hit 10,000 followers with just the one studio open.
He added with a laugh, “I was doing it for a little bit. I suck.” Hays is an accountant by trade; he used to work at the firm CliftonLarsonAllen and now works at 1Source Partners.
The brand has a retail component as well with an in-studio cheese shop with dairy products from all over the world. The shop also sells locally made beer and other treats.
The Hayses didn’t know anything about cheese or wine before embarking on this business venture. They attended a cheesemaking class in Napa Valley and decided Tampa needed a similar concept.
“We had an absolute blast making cheese and drinking wine, but there’s more to it than that,” Hays said.
What better way to learn than to talk to an expert? Cheeseology brought on Liz Thorpe, who has 20 years of experience in the specialty cheese industry and runs a consulting business called The People’s Cheese.
Cheeseology tested its classes at local breweries to see how the concept worked in group settings.
This is an example of how Cheeseology uses social media to promote its classes.
Classes range from $80 to $115, with the option to add on a partner, wine flights and a charcuterie box for $15 to $35, according to the brand’s website. Cheeseology students can learn how to make ricotta, burrata, mozzarella, pizza and charcuterie boards, to name a few. Guests can also reserve private parties.
Roughly a year and a half after starting the brand, Hays said his goals for Cheeseology have been “reined in.” The brand is franchising already and getting inquiries from tourists who visit the Tampa area.
“I have zero expectations for selling franchises this year,” Hays said. “Next year is going to be our push.”
A search for other cheesemaking class franchises didn’t yield results, but there are a handful of cheese retail franchises. But opportunities in the experiential franchise sector are many.
Related: TruGolf Links Tees Up 40-Unit Agreement in Tennessee
Pickleball is having its moment. Ace Pickleball, Pickleball Kingdom and The Picklr are just a few of the franchises in the space.
The big players in the paint-and-sip category are 130-unit Color Me Mine, which did nearly $56 million in 2024; Painting With A Twist, with more than 200 units and $46 million in sales last year; and 70-unit Pinot’s Palette, which reported $27 million in system sales in 2024.
Related: New Master Franchisee for The Picklr Wants to Capitalize on Global Popularity of Pickleball
Hays is looking to add loyalty and membership programs and work with cruise lines to offer excursion opportunities in Tampa.
Like the Hayses, franchisees don’t need to know much about cheese or wine. “You’ve got to have passion for it,” he said. “I think that’s probably our key word is passion in the brand … and not think it’s just a secondary thing.”