How Dairy Queen Simplified Training for Locations Across the US and Canada

CHALLENGE

Dairy Queen has run certified training programs for new managers across the US and Canada for years, but the logistics behind it kept getting in the way. After moving away from an in-house print center, the team relied on outside vendors that didn’t offer print on demand, so any update to a workbook or handout meant working through old inventory first. When one vendor shut down during the pandemic, Dairy Queen was left managing materials across multiple storage locations with little flexibility to make changes quickly.

“We were realizing that if we wanted to change something, we would have to work through inventory and get that old inventory out before we could implement it.” – Randy Olson, Field Training Consultant

HOW MIMEO HELPED

Dairy Queen consolidated its print, warehousing, and fulfillment needs onto one platform. The team now uses Mimeo Print to develop training materials, then moves finished content to Mimeo Marketplace, where it maintains separate storefronts for its internal training team, its franchisee network, and a large multi-unit operator that needed customized materials.

For certified training locations across the US and Canada, Dairy Queen orders workbooks, handouts, and custom certificates directly from Marketplace ahead of each class, along with recognition pins that Mimeo warehouses on Dairy Queen's behalf. For larger in-person sessions of 20 to 50 attendees, the process extends further: supply crates, technology crates, and banners are all warehoused at Mimeo and shipped out ahead of each event, with replenishment items reordered based on inventory counts the team takes after every class. Once training wraps, Dairy Queen requests return labels to send the reusable crates and signage back to Mimeo for storage until the next event.

THE RESULT

Consolidating everything with Mimeo has saved Dairy Queen meaningful time and cost. Randy pointed to the simplicity of ordering from a single source: "Having everything as a one-stop shop saves us. We're still getting things shipped, but it's all in one spot, and some of those shipments can be combined with other things, so there are some cost savings." Tracking has also gotten simpler, since the team no longer juggles shipment updates across multiple vendors. On top of that, print on demand means changes take effect right away instead of waiting to burn through old inventory first. "There is significant time savings," Randy said.

That consolidation has also changed how the team spends its time day to day. "By having everything in a one-stop shop, it allows us to focus more on what we do, that end result, that training event, and not having to worry about getting materials when we arrive on site," Randy said. "We're actually able to focus on really what our primary job is, and that's delivering a training program."

Randy also called out Mimeo's support as a standout part of the partnership. "If we send an email, even if it's off hours, there's somebody that's going to respond and say, 'Hey, we're dealing with this,'" he said, noting that the responsiveness extends across the whole Mimeo team, not just one point of contact.

THE BOTTOM LINE

For a training team running certified classes across the US and Canada, Mimeo gave Dairy Queen one system to manage everything from workbooks to reusable event supplies. That means no more juggling vendors, no wasted inventory when materials change, and no guessing where a shipment is. Consolidation freed the team to spend less time on logistics and more time on the training programs themselves.

Key Takeaways

Mimeo Print and Mimeo Marketplace work together to let Dairy Queen develop, publish, and distribute training materials across multiple audience-specific storefronts
Print on demand eliminates the wasted inventory and delays that come with batch printing and warehousing materials in advance
Centralized warehousing for reusable event supplies (crates, banners, signage) simplifies logistics for in-person training held across the US and Canada
Consolidated ordering and tracking on one platform reduces the time spent coordinating across multiple vendors
Responsive Mimeo customer support, even outside standard business hours, has been a consistent point of value for the Dairy Queen team

Dairy Queen is an international quick-service restaurant chain known for its soft-serve treats, Blizzards, and food menu, operating thousands of franchised locations across the US, Canada, and dozens of other countries. Dairy Queen's field training team runs certified training programs for new managers at locations throughout the US and Canada, supporting both its franchisee network and larger multi-unit operators.

Visit DairyQueen.com