The first standalone retail outlet for iconic ice-cream brand Mr Whippy has opened in Auckland, New Zealand but is facing a possible legal tussle with a shopping mall kiosk.

Chris Dorn bought the Mr Whippy business in 2012 and plans to open a network of retail sites. The initial outlets will be company-owned but franchising could grow the network if the first stores are successful, Dorn said.

However, he told the New Zealand Herald a kiosk operating under the same brand name at Westfield St Lukes shopping mall has no rights to the name.

But Alex Fu, the St Lukes kiosk operator, said a written agreement signed in 2009 licenses his use of the brand until his sub-lease ends in July 2014.

There are two other kiosks bearing the Mr Whippy name but these operators have agreed to rebrand, Dorn said.

Dorn has invested heavily in the new store’s look, even installing a replica of the original 1964 Mr Whippy van.

Mr Whippy will open its second outlet in August in Queenstown, and could unveil four more retail stores by 2016.

There are 38 franchisees operating 60 ice-cream trucks around New Zealand.

Read more here:  www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10893959.

Image: mrwhippy.co.nz