QSR 323 January 2025 by WTWH Media LLC

FREDDY’S CONTINUES TO GAIN SHARE IN THE FAST-CASUAL BURGER SEGMENT.

DEPARTMENTS

NEWS

FRANCHISE FORWARD

Football Stars and Franchising

These athletes believe their experience on the field is helping them win in restaurant operations. BY TALLULAH HAWLEY

WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP

A Mighty Franchise with Purpose

Inside the 42-year journey of Dr. Valerie Daniels-Carter, who has built a franchise empire. BY SATYNE DONER

INSIGHT

FRESH IDEAS

Heat Meets Hype

Hot sauce flavors are gaining a lot of popularity in the U.S. BY SAM DANLEY

ONES TO WATCH

Cortadito Coffee House

This Cuban-inspired beverage concept is making big moves. BY TALLULAH HAWLEY

OUTSIDE INSIGHTS

Where to Invest:

Coffee or Pizza

Both segments offer compelling opportunities when it comes to franchising. BY DAVID SWEENEY AND ILYA KHOLODNOV

START TO FINISH

Temoc Morfin

The founder and CEO of Cilantro Taco Grill wants to grow the brand to more than 1,000 units.

ON THE COVER

Freddy’s CEO Chris Dull (right) and franchisee Ron Oberg see a bright future for the brand.

PHOTOGRAPHY:

EDITORIAL

51 Restaurant Equipment & Technology

JANUARY 2025

As restaurants continue to combat new challenges, here are some of the companies and vendors offering solutions.

52 Burger King Franchisee Increases Margins and Improves Employee Safety with Automated Oil Management Create a safer workplace while improving the bottom line.

What’s in Store for 2025?

Toward the end of last year, we at QSR magazine received a flurry of emails from restaurant executives and vendors who pulled out their crystal balls and provided predictions for 2025.

I want to use this space to share some of their best ideas.

Jim Holthouser, CEO of GoTo Foods—the parent of Auntie Anne’s, Cinnabon, Carvel, Jamba, McAlister’s, Moe’s, and Schlozstky’s—said loyalty and digital innovation will shape the QSR industry more than ever. He noted that offering an app or website is no longer enough to meet guest needs. It takes more to get in front of a customer than a simple email campaign. In today’s time, if brands want to make a mark, it requires a 360-degree consumer strategy that can recognize and engage with guests at every interaction, according to Holthouser.

It’s an astute observation. Quickservice and casual-dining chains alike have been pounding the importance of personalization and customer segmentation for a while now. I would expect that to continue in 2025 and for AI to play a bigger role in marketing schemes going forward. Restaurants want to send messages that have an impact on individuals instead of a blanket email that doesn’t apply to everyone. Some may be enticed by loyalty points; others may be so frequent that they just need a reminder instead of a BOGO deal offer.

Milton Molina, SVP of store technology at Marco’s Pizza, believes the QSR industry will continue navigating the balance of AI and practical applications. The executive acknowledged that AI can bring significant benefits when integrated into operations, but

he emphasized that the most successful chains have used a measured approach. Instead of jumping right into AI, higher-performing brands use the technology where there are immediate and clear benefits.

I do like Molina’s point here. When COVID happened, restaurants made a huge shift into digital and off-premises. But that posed the question, when is technology too much? There are instances where it just doesn’t make sense. Even the biggest brands buy into that. For example, McDonald’s ended its drive-thru AI experiment in 2024. It wasn’t quite working for the company. Others, like Taco Bell, have decided to go full speed ahead. You have to do what’s best for your company, and I believe operators will be making these types of decisions constantly in 2025 and the upcoming years.

As for my own prediction, I believe the value wars will continue well into 2025. And the reason why I say that is because of McDonald’s new McValue Menu. The holistic value platform comprises entry-level pricing, a meal deal component, incorporation of digital channels, and local deals. That seems a lot more sophisticated than its $5 Meal Deal. I think other chains will see this and follow suit to continue competing in the market.

January means we’re officially halfway through the 2020s as hard as that is to digest.

The first part was a whirlwind; I’m betting the latter half will be just as transformative.

Ben Coley, Editor

Yuzu The Year of

Elevate your beverage menu with this vibrant and versatile flavor.

How to make a Yuzu Refresher

Glass Size: 16 oz.

1 oz. Monin Yuzu Purée

4 oz. green tea

3 oz. lemonade

Fill serving glass with ice and add ingredients in the order listed. Pour mixture into a mixing tin and back into the serving glass to mix. Garnish with lemon and mint

Scan here to learn more.

DIGITAL READER BOARDS. DRIVE TRAFFIC. INCREASE SALES.

Increase your QSR’s foot traffic and boost sales by promoting new menu items, menu specials, and rewards program perks. Display eye-catching, dynamic brand-approved messages that uphold your QSR’s brand standards.

Maintain message flexibility with our Ignite OPx content management software. Ignite OPx allows users to program messages months in advance or make last-minute changes and streamline your sign messaging for one location or many.

Our reputation is built on your digital reader board looking and performing great, not just for one day but for its lifetime.

Pizza Sips

Pizza Hut introduced a new wine during the holiday season.

THIS HOLIDAY SEASON, PIZZA HUT brought a new twist to festive hosting with the launch of its first-ever pizza wine—a limited-edition Tomato Wine designed to pair perfectly with its signature pies.

Crafted in partnership with Kansas-based Irvine’s Just Beyond Paradise Winery, the Tomato Wine offered a unique blend of sun-ripened tomatoes, fresh basil, and subtle hints of toasted oak, creating an aromatic experience reminiscent of a freshly baked pizza crust. Surprisingly similar to a white wine when chilled, Pizza Hut claimed the Tomato Wine was the ideal pairing for its Triple Treat Box.

Pizza Hut also offered customers a limited-edition gift set, which included a bottle of Pizza Hut’s new wine, two Pizza Hut branded wine glasses, and a wine opener.

Elyse Slayton, Pizza Hut’s director of advertising, said the brand was “creating a new way for guests to make any holiday occassion special.”

The wine was crafted in partnership with Just Beyond Paradise Winery in Kansas.

of consumers use gift cards to try new dining establishments

Consumer Behavior

• Millennials are the top gift card buyers; 35 percent planned to spend more in 2024, followed by Gen Z (23 percent).

• Nearly half of consumers prefer gift cards to physical gifts, with 47 percent spending more than the card’s value, presenting a lucrative upselling opportunity for restaurants.

Digital Gift Cards and MobileFirst Approach

• Digital gift cards are gaining traction due to their convenience, personalization options, and integration with mobile wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

• Restaurants using digital platforms for gift cards see faster redemption times, higher values per card, and increased customer satisfaction

• Push notifications and geolocation reminders on mobile devices drive usage, encouraging impulse purchases and repeat visits.

• The shift to digital cards aligns with sustainability trends, reducing waste and appealing to eco-conscious diners.

Late last year, Paytronix released its Gift Card Trend Report, which highlights how innovative gift card strategies, including personalization, digital integration, and loyalty program alignment, empower restaurants to boost guest engagement, drive revenue, and enhance operational efficiency.

• Baby boomers and Gen X prefer physical cards, while younger generations increasingly choose digital gift cards for their convenience and flexibility.

• Gift cards often introduce new customers to a brand, as 49 percent of consumers use them to try new dining establishments

Gift Card Market Trends

• The U.S. gift card market was valued at $214.3 billion in 2024, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.7 percent projected through 2028.

• Digital gift cards are the fastest-growing segment, with a CAGR of 14.7 percent expected in North America through 2032.

• Restaurants that focus on both physical and digital gift cards are better positioned to capture a wide audience, with digital gift cards representing higher average loads than physical ones.

• Seasonal spikes in sales, especially during holidays and graduations, make year-round promotion and targeted campaigns critical for maximizing revenue

Personalization and Creativity

• Personalization, such as custom messages and themed designs, significantly enhances the gifting experience.

• Creative innovations include augmented reality (AR) gift cards and gamified experiences like digital scratch-offs to win bonuses.

Loyalty and Engagement

• Gift cards drive customer loyalty by creating a “stored value” mentality, encouraging repeat visits and deeper brand connections.

• Operators integrating gift cards with loyalty programs report higher membership rates and increased lifetime customer value

• Offering rewards like double points for gift card purchases incentivizes loyal guests to engage further with the brand.

• Restaurants can target specific demographics with personalized designs, like holiday-themed or limited-edition gift cards for loyalty members.

• Group gifting features and interactive experiences make gift cards more engaging and increase their appeal as shared presents.

• Comp cards and bonus gift cards effectively re-engage lapsed customers and improve customer recovery after negative experiences.

Portable: Ideal for QSRs and customers on the go.

All-day appeal: Popular for breakfast, lunch, dinner and late night.

No additional training or equipment required.

Menu’s New Favorite

The #1 fastest growing snack is now available for your menu! ¡Hola! Churros™ are a delicious, easy-to-prep choice that adds creativity to your menu with all the versatility and customization you look for in delectable desserts. Wondering what you could create with ¡Hola! Churros?

Scan the QR code or visit our website at Churros.com/ideas-guide to find out!

fresh ideas

| MENU INNOVATION |

THeat Meets Hype

America’s hot sauce obsession has restaurants ramping up the spice to satisfy adventurous palates.

BY SAM DANLEY

Customers want more heat, and restaurants are bringing it.

he Hot Sauce Bar has been a Firehouse Subs staple almost from the brand’s beginning, letting guests customize their heat level with an array of sauces and intensify their sandwiches just the way they like. But in early 2020, the pandemic forced Firehouse to remove the popular feature, and almost immediately, fans began asking when it would return.

“I was getting handwritten letters that were sent to the office to please bring back the Hot Sauce Bar,” says CMO Dena vonWerssowetz. “Every time we posted something on social media

about anything, guests would be saying, ‘Oh, I love this. I’m glad you’re doing it. But when’s the hot sauce bar coming back?’”

Responding to the public outcry, Firehouse reintroduced the Hot Sauce Bar last fall, marking its return after a four-year hiatus. Today, it offers 13 unique sauces, each labeled on a heat scale from 1 to 10. Whether guests are just looking to enhance their sub with a hint of flavor or put their spice tolerance to the test, the Hot Sauce Bar has a selection for everyone, all available at no extra charge for in-restaurant diners or those picking up online or app orders.

“You can tell that people really hone in on what they think their own personal heat tolerance is,” vonWerssowetz says. “Then, within those different levels, you can customize based on flavor profiles.”

Customers who prefer milder spice around a heat level of 2 can choose from sauces like the Bee Sting Honey n’ Habanero Pepper Sauce, which balances honey’s floral sweetness with a subtle habanero kick, or the Fat Cat Peach Maple Bourbon Hot Sauce, which blends ripe peaches, maple syrup, and bourbon into a mild yet flavorful option. For more daring spice seekers, options like the Deep Canyon Co. Sizzlin’ Scorpion Scorching Hot Sauce feature bolder flavors with a powerful heat level of 8, thanks to scorpion and habanero peppers, balanced with savory spices.

When reintroducing the Hot Sauce Bar, Firehouse didn’t just restock the old lineup—it revamped it. The team reviewed previous sauces and noticed that evolving taste preferences and rising spice tolerances meant that some older heat rankings no longer matched today’s standards. To better reflect current trends, Firehouse adjusted the heat levels of some returning sauces and added new selections, like the Scorpion Scorching Hot Sauce, to keep pace with modern palates while still leaving room to push the boundaries on heat in the future.

But according to vonWerssowetz, the Hot Sauce Bar is about more than just setting guests’ mouths ablaze.

“We know that people are liking even hotter things,” she says.

“But the most important thing to us is that when a guest tries their sub, they absolutely love it, and they want to eat the whole thing. It’s not a dare. So, the process that we go through to select these sauces is very intense and isn’t just based on heat levels. We want to make sure that even those really hot sauces are super flavorful. Sometimes, people can create hot sauces that just have a lot of heat, but if they don’t have the flavor with them. For us, that’s not a win.”

Church’s Chicken is also diving headfirst into the spicy scene, bringing even more heat to its menu with its first-ever signature hot sauce,

launched last spring. Known for its long-standing spicy chicken option—which it revamped last year for enhanced flavor—the company saw an opportunity to broaden its appeal by adding a hot sauce that would resonate with the shifting preferences for bolder heat.

While younger consumers are often credited with driving the trend toward spicier foods, CMO Natalia Franco says the appetite for heat spans across demographic lines.

“While Gen Z is partial to spicy flavors, the Hispanic and African American communities are known to embrace bold and spicy notes in their cooking,” she says. “Our target audience is predominately comprised of these two demographics, and we have featured spicy chicken on our menu for years, so we have proven there is a demand and desire for more heat options.”

The company knew that a new hot sauce would be a great addition to its menu and that it wanted to do something different in the development process, Franco adds. So, it dove into the world of spice to

Firehouse Subs reintroduced its Hot Sauce Bar last fall.

Church’s Chicken is diving into spice to fill demand for multiple demographics.

We’re so

much more than just ketchup.

Red Gold® is here to make your customers’ saucing experience easy and enjoyable with a variety of dunk cup options such as: Naturally Balanced ketchup, marinara, BBQ, and seafood cocktail sauces. The dunk cups are a convenient way to enjoy on-the-go, delicious sauces with menu items such as fries, burgers, chicken tenders, shrimp, and so much more!

Scan to request a free sample kit!

find the perfect pepper for its signature offering as part of Hulu’s documentary series “Superhot: The Spicy World of Pepper People.” In Church’s feature episode, head chefs Kevin Houston and Eric Stein worked closely with two independent pepper growers and hot sauce aficionados to create a unique flavor profile. The result is a combination of heat and sweetness with notes of habanero peppers, red chilies, roasted garlic, and spices.

“It has a creamy, dippable style sauce that is more complex than what you would typically see from a QSR,” Franco explains. “It has a slow build and just the right amount of sweetness to balance out the heat. While it pairs well with our chicken, guests have also noted how it works well with anything that you dip into it.”

WaBa Grill’s new WaBlaze Sauce takes the brand’s signature WaBa Sauce up a notch, blending spicy red peppers and chili extract with soy sauce, pineapple, ginger, onion, and garlic. CMO Mark Finnegan says the brand launched the sauce in response to customer demand for a hotter option, especially from Gen Z, a group known for embracing bold flavors.

“They’ve grown up in this new era where there are restaurants with spice meters,” he says. “There’s more of a dialogue people in that generation have with each other about how much spice they can take, so there’s a big social aspect to it as well.”

WaBa Grill was intentional about tapping into this generational energy, but demand for WaBlaze still exceeded expectations, with the initial supply selling out in less than 30 days.

“There’s so much consumer energy with that younger demographic group,” Finnegan says. “Yes, the sauces are available and it’s communicated that they’re available, but then there’s a whole different experiential marketing that gets created by the end users challenging each other and making it sort of a gamification of spice.”

WaBa Grill leaned into this social phenomenon with a unique launch strategy that was intentionally subtle. Rather than using traditional advertising or clear in-store promotions, the brand introduced WaBlaze with a cryptic, flaming smile icon on the menu to spark curiosity. Finnegan notes that this element of mystery encouraged guests to explore the new flavor for themselves, heightening the sense of adventure around the sauce.

Following the sauce’s breakout success, WaBa Grill has enhanced the branding with bold graphics and brighter colors on the packaging, treating WaBlaze as a sub-brand with its own distinct identity.

“That’s the expectation of the marketplace,” Finnegan says. “There’s the brand itself, and then their spicy food has its own positioning, its own look and feel, within that.” Sam

Gen Z is known to embrace bold flavors, according to WaBa Grill CMO Mark Finnegan.

Restaurants are competing to create unique flavor profiles around their hot sauces.

WaBa Grill has seen great success with its hot sauce rollout.

On-the-go flavor.

Texas Pete ® is taking its flavor on the road with convenient, easyto-enjoy portion control packets! Whether it’s a Texas Pete ® dip cup or sauce packet, your customers will be able to enjoy bold flavor for a better on-the-go dining experience—anywhere, at any time.

Ask your broker for the #1 portion control hot sauce and request a free sample today!

Cortadito Coffee House

The rising beverage concept infuses Cuban culture into morning coffee rituals.

BY TALLULAH HAWLEY

HEADQUARTERS: Miami

YEAR STARTED: 2020

ANNUAL SALES:

• 2023 (Three Units) = $3,980,929

• 2024 (Four Units) YTD Sept. 30 = $3.7M

• (Estimated Sales Year 2024) = $4.7M

TOTAL UNITS:

• 2023 (Three Units)

• 2024 (Four Units)

• Opening by the end 2024: Two; downtown Miami and Las Vegas

FRANCHISED UNITS: 0

HEADING INTO 2020, VIDA & ESTILO HOSPITALity Group already had a large portfolio of casual-dining restaurants, but as COVID quickly became a pandemic, the team realized it needed to add a QSR to its business.

During the time of isolation and quarantine, Cortadito Coffee House—founded in 2020 in Miami—became a place where customers could converse. “The idea is to have a Cuban coffee space where you can elevate your mood, your energy, your vibe, then we also have the idea to create … authentic Cuban concept of dishes [ that ] were not at that moment very well-targeted,” says Matias Pesce, CEO of V&E. “So, we combined our Latin roots with our Cuban experience in coffee and the culture of Cuban and Latin in order to create a space where people can visit us to be relaxed and show authentic food with real ingredients.”

Cortadito’s vibe is vibrant and curated, says Elba Machado, V&E’s VP of communications. It takes inspiration from “Miami 1960s ventanitas,” which are walk-up coffee

windows or counters. While it functions as a faster way to get a morning drink, ventanitas—Spanish for “little window”—also allow customers to spend time in conversation with the shop owner or fellow consumers.

Pesce has been with V&E since 2017, serving as the leading force for corporate expertise as the group continues to grow. The restaurant group was established in 1996 and has over 30 restaurants, two hotels, and 12 additional concepts. Cortadito now has six locations across the Miami area and one in Las Vegas at the Flamingo Hotel, which is owned by V&E.

The original location is at an iconic Miami Beach street corner on Lincoln Lane and Meridian Avenue, where David’s Cafecito stood for 42 years, having closed in 2020. “We took [that spot],” Pesce says, “and we represent all the magic of that corner.”

Cortadito’s most recent location is its stand in the Miami Beach Convention Center. The venue has rebounded from its diminished role during COVID thanks to a recent remodeling. This new spot is important for V&E, Pesce notes, as “most of the Latin American conventions will be or has been taken [to Miami Beach Convention Center], so the influence for Miami or for Miami Beach is great.”

Cortadito is big on its Cuban heritage, with coffee offerings including the namesake cortadito ( a hot espresso and steamed milk beverage), cafe con leche, and the caramel flan latte. Machado notes that Cortadito’s food combines Cuban fare with trendy 21stcentury food, such as its various completa bowls, each with its distinct protein, produce, and grain combinations.

Cortadito also prides itself on making everything by hand or in-house. “Being authentic and also with real ingredients, we are obsessed with the quality of the ingredients,” Pesce says, “because we understand that with the right ingre-

Temperature Monitoring System

Above store data & reporting

Remote monitoring

Real-time alerts

• Food loss prevention

• Eliminate manual logging

• Ensure customer safety

KorrectProduction

Kitchen Management System

IoT appliance integration

Automated dynamic projections

Real-time MoH™ insights

• Deliver quality & customer experience

• Ensure product availability & freshness

• Reduce Waste

A Mighty Franchise with Purpose

Dr. Valerie Daniels-Carter started franchising in 1982, growing from one restaurant to 132 in 16 years—she hasn’t stopped growing since.

BY SATYNE DONER

Coming from a finance and banking background, Dr. Valerie Daniels-Carter watched the hospitality industry from the sidelines, observing as the food business consistently delivered strong returns. Intrigued by the prospect of working with a structured franchisor that had a unique product and funding capacity, she decided to step into the industry.

With her brother as her only investor, Daniels-Carter founded V&J Foods in 1982. Seeing a gap in the Wisconsin market, she opened her first Burger King location. Over the next 16 years, her restaurant empire expanded to 132 locations across eight states, employing over 4,500 people. She later transitioned to a growing Pizza Hut portfolio and teamed up with NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal to expand Auntie Anne’s into nontraditional locations. Inspired by these successes, she expanded her reach further with GoTo Foods, adding Cinnabon and Jamba to her portfolio.

“I had to question myself when I decided to transition to another industry because I had a great career in banking,” Daniels-Carter says. “After leaping in, I didn’t find it challenging. It’s a service industry, just like anything else … but you must be willing to understand

and capture the unique dynamics of a restaurant environment. For me, that meant finding employees who enjoy serving others—not just hiring anybody.”

From the start of her career in the restaurant industry, Daniels-Carter knew she could use her success as a vehicle for philanthropy and inspiration. She deliberately wove a spirit of giving back into her business model, ensuring the people she brought into her organization were committed to serving others.

For the past 35 years, the V&J Foods team has traveled to Africa to build hospitals and orphanages, placed over 2,700 women in business roles, and set up medical camps to treat the ill. Daniels-Carter says this dedication to service does more than empower her employees; it also resonates with her customers.

“Customers want to share in on your success. They want to do more than grab a meal. … It’s special when their meal can sow into the lives and development of others. When a story is told inside a restaurant, customers and employees alike feel good about who and what they are supporting,” Daniels-Carter says.

Despite her extensive portfolio and humanitarian achievements, she acknowledges the unique challenges of being a strong woman in franchising. Throughout her four-decade career, Daniels-Carter has learned the importance of resilience.

“Don’t ever measure your success by the lack of someone else’s ability to understand who you are. You will have those who say it can’t be done. Instead of calling them challenges, I call them opportunities … because every opportunity to excel is predicated on your ability to remain focused,” she says. “You must stand on the principles you value, even in the face of adversity. My mother and father instilled in me that there is no room for saying ‘I can’t,’ because everything has a purpose tied to it, and it will always reveal itself if you hang in there.”

Looking back, Daniels-Carter reflects on an obstacle that felt almost insurmountable: the unexpected passing of her husband while she was raising her young son and expanding her business. She felt there were only two options—succumb to grief or push forward.

“Losing my husband was one of the most devastating periods of my life. I can’t give enough credit to my team at V&J Foods because they were my support system. … My V&J FOODS

Dr. Valerie Daniels-Carter’s team has helped build orphanages and hospitals in Africa for decades.

Sister brand to PizzaCloud: Same 24/7 support from the same great staff

Price for this service varies based on type of message & volume.

• We apply volume discounts across entire chain, so individual location owners benefit from total chain volume.

As low as $0.01 per message for high volume customers!

Use your Existing Phone Number to send messages!

• Either through direct integration to your POS system, or by exporting lists from the POS to import into our platform, you can schedule & manage outbound text message marketing to increase revenue.

We are fully compliant with CITA/FCC regulations!

Text messages have up to 95% open rate within minutes: push online orders, drive additional revenue, & send upsell messages!

EXAMPLE OF HOW IT WORKS:

1) Send a X Dollars off coupon message to customers who’s last order was more than 90 days ago, with the goal of “re activating” those customers.

2) Send an “upsell” coupon for add on items to more active customers

3) Automated campaign to send a few hundred messages per day, with the goal of adding 10+ additional orders per day. Messages can be coupons, but you can also get great traction with messages such as “Happy Monday. Did you know you are allowed to eat pizza on Monday?” followed by your online ordering link.

WOMEN IN RESTAURANT LEADERSHIP: TOGETHER SUMMIT

FEBRUARY 19 - 20, 2025 / NASHVILLE, TN

Unite. Elevate. Lead.

Join the movement of women reshaping the future of the restaurant industry at the Women in Restaurant Leadership: Together Summit. This two-day event is all about bold conversations, powerful insights, and purposeful networking that fuels the growth and success of women leaders across the industry.

What to Expect

• Visionary Speakers: Hear from trailblazing women who are changing the restaurant world, sharing strategies and stories that inspire action.

• Hands-On Workshops: Gain practical tools to overcome real challenges, enhance your leadership, and drive business success.

• Next-Level Networking: Connect with driven, like-minded women ready to collaborate and empower each other.

Why Attend?

• Innovative Leadership: Discover fresh perspectives and actionable ideas to enhance your leadership in this evolving industry.

• Empowerment in Action: Engage in meaningful discussions that inspire personal and professional growth.

• Collaborative Impact: Be part of the conversations that tackle today’s challenges— diversity, equity, and work-life balance—and shape tomorrow’s solutions.

Who Should Attend?

If you’re a woman in the restaurant industry— whether you’re an owner, chef, manager, or emerging leader— this summit is for you.

Nashville Awaits

Experience the energy of Nashville while connecting with women leaders who are as passionate and driven as you are.

FEBRUARY 19 - 20, 2025

ARE YOU READY TO LEAD THE CHANGE?

WOMEN IN RESTAURANT LEADERSHIP

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

AGENDA

Shannon Hennessy

FREDDY’S HAS GROWN TO OVER 500 RESTAURANTS SINCE IT OPENED IN 2002.

THE FUTURE OF

TRANSFORMATIONAL BRAND OF THE YEAR 20 25

WAY

Chris Dull had recently stepped aside as CEO of Global Franchise Group and was doing some consulting and advisory work for private equity firms. He ran into Thompson Street Capital Partners, which had a Kansasbased fast-casual burger chain under LOI. They wanted an operator—Dull began his restaurant career at Marble Slab Creamery, although even further back, his father ran a barbecue spot—to come in and decipher what they were getting into.

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers had grown to around 400 stores since its 2002 founding by brothers Randy and Bill Simon and their business partner and friend, Scott Redler. But there was some mystery of where the brand could go and how fast it wanted to get there. The firm asked Dull to conduct a quick assessment and present a 90-day plan and three-year strategic deck. “And then, I was done,” Dull says.

In truth, as Dull, now Freddy’s CEO, sits in front of a large glass window backdropped by a small, nearby lake, inside a 23,000-square-foot Training & Innovation Center the brand just minted in June, it was him who didn’t realize what he was walking into.

Dull, like customers and franchisees over the decades, got close to the brand and couldn’t pull away. Freddy’s first operator, Ron Oberg, franchised a store in 2004 in Hutchinson, Kansas, and is still building. He recently opened a Sioux City, Iowa, Freddy’s that generated $175,000 in its first seven days—a new sales record for an opening week at the brand. The second, Bob Rasberry, is actively expanding, too.

“The franchise community is the best. Literally the best group ever,” Dull says. “And I thought, ‘man, whoever gets this role is really going to be happy with what they’re getting.’”

Thompson Street circled back and mentioned the founders might be interested in Dull taking over as CEO. “I said, yeah, absolutely,” Dull recalls.

That was May 2021. Things were just beginning.

The unshakable core

Freddy’s roots reflect some of what Dull saw in that discovery. Namely, the Simon family had extensive franchise experience before they opened the first Freddy’s off 21st and West Road in Wichita. Randy started out doing accounting work at Pizza Hut and became an operator of the brand as well as Panera Bread. Freddy’s began, in vision, with Randy and Bill’s father Freddy talking about a good pressedburger concept that also served custard because there wasn’t anything local to compare.

Freddy served in the Pacific Rim region during World War II, was awarded the Purple Heart for injuries sustained during service, and earned a Bronze Star for valor. He returned to Kansas and worked in the hospitality industry for 56 years, raising six children with his wife, Norma Jean.

The family took the concept a step further—they named and modeled it after Freddy. It’s a nod to his generation and his ideals of service.

So the day one restaurant lived by a two-pronged playbook—nostalgic servant leadership and premium food, coupled with a solid franchising ethos.

Dull understood a bit of this mindset. He came out

RON OBERG & CHRIS DULL

of school with an education degree, but found himself farming 10,000 acres in Lazbuddie, Texas, a 540-person incorporated community in Parmer County with fewer than three residents per square mile.

He was working cotton, corn, wheat, soybeans, millet. “You name it,” Dull says. And the farm also ran 6,000 head of cattle.

Dull compares the experience to being a long-haul truck driver. He’d spend 12, 13 hours in a tractor. One day, Dull says, laughing at the recollection, he was having a three-sided conversation with himself. “I thought, ‘I’ve got to get around people,” he says.

Dull moved back to Houston, where he went to school at Baylor, and was offered a job at Enron. He decided to get into restaurants instead so he wouldn’t be chained to a cubicle (that ended up a wise decision in more ways than one).

At Marble Slab, Dull began a

catering business that didn’t exist and was eventually noticed by corporate for his proactive mindset. There were about 30 or 35 stores at the time. Dull helped it get to north of 400 before it was sold to New York investment firm NexCen in 2007 for $16 million in cash and $5 million in seller notes.

The company headed to Atlanta to become a multi-branded group. Dull served as president of franchise management. In that time, it bought Great American Cookies, Pretzelmaker, Pretzel Time, and owned Athlete’s Food for a while. The company then layered in Round Table Pizza and Hot Dog on a Stick. The franchising arm changed hands to Levine Leichtman Capital Partners in 2010. Dull stayed on as CEO and the company rebranded to Global Franchise Group, which sold to Lion Capital and Serruya Private Equity in 2018. Lastly, FAT Brands purchased GFC for $442.5 million in 2021. By then, Dull had stepped aside and was working on his own—the period when he crossed paths with Freddy’s.

This zagging journey gave Dull the right combo of hard work and franchise acumen when he dove into the burger chain’s business. The founders knew what it meant to be a franchisee and wanted to make sure they had a system that was operator centric.

“And they also didn’t want a system where they were dealing with folks who didn’t love their brand,” Dull says.

He understood all those points. As do franchisees of Freddy’s, which is a key ingredient when you begin unpacking what’s happening today. The first question management asks prospective operators is if they’ve been to a Freddy’s? What did they think of the food?

The experience?

If they can’t answer yes, they don’t make it to the second line. It doesn’t matter how well-capitalized they might be or what holdings they slide onto the table.

Oberg, the CEO and owner of Epoch Development and TR Hospitality Group, was introduced to Freddy’s when his oldest son took him there in 2003. He was opening the first franchise a year later and now runs 21 stores across Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska, Iowa, and South Dakota, with 10 more in development. Earlier this year, Oberg signed an agreement for Douglas (Omaha) and Sarpy Counties for three additional restaurants.

•

FREDDY’S HAS ALWAYS PRIORITIZED SERVING PREMIUM FOOD AND BEVERAGES.

“Twenty years in, and it’s still an exciting time to be a part of Freddy’s,” he says. “It’s an invigorating feeling to watch the brand evolve and grow over the years while staying true to its three core pillars: quality, cleanliness, and genuine hospitality. I’m honored to continue investing in a company that wholly supports its franchisees. Pride, integrity, work ethic, family, patriotism— it’s embedded throughout the whole company.”

Since the outset, Dull says, Freddy’s remained true to awarding franchises to groups that loved the brand and what it stood for (as Oberg laid out). They had to buy into those pillars—outsized hospitality, no cutting corners on product quality, and “edge-toedge” cleanliness. Freddy’s takes this latter point pen-on-paper serious: sidewalks need to be power washed, parking lots absent of trash, clean inside from wall to wall, Dull says.

And the result is a franchisee pool in it for a host of reasons that extend beyond cutting checks. There are 72 unique groups across Freddy’s today (there were about 536 locations, as of early fall). The current backlog is roughly 540 units deep, Dull says, and there are 18 groups that account for 350 of those.

“So you’re talking about very invested, growth-minded folks who are excited about opening Freddy’s,” Dull says.

Of those 72, all but 10 or so of them, he adds, have active development agreements. It is becoming increasingly rare to find a Freddy’s franchisee not in a position of developing another location.

That’s why there’s clear sight to reach 800-plus restaurants by the end of 2026 and a previously shared 3,000 aim longterm (although more recent whitespace analysis shows 3,200 traditional opportunities around the country). Getting to 3,000 would put Freddy’s in the realm of how large Popeyes is today (3,076 year-end 2023) and bigger than Jersey Mike’s present footprint (2,684)

In the past three years, Freddy’s opened 61, 35, and 31 net units, respectively. At the close of 2023, 484 of its 517 restaurants were franchised. About 65 franchise openings were projected for fiscal 2024, per its FDD.

Of course, Freddy’s development rush got its inbox pinging. Dull says they often hear from franchisees who operate other concepts on two things in particular: One, the elevated product and operating model, and also, Freddy’s commitment to profitability. There’s a 4.5 percent royalty. It charges only 1.5 of its 3 percent marketing fee. Freddy’s asks for a technology help desk fee of $100 per month. “And that’s it,” Dull says.

“It’s not a fee-intense environment,” he adds. “We also are extremely communicative and have a two-way conversation with our groups. And I think our franchisees validate extremely well for us. So when these guys are coming from other brands, our franchisees have been like ‘yeah, we know. We don’t get that here.’”

One example is Freddy’s corporate collects franchisee P&L statements quarterly. It compiles the data and feeds it back out to the system to show where it’s having success and provide a status check—here’s how we’re growing your bottom line.

When Dull arrived and initially suggested the idea, franchisees were bewildered. “Why do you want them?” Dull says. “I said, ‘because we’re here for you to be profitable. And how can

we help you be profitable if we don’t understand where your dollars are going?’”

Franchisees got behind it. Some organizations don’t collect their operators’ statements annually, let alone quarterly. But these benchmarking figures proved invaluable, Dull says, for franchisees to understand where they stand among their peers. “We’re in this business to make sure people make money,” Dull says, “and make the kind of money they wanted to make when they got into it. And if we’re not living up to that, what are we doing?”

The changes, and the innovation

Dull stepped into, as you’d expect, a founder-led company with inherent positives and natural dysfunctions. Freddy’s was an organization stocked with professional, passionate, and talented people, Dull says, but there were some examples of disjointed execution. Perhaps one team was going one direction and another somewhere else without much to connect the two. There weren’t traditional strategic plans communicated company-wide.

To put it differently, there was a lot of “this is what we’ve been doing.” Mostly, it was a positive for Freddy’s, especially on the talent equation. But there was room to grow since leadership was “two-way” on certain elements.

Dull, whose career was based in discipline, strategic plans, and executing and measuring, saw the low-hanging fruit. He could come in, align teams and franchisees, and create a cross-functional environment that would hyper drive Freddy’s.

“Having such a talented group of people who were clamoring for leadership and a unified plan on where we were going and what we were going to achieve—that was a huge opportunity and something that was very exciting,” Dull says.

Specifically, there were two areas he identified as runway. Even at 400 stores, Freddy’s growth was organic to a fault. It would answer the phone, and, if the company was wowed, see if something could happen. But there was no development plan, or outbound effort to grow and attract high-quality franchisees. “It was more of we’ll just kind of get what we’ll take,” Dull says. Amazingly, and a testament to the brand’s strength, Freddy’s still grew exponentially without being aggressive.

Dull, however, had, as mentioned, a hand in taking Marble Slab from 35 to 400-plus stores in six years. It was time to hit the gas.

Andrew Thengvall, a lawyer by trade who served as SVP of strategic growth and chief legal officer at the brand for the previous six years, was appointed chief development officer in July 2021. Freddy’s also named Mary Coots, an 11-year GFG vet, director of franchise development (she’s now VP of franchise development), and Todd Phelps director of franchise real estate.

Dull turned Thengvall and the development function loose. Thengvall helped build a real estate group to help franchisees find and execute on good sites, and a construction team to build those out.

Freddy’s had 386 restaurants when Dull set this in motion. It’s opened about 150 net since.

The company appreciated two big years of openings in 2017 and 2018, with some groups getting six, seven units apiece on

CHICKEN TOSTADAS WITH CACTUS CORN SALAD

the market. That push, Dull says, might have been a bit early in retrospect. The cadence settled into the 30s range in 2019 before COVID slammed the brakes. What you see now is how Freddy’s emerged with a new lease, team, and vision for its future.

Pre-sale to Thompson Street, the way Freddy’s awarded franchisees fell into a territory protection approach of sorts. The largest developers were inking deals to expand and own massive swaths of real estate. It slogged the process. You’d have large pockets of prime real estate where developers were busy opening stores in, say, Arizona or Utah, but they also owned the rights to DFW. When would they start growing there? That wasn’t as defined.

So Dull worked with franchisees to reset markets and territories, and the shackles came off.

Take Texas as a case. When Dull was named CEO, it was essentially cut into quadrants. The Southwest had one group, Houston and everything east, another, etc. Today, Freddy’s has 13 or 14 groups actively developing stores in the state.

“That has led to acceleration,” he says. “We had large territories where there was a tremendous amount of opportunity. And then you had one

of Freddy’s largest franchisees and then went to a single-unit operator about a year in. Then, they headed another couple of hours to Kerrville to meet a franchisee in their ninth month. Both were on the cusp of growth.

These ground-level interactions are nothing novel at Freddy’s. Dull says when somebody onboards, the lead task is to get them dialed in on profitability and focused on fundamentals. He finds, more often than not, when those things are true, franchisees start thinking about taking the next step. Thengvall says they’ll never ask somebody to develop for the sake of it. Rather, Freddy’s will pause an operator before they jumpstart them. The chain wants franchisees to open restaurants to be more profitable, not just so they can hit a target.

group that was committed to doing the whole thing. Now, we have two or three groups that have [split] those areas up. And you have more active developers building out a state like Texas, which has tremendous opportunity. That story can be told in a lot of areas.”

The average number of units owned by a franchisee at Freddy’s is seven. In the entire chain, there are just 17 locations run by a single-unit operator. And getting back to an earlier point, all 17, Dull says, are in the process of developing store No. 2. Freddy’s should sell about 140 new development agreement this year, Thengvall says.

Dull and Thengvall recently took a drive from Fort Worth to Brownwood, Texas. It started with a conversation with one

Thengvall says if Freddy’s is ever growing too fast, it would mean some franchisees were pushing the envelope on new unit openings when their teams were not ready to execute. Corporate won’t let that happen. “I’m only going to grow if the restaurants that they open are profitable,” Thengvall says. “It’s the only way it works … What I tell my team is we want to be a trusted adviser to our franchisees. We want them to have confidence that what we say is accurate, that we have their best interests at heart, and we want to open Freddy’s to grow the brand, but we also care very deeply that our franchisees make money. And one thing we’ve always said about development at Freddy’s is we want to be the preferred place where people choose to allocate their capital.”

“I tell people when they come for Discovery Day, we’d love to sign you to a development agreement,” he adds. “And if you open all of the restaurants in your development agreement, great. But if at some point you decide I’ve opened two and I want to

• FREDDY’S OPENED A NEW TRAINING & INNOVATION CENTER IN JUNE.

• FREDDY’S RELIES ON MULTI-UNIT OPERATORS TO POWER GROWTH.

be done, that’s fine. I don’t collect a guarantee for your development. I don’t force you to develop. If you don’t want to develop, I don’t want you to develop. We want you to come back because you love the brand, you’re making great profits in what you’re doing, and you want to do another Freddy’s.”

It’s a point that tends to emerge on its own when the buy-in is there. Thengvall reiterates the earlier example of asking candidates if they’ve been to Freddy’s. “That’s been a real core of ours from day one,” he says. “People who love the brand and really love the food and are passionate about being a part of it. That creates a different culture and different environment than if you don’t have that.”

The company boasts a group of field business coaches focused on large groups and another that works with development operators looking to get their second, third, fourth, fifth Freddy’s, and so on.

“It’s a very different animal,” Dull says. “When you have 15 [restaurants] or you have 50, that organization is very different than when you have one or two. And so, we try to bifurcate our support so that we make sure that we are not taking an FBC who has been working with [a group] that has 80 restaurants and now they’re working with the franchisees who have one. It’s a very different conversation. We want to make sure that we’re having the right people having the right conversations.”

Thengvall says being genuine is an underrated and underserved part of the franchise sector. He’s been around the brand 10 years as an employee and basi -

cally 12 years before that ( Thengvall was Freddy’s first franchise counselor back in 2003 and helped put together the legal framework of the deal with Oberg ). Many of the original franchisees are Wichita people he knows and sees around town. Their kids went to school together. “The way that I think about that is our obligation as the franchisor is to make sure that we’re doing the right things so nobody ever comes in and says we need to change the entire platform because the franchisor needs to be more profitable,” Thengvall says, “which some of what we’re seeing today in the marketplace in terms of bankruptcies and failures is because, in the background, people tweak franchisor systems to make sure that the franchisor has a certain return. And we’ve always been very focused on making sure that at the core of what we do, it’s franchisee profitability and that is not every system.”

“People” remains the central theme of why Dull thinks stores are successful, and why others struggle. When units follow protocol, the model works. Getting teams in place, store-to-store can be challenging, as the entire industry can attest.

Helping make this arena as seamless as possible is where innovation is taking Freddy’s. But a starting point is the new Training & Innovation Center itself. Freddy’s plans to record 200 training videos and podcasts each year out of the space.

In addition to the more than 100 area employees now regularly working there, it will also host gatherings for prospective franchisees, current owners, and managers across the system. Visually, the emblazoned Freddy’s logo and scale of the Center sends a beacon to current and future prospects. It’s a home worthy of a growth company.

Freddy’s projects 70 potential franchisee vis-

its each year through the space, four fly-in conferences for 130 multi-unit managers, and annual multi-week in-person training for 120 managers.

Speaking on potential, Freddy’s got to 500-plus locations without having a training center, Dull says. Every product innovation, line improvement, and so forth, happened at the expense of one of its restaurants. Dull calls the old reality “facility light.” Now, Freddy’s can test in a downstairs kitchen, complete with booths to dine, and a makeshift drive-thru on the side you can order and walk down, instead of disrupting a location to see how it might integrate. For instance, Freddy’s is currently piloting an automated drink filler. The idea of doing that live before the kinks were smoothed would have “been calamity,” Dull says.

What he heard clearly from franchisees and internal staff was, as Freddy’s got bigger, it was going to become more and more challenging to train people and innovate on the go. “You know what, ‘you’re right,’” Dull says. “It’s time for us to take a step and so we made a very meaningful capital investment and came in here and built an innovation and training center. This is going to give us the ability to answer the mail when it comes to making sure that we’re serving our system with a better opportunity to grow our training department.”

says, is how can Freddy’s invest in systems and technology to help employees be better at their jobs. In turn, enable them to deliver the accuracy and hospitality so core to Freddy’s experience, especially as the business shifts in light of changing demands.

Pre-COVID, about 60 percent of Freddy’s traffic was dine-in. Post, 50 percent of the business is drive-thru. That was a meaningful shift—drive-thru was roughly 30–35 percent in 2019.

Today, delivery (third and first party combined) mixes more than 10 percent of sales. In 2021, it was low single digits, about 4–5 percent. First-party is inching toward 4 percent. That was less than 1 percent when Freddy’s dove into the channel.

Now, Freddy’s can test in a downstairs kitchen, complete with booths to dine, and a makeshift drive-thru on the side you can order and walk down, instead of disrupting a location to see how it might integrate.

As for future growth possibilities, Dull sees headroom in nontraditional. A third airport location was slated for fall. There are several sports arena restaurants presently, which has turned out to be a nice business for Freddy’s, Dull says. And there’s also going to be continued focus on getting out of the traditional, standalone Freddy’s box when it makes sense. So expect to see more inline, endcap restaurants that aren’t drive-thrus. Those do well and produce a strong return on investment, Dull says, but there’s potential in focusing on the space versus buying dirt and building restaurants.

At the least, being agile is only going to open Freddy’s up further with internal and outbound expansion. Freddy’s offers multiple approaches, from standalones with drive-thrus, boxes without them, endcaps (without or without drive-thru as well ), everything from 2,000-square-foot stores to 3,500-square-foot ones (non-traditional units are as small as 800).

International, too. Freddy’s in October announced its third development agreement in Canada.

Through the Center

Given everything discussed thus far, it fits for Freddy’s that its chief operating officer was once a franchisee. Fifteen years in the trenches was the resume Brian Wise brought to the position when he joined corporate in the summer of 2022.

These days, you can find Wise in the test kitchen working on what he calls “employee-assist” innovation. So often in restaurants the cycle is seen as “how to replace people.” That’s not how Freddy’s views it or wants to frame evolution. The idea, Wise

All told, Wise is addressing a business that’s gone from about 50/50 off-premises and dine-in to 70 percent of sales taking place outside the four walls.

Freddy’s innovation tackles but doesn’t overcomplicate the response. For example, there was a clear growth opportunity with the cooking station. Instead of pressing down patties with a spatula, one by one, a new Accutemp’s XLR8 kitchen device has arms where an employee pushes down so six patties can come down the line. That griddle technology, which started to arrive late last year, has been rolled to about 25 percent of units. Wise says it cuts cooking time by about 40 percent and creates a more consistent product—90 seconds or so from push to finish. And importantly, the result is a lean burger with crispy edges and the dome center Freddy’s is known for.

Before, when employees hand-pressed, they’d do patties, pause, and do them again, and pause again. That meant food coming down inconsistent through the kitchens. The employees down line would wait until you got more patties and then that worker would also wait, and so the cycle continued.

Now, Wise says, it’s about how can Freddy’s assist employees to solve the gaps. The grill got faster. And what happened next? The bottleneck was pushed down the line.

Wise says Freddy’s kitchens are, for all intents and purposes, manufacturing centers. Orders come in, are fulfilled, and the magic happens in minutes. To fix this challenge, the company worked with industrial engineers to come in and pinpoint through time and motion with data observation. And then, Freddy’s brought in outside folks to decipher how it could retrofit existing restaurants to improve throughput and employee engagement. It wasn’t just about new builds.

The finding was Freddy’s had a visualization and ergonomic problem. At the National Restaurant Show one year, management linked with Perfect Company. Freddy’s pitched them on an idea and the result was a tablet that’s rolled to 50 stores so far. It’s essentially a kitchen display system.

Wise says Freddy’s realized it had a turnover issue within the first 12 shifts. When employees made it past, they typically stuck around at least six months. There was disconnect forming at the make station with how Freddy’s trained and how people performed.

There were color-coded guides with pictures during training, which is how employees tested. So the question was, could Freddy’s create a KDS that looked like its training materials? Could it display the information differently so employees wouldn’t see a queue of 50 things that needed to be built? Freddy’s wanted to lower the stress levels.

The current system, which Freddy’s calls the Perfect Co., has been taken to quickly by employees, Wise says. It’s improved accuracy, production times, and employee satisfaction. Alongside the new griddle, training times shrunk dramatically as well because Freddy’s started to blend learning and production together. “Employees are more successful quicker,” he says. “Our retention levels are higher than they were coming into 2020.”

And up next is another tablet display for the fries station. That’s a larger device and one that’s going to, for the first time, interact with the equipment in the restaurant.

Additionally, as hinted before, there’s an automated beverage machine being piloted in the Center that addresses guests’ growing preference for customization. A customer will place their order and it will go right to the machine to pour. “We had to have technology that franchise owners want to put and invest in their facilities,” Wise says. “So they had to see the outcome of it. With better throughput, increased employee satisfaction, which is increasing retention for folks, which is a huge deal. The drink machine is one that every one had high on the list.”

“It’s an employee-assist in the way that it allows the employee to focus on the guest at the window,” he adds. “… Hospitality comes from employees that are happy. It’s hard to be hospitable to someone if you’re frustrated.”

Menu and marketing wins

Rick Petralia, director of menu strategy and innovation at Freddy’s, who came over to the brand in April 2022 after seven years at Fazoli’s, has been at the helm of plenty of innovation of his own.

The chain’s top three best-selling LTO burgers were all released in the last 12 months.

Those are the Grilled Cheese Steakburger, Prime Steakburger (a steakburger topped with thin-sliced prime rib), and the French Onion Steakburger, which has returned multiple times over the years.

The brand was also recently running Tots—the first time Freddy’s had done a side as an LTO in some time.

This cadence of menu news picked up deliberately. The last couple of years, Petralia says, Freddy’s conducted six windows of LTOs each calendar. Always at least one savory item and one custard. However, it’s begun to see success with two items or more.

Erin Walter, the chain’s interim CMO, says Freddy’s path to differentiation remains in quality, cooked-to-order items prepared fresh. AKA, “The Freddy’s Way.”

“While our LTO strategy has introduced our brand to a lot of new ‘FredHeads’ and we will continue to launch hardhitting LTOs at meaningful times throughout the year, we’re thoughtfully focusing our attention on the evolution of our core

menu beyond the classics everyone has come to love,” she says. “While those will remain, we want to provide our guests with more choice—new chef-inspired steakburgers and elevated signature custard treats. This product development strategy even extends to sides such as Tots paired with a new smokey fry sauce.”

This focus on innovation and quality has shielded the brand a bit from the “value wars” marching through much of quick service.

The Prime Steakburger, for instance, even being a premium item, sold out in four weeks. Some units ran out in three. Once Freddy’s caught its supply chain breath, the data showed existing and new guests flocked to the innovation.

“If you’re spending $12, you want to feel safe you’re going to like what you order,” Petralia says, “where it’s not some crazy concept. Maybe you can get away with that in fine dining but guests are looking for comfort and just a step beyond the normal everyday burger. Of course, our Original Double, the classic, is always going to be our No. 1 seller. But this is something that’s more. The guest is looking for something more unique, something you’re not going to replicate at home.”

The notion of “not replicated at home” has been a big focus for Freddy’s. The brand has spent ample time making sure operators are involved so there are no loss leaders.

“We’re currently reviewing the data, while also listening to our guests, operations team, and leaning on our franchisees for advisement,” Walter says. “With the goal of ultimately leading to a rollout that people are happy about and ensures franchisee profitability.”

There hasn’t been all that much core menu change at Freddy’s over the decades. It launched chicken sandwiches in January to erase the veto vote and, as noted, the brand continues to play around with elevated burgers. And Freddy’s is working on more curated custard options and shakes to further own its dessert equity, too.

Catering also began to arrive in the spring, and the company expects it will be a much larger part of the business after it launches through the app. Mainly, Freddy’s is leading with a burger and sundae bar setup, where for the most part, guests now order on the first-party platform.

When it comes to tapping insight from customers, two years ago Freddy’s relaunched its entire tech stack. That ushered in a new app and point of sale and the ability for diners to order online. Previously, there was a basic points-collector style loyalty program. The ability to order has unlocked value for users and given Freddy’s a chance to roll a surprise-and-delight feature into the marketplace. It can segment and become more personalized with outreach and run promotions on a curated sense versus any hint of mass messaging.

“Our loyalty program and the ability to segment and personalize each experience is an area where we can speak to our FredHeads and reward them with offers that are meaningful to them,” Walter says. “Learning from the data is key, because we want to provide our guests engaging through these channels with the content that they want.”

Danny Klein is the editorial director of QSR and FSR. He can be reached at dklein@wtwhmedia.com

SWIG’S CUSTOMIZABLE DRINKS ARE GAINING MUCH ATTENTION ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

The Utah-born Swig is taking dirty soda nationwide, fueled by TikTok hype and a breakout reality show.

BY SAM DANLEY

BEVERAGE REVOLUTION

Hulu’s “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” series blends Kardashian-style reality TV drama with the intrigue of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS). Premiering last fall, the show spotlights eight Mormon mom influencers behind the viral #MomTok hashtag. Known for their TikToks featuring dance routines and beauty hacks, the cast members flaunt their signature “Utah curls” and candidly chat about life in LDS garments. But

their go-to accessory is a styrofoam cup from Swig emblazoned with the beverage chain’s bright red logo.

In one episode, the Mormon Wives arrive at Swig and joke about their obsession with the brand. “Six out of seven days of the week, I’m having at least one 44-ounce soda,” one of them says. Another playfully refers to her go-to drink as “Mormon crack.”

Dirty sodas—soft drinks mixed with cream and flavored syrups—have deep roots in the Mormon communities of the Mountain West, where coffee and alcohol are off-limits. Now, they’ve made their way into the mainstream spotlight, thanks to social media buzz, mommy influencers, and the hit Hulu show. And the brand that started it all has big ambitions to scale that success nationwide.

“When you take a look at the percent of the population that’s drinking a soft drink every day, it’s something like 60 percent or more,” says Alex Dunn, CEO of Swig, QSR magazine’s 2024 Breakout Brand of the Year. “The base of what we’re offering is something that hundreds of millions of people drink every day. What we’re doing is bringing premiumization to that experience.”

Swig’s growing notoriety has sparked a fresh way of thinking about an everyday classic like soda, with many comparing the brand to Starbucks for the soft drink world. In recent months, headlines have dubbed Swig “the Mormon Starbucks” or “the Starbucks of soda,” a comparison Dunn welcomes.

“They didn’t create demand to drink coffee, but they took that demand and turned it into this very customized, elevated experience,” he says. “I’d say the opportunity for Swig is easily as big as coffee has been for Starbucks and all of the other coffee concepts. It’s just that nobody’s done it for soft drinks yet. We’re still in the early innings of introducing the consumer to that kind of experience and that kind of customization.”

Creating a Category

Inspired by childhood memories of grabbing cold Cokes from her grandparents’ fridge, Nicole Tanner founded Swig in 2010 as a drive-thru specialty soda chain. Her first location, a small 700-square-foot space across from Utah Tech University, initially charged just $1 to entice customers to try the unique twist on soda.

Swig quickly caught on with the local community and became a go-to spot, serving as a tempting substitute for potential vices. As other soda shops began popping up around Utah with similar offerings, Swig trademarked the term “dirty soda” in 2013, solidifying its status as the pioneer of the burgeoning specialty beverage segment.

A turning point came four years later when Savory Fund

took a majority stake in the business. The partnership fueled a period of disciplined growth, with Swig expanding its footprint to 40 locations within five years.

Savory Fund remains an equity and operational partner, but in 2022, the Larry H. Miller Company (lhm) became the majority owner after a significant investment. Dunn, who is a managing partner at LHM, stepped in as CEO last year.

Upon joining, Dunn took the time to immerse himself in the business by working in the stores. The first thing that stood out was the high level of engagement and loyalty he saw from the brand’s growing customer base. Swig’s cult-like

NICOLE TANNER

ALEX DUNN

followingreminded him of the personal and habitual relationship people have with their favorite coffee shop.

Much like coffee, dirty soda fosters a daily ritual among its customers, who get creative with their go-to soft drink and mixer combinations. Case in point? Nearly 80 percent of transactions at Swig are tied to a loyalty number.

Most of these transactions happen at the drive-thru, where Swig walks the fine line between speed and customer service. While efficiency is critical, Dunn says the brand also prioritizes hospitality and face-to-face interactions with its customers.

“Number one is about meeting them with happiness,” he says. “We do line-busting, so customers always give their order to one of our team members. That’s important to us. Number two is about getting them through the line quickly.”

Dunn fondly recalls his initial day working in a store. When a customer reached the window, he mentioned it was his first day on the job. They responded with a smile and told him, “Welcome to Swig.” This friendly exchange repeated itself many times throughout the shift, with people welcoming him to the store from their cars as if they were part of the crew. It gave him a clear sense of just how deeply customers connected with the brand.

“It speaks to how this brand is a part of their life and how they really feel like they’re a part of it,” Dunn says. “Our culture, the experience we give to customers, the drinks themselves—we have all

of that nailed. What we’re focusing on now is, how do we maintain that culture and experience as we grow?”

When brands get bigger, there’s often a risk of losing the magic that made them special. The drive for efficiency and profitability can sometimes compromise quality and the guest experience. Dunn recognizes these challenges but sees technology as a way for Swig to keep delivering what made it a success from the start, fostering those deep customer connections as it scales. To that end, the company is leaning into tech investments like AI, automation, voice recognition, and video analytics that he says will assist managers in running their stores, automate the drink-making process, and speed up order-taking.

“A lot of it is about accountability and visibility,” Dunn says. “If everyone knows what the standards are and how we treat our customers, you can measure those things and ensure you’re delivering on them. When you’re small, you don’t need technology to do that. But as you grow, you need tools to measure customer experience. That’s where we’re investing heavily—to ensure transparency and fix mistakes quickly.”

Fizzy Frontiers

In February 2023, Swig officially opened for franchising. With its small store footprints, strong unit economics, and focused menu, the brand always had an appetite for franchising, but it waited for the right time to turn the channel on and hand-pick the best partners. In two short months it sold 400 franchise units to around 20 groups across 15 states. The first franchised locations came online later that year.

“We actually opened it up and shut it down within a couple of months, mainly because we sold so many franchises so quickly,” Dunn says. “The demand was very high, but we looked around and said, ‘OK, what matters more is that we go and make these franchise partners that we have really successful.’”

Since then, Swig has focused on building its franchise muscle, establishing systems and processes to maintain consistency across locations and to make the right impression as it plants flags in new territories.

“What we’re not doing is figuring out how to find, open, and run a store successfully because we kick butt at that already,” Dunn says. “We’re still learning franchising, but I think knowing how to develop and run a store is much harder, and we’ve always been really good at that.”

Swig kicked off 2024 with 61 stores spread across six states: Utah, Arizona, Texas, Idaho, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. It added eight states last year, including Kansas, Tennessee, Indiana, Florida, Missouri, Kentucky, Nevada, and Georgia. Now, the brand is entering 2025 with just over 100 locations, roughly half of which are corporate-owned and half of which are franchised. Unit growth in 2025 is expected to follow a similar trajectory to 2024.

Longer term, the company wants to open 1,000 new stores over the next six to seven years. It sees a clear path to get there via franchising, due in large part to name recognition and brand visibility that far outpaces the current unit count.

“We’re punching way above our weight in terms of brand

awareness,” Dunn says. “It’s much, much bigger than the number of stores we have, so we’re growing into it. That’s a pretty enviable position to be in. Most of the time, you’re trying to create that awareness so your brand can grow.”

Going Viral

Swig CMO Dylan Roeder credits the outsized brand awareness to a strong presence on social media and the dirty soda trend’s popularity on TikTok. Both were gaining momentum well before the Hulu series entered the zeitgeist.

In 2021, pop star Olivia Rodrigo posted a photo of herself holding a Swig cup on Instagram. The hashtag #dirtysodas quickly went viral, sparking thousands of taste-test videos and homemade dirty soda creations. From there, the buzz continued to build, with videos of customers ordering their favorite drinks and sharing their experiences lighting up the internet.

“It’s the connection that makes it so special, all of the creations and customizations,” Roeder says. “The secret sauce is the business itself. Our strategy on social media has always been showcasing what makes us unique, so the videos that do exceptionally well are just bringing to life what we do every day for our customers. We’re not trying to fabricate or manufacture all of this interest.”

When “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” premiered in September 2024, it just poured gasoline on a fire that was already raging.

“We knew we were going to be on the show, but how it came to life and what happened afterward— I’ll be the first to say it was totally unexpected,” Roeder recalls. “What made it so special is that we had customers who love Swig, who come to Swig, and they just so happened to make a highly engaging, very entertaining reality TV show.”

The authenticity is what made it resonate, he adds. The show’s references to Swig didn’t feel like an advertisement or a forced brand placement. It was simply a group of people expressing a genuine love for a product on a platform that struck a chord with audiences. The brand came out of the show going from millions of views between user-generated content and Swigbranded content to around 50 million views between the two.

“With the number of eyeballs, the curiosity, the interest in the brand—the show just shined a massive spotlight on us,” Roeder says. “It set the stage for this whole new level of visibility where we’re punching above our weight class.”

As the show gained traction and developed a national following, Swig saw same-store sales growth go “parabolic” across the footprint, he notes. This growth wasn’t isolated to the brand’s

core markets but spanned everywhere from Texas to Arkansas and beyond.

“We were in a position to take advantage of it,” Roeder says. “If we only had 10 stores in a smaller number of markets, we wouldn’t have been able to embrace it the same way. But as we’re growing and scaling rapidly across the country, we’re able to have stores in places like Florida, Indiana, and Kansas receive that curiosity and interest.”

Looking ahead, the team is eyeing a multipronged strategy to build on the wave of attention. First, Roeder says Swig will double down on the approach that’s already working: showcasing the product and spotlighting the creativity and customizability that dirty soda fans love. Beyond that, it’s exploring a heightened focus on brand affinity by working more actively with ambassadors and partnering with influencers whose genuine enthusiasm for Swig can reach new audiences.

“We don’t want to spam it, and we don’t want it to feel forced,” Roeder says. “Partnering with people who already love the brand is super important to us. Some of those people might be famous, but most of them are regular people who love our brand and love posting content. The way you increase that brand affinity and awareness is through leaning into all of that. That’s what you’re going to see more of from us. It’s about giving the people who love Swig a voice to tell the world about it.”

With the dirty soda market heating up, Swig’s team knows it’s time to seize the spotlight. Newcomers like FiiZ Drinks and Sodalicious have entered the fray and are steadily expanding their footprints. Established brands across segments are also jumping on the trend, adding creatively doctored versions of classic fountain drinks to their menus.

Against that backdrop, Swig is carving out its niche by prioritizing menu innovation. The brand is rolling out seasonal limited-time offerings, introducing imaginative bases, and elevating its drinks with unique mix-ins like fruit purees and cinnamon sticks.

“If someone wants to experience dirty soda from the people who invented it, they can only do that at Swig,” Dunn says. “We take seriously the fact that we created the category, but also that we will not benefit from that creation unless we stay ahead of everybody and continue to deliver on that customer promise of innovation and customization. We’re excited about that because we like to be pushed. We like competition. It’s good for the consumer, it’s good for us, and we’re definitely not resting on our laurels.”

Sam Danley is the associate editor of QSR. He can be reached at sdanley@wthwmedia.com

DYLAN ROEDER

SWIG CONTINUES TO SEPARATE ITSELF FROM THE PACK WITH INNOVATION.

CRAFTING FOOD BRANDS WITH

/ BY BEN COLEY

At EatOkra’s Culinary Creatives Conference, food entrepreneurs shared the challenges and triumphs of building brands rooted in community.

AUTHENTICITY

Under the umbrella of food entrepreneurship, influence is not just a matter of social media fame or creating a trendy menu.

It’s about community, authenticity, and staying connected to your mission. Building a food brand isn’t just about creating a product; it’s about filling a gap and ensuring the brand resonates with people’s lived experiences.

This was one of the many messages laid out at EatOkra’s Culinary Creatives Conference in New York City last year, an event where Black food owners and operators gathered to showcase ideas and spark progress. One group of entrepreneurs and marketers shared their personal journeys of building influential food brands, presenting the challenges and rewards along the way.

For JaMor Johnson, cofounder of Jamaican concept Jerk at Nite, the company started by solving a specific

his audience was consistency.

That steadiness, coupled with a commitment to addressing real, localized issues, helped Jerk at Nite establish a connection with its customers.

On the other hand, Jatee Kearsley’s journey with Je T’aime Patisserie in Brooklyn involved incorporating personal values and family needs into her business model. She decided early on to accept EBT payments at her bakery, which generated controversy.

“It was never not an option for me to make sure that my own family, who’s on EBT, is able to come to my store and buy things with whatever form of payment that they have available to them,” Kearsley said. “Who am I to not allow [customers] to be able to use whatever form of payment when my own family members—and low key me—wish I had food stamps? When people were like, ‘Oh, you don’t want those people in your store,’ I was like, ‘What people? Those people are my friends, those people are my family, those people are in this community.’ Who am I to be in a community where they can’t even come to their local bakery and buy a croissant?”

problem: the lack of late-night food options for students at his college.

“We were solving a problem,” Johnson said. “There weren’t many options available for students late at night, besides the more processed stuff.”

Johnson’s mission to serve his community, especially students who don’t have convenient or healthy food options, became the bedrock of Jerk at Nite’s influence. He noted one of the key components of building trust with

Marketing Storytellingand in the Digital Age

While building a food brand starts with community and authenticity, today’s entrepreneurs also face the challenge of navigating a rapidly changing marketing landscape. Social media has fundamentally transformed how brands engage with their audiences, and platforms like TikTok have created unprecedented opportunities for visibility. Nialah Baker, who works with brand management consultancy Piece to the Puzzle, said marketing has shifted from being all about popularity to being more about “discovery and community.”

Baker pointed out that in the food space, audiences are increasingly looking for brands that align with their values, whether that’s supporting local businesses, advocating for sustainability, or highlighting cultural traditions.

Eden Hagos of Black Foodie—a TikTok account with more than 100,000 followers—underscored the importance of storytelling in today’s food landscape, saying TikTok has changed the game for small businesses by removing barriers to entry. She emphasized creators don’t need a publicist or a big marketing budget anymore. If someone has a phone, they can create

content that connects with people. She recounted how her first TikTok video reached nearly a million people by chance, proving the power of authentic, relatable content.

TikTok, with its quick, raw, and sometimes unpolished nature, allows food brands to share their stories in a way that resonates more deeply with their audiences than traditional forms of advertising. This push toward community-driven marketing means food brands no longer need to rely on traditional gatekeepers, such as media outlets or large advertising campaigns, to get noticed, Hagos said. Instead, the success of a food brand can hinge on how well it engages with its community and how effectively it tells its story.

Baker said the influencer space is shifting.

“It’s becoming more about their community and they’re the ones that are leading, especially when it comes to what’s good and what’s not,” Baker said. “Most people watch a video that might look good, but then they’ll read the comments.”

Aligning Values for Mutual Growth

The panelists also vocalized the importance of strategic collaborations and partnerships in building a brand with influence, but also stressed that not all collaborations are created equal. Hagos spoke about the importance of standing on values when considering partnerships.

“ It’s becoming more about their community and they’re the ones that are leading, especially when it comes to what’s good and what’s not. ”

For entrepreneurs like Hagos, this new landscape has democratized access to visibility. But it’s also raised the stakes: brands must be more intentional and transparent than ever before in how they engage with their customers.

“I think especially when it comes to food, people want to know where their food comes from,” Hagos said. “They want to know why you added hibiscus or why the spice comes straight from Ethiopia. What makes that so important? How does that change the flavor? I think the internet can be a very crowded space but the deeper you can go into what makes you special, what makes you unique, why you’re so passionate, I think the more people would resonate with you and then be more likely to choose you above the others.”

The Double-Edged Sword of Virality

While going viral can catapult a brand into the spotlight, it also comes with challenges that many entrepreneurs are unprepared for.

Kearsley said the sudden influx of attention when Je T’aime Patisserie went viral nearly overwhelmed her business. The store went from selling six chocolate croissants per day to 50 overnight. She had to sleep in her bakery for three days to keep up. Her dishwasher broke down at some point as well.

“When you sell out every single day, and you got people going on Google and Yelp saying I traveled three hours, I can’t control selling out. I’m just nine months in business,” she said.

For Kearsley, the key to surviving the storm was consistency— in both product quality and in managing customer expectations. Even under the pressures of increased demand and public scrutiny, staying true to the core values of her brand helped her weather the storm.

“No matter what you do, people are not going to be satisfied,” Kearsley said. “So you have to get into your mind like listen, ‘I’m doing these the best that I can.’”

“Don’t just chase the money,” she said. “In 2020, for a content creator, it was a big year. There was a pandemic. But then also when Black Lives Matter started going, and brands started paying attention to the people they had been ignoring for years. It’s really easy to get tempted and say, ‘Oh my God, I’m going to go here, I’m going to do this, but it might not align. And the same thing happens with people when you start shining, when you start winning, when you start having great ideas and being creative, people are drawn to you and that might not be the right people.”

Baker said brands need to be discerning when choosing partners, particularly when it comes to corporate collaborations. She uses an example of how one large company went viral for all the wrong reasons after a marketing misstep that misrepresented the Black community. She advised operators to research who companies have partnered with in the past and ask themselves whether that aligns with their values.

According to Tiffaine Stephens from Pepsi Dig In—a venture that assists Black-owned businesses—the most successful collaborations are often with brands or individuals who have something to prove.

“At Pepsi, we’re the number three soft drink now. We’ve got this underdog energy, and we’ve found that partnering with other brands who also have something to prove creates a powerful synergy,” she said. “Together, we can build something that pushes both brands forward.”

The panelists also discussed the importance of networking across different spaces. Hagos shared her experiences of collaborating with other food entrepreneurs and creators, noting that opportunities often come from unexpected places.

“Some of my biggest partnerships came from people I never expected, like old classmates or people I’d been kind to years ago,” she said.

The road to building a food brand with influence is often filled with sleepless nights, overwhelming demand, and unexpected challenges. But for each of these entrepreneurs, the rewards far outweighed the obstacles.

For Kearsley, it’s about waking up each day with a renewed sense of purpose, despite the challenges that come with running a bakery.

“Every morning, I look in the mirror and tell myself, ‘I love you, and you’re doing it, girl,’” she said. That affirmation, combined with her faith, keeps her grounded as she continues to grow Je T’aime Patisserie.

Ben Coley is the editor of QSR. He can be reached at bcoley@wtwhmedia.com

FILTERQUICK INTUITION®

SUPERIOR BY DESIGN

INTUITIVE

Empower crew members to operate and troubleshoot the fryer for more uptime.

INNOVATIVE

Harness the power of the Cloud and smart software to drive your operations.

RELIABLE

Improved uptime and lower cost of ownership resulting from fewer service calls.

SERVICEABLE

Most components serviceable from front of fryer in 30 minutes or less.

The most Intuitive, Innovative, Reliable, and Serviceable fryer ever.

Football Stars and Franchising

Leveraging teamwork, leadership, and business savvy, players are thriving as restaurant owners and entrepreneurs.

BY TALLULAH HAWLEY

Winning a football game depends on team dynamics, mutual respect, and positive communication. This same collaboration on the turf can also be transferred to the team settings of restaurant franchising.

Cam Jordan has played defensive end for the NFL’s New Orleans Saints since 2011. He’s an eight-time Pro Bowler and is the team’s all-time sack leader. Even still, Jordan has found time to explore other career paths.

While he appeared in a commercial for Little Caesars around a year ago, Jordan took the leap to franchising for the brand in August. “Being able to partner with a guy like [Little Caesars franchisee] Andrew Feghali and being able to have a connection with Little Caesars doesn’t feel like a restaurant business,” Jordan says.

Rather, Little Caesars holds a place in his heart as one of his go-to eateries when he was younger.

After getting out of high school, Jordan recounts, “I literally would walk towards Little Caesars across the street from Chandler High … get a couple slices, a drink, some Crazy Bread for like 4 or 5 bucks. And in high school, that’s clutch!”

Jordan operates eight locations in the Indianapolis metropolitan area. However, with the 2024 NFL season still underway, Feghali (who has over 75 Little Caesars franchises himself ) has helped Jordan’s entry into the restaurant business. “Every rookie needs a vet! Someone to show you the ropes,” Jordan says.

As a current player, Jordan attests that he is very hands-off with his franchises during the NFL season. True franchise success, he believes, is through developing trust with Feghali and his team.

His favorite Little Caesars offering is the new Crazy Puffs. “They get addicting! I have to save them for the offseason,” Jordan says. Arguably the only ones more excited than him about this partnership are his four kids, who he says are often treated with Little Caesars for dinner (with a side of steamed broccoli, he adds )

Although he is now retired from the NFL, Vernon Davis spent 14 years playing football in San Francisco, Denver, and his native Washington, D.C. He retired from the league in 2020, but he began operating Jamba franchises in 2013.

“For me, it was all about doing the things right now that you can see yourself doing in the future,” Davis says. “When you have access to capital, then I think it is very important to learn how to utilize those assets and do something with them.”

His three Jamba locations are in the Bay Area, where he played from 2006 to 2015. Upon his trade to the Denver Broncos, Davis kept his units, but his ownership team was instrumental in helping him operate the locations: “When you have people in your space that are as smart or smarter than you, you become a genius, and that’s the way,” he says. “I have different people in place who are pretty much experts in that space, and they’re able to help me grow, and I reach my goals.”

While he was in the NFL, Davis was the franchise owner of up to seven Jamba locations at once. Upon retiring, he downsized his footprint and his wisdom to other restaurants.

COVID hit only a month after Davis announced his retirement from the NFL, but he continued to build his restaurant portfolio. Big Tony’s, The Cove, and RASA are all based around the DMV. He has also invested in Gaia, a D.C. restaurant slated to open in January.

Besides taking out time for NFL- and food-related press, Davis is also developing his acting career, having recently starred

These athletes are finding restaurants to be a worthy long-term investment.

2023 AUV $6.4 MILLION*

*Average Unit Gross Sales for FY2023 of the Top 20% of Franchised 11-M Restaurants. Refer to 2024 FDD.

WE STAND OUT FROM THE REST

•Credit applied to approved foodservice supplier invoice:

-3% of restaurant sales in year one

-2% of restaurant sales in year two

-1% of restuarant sales in year three

•Reimbursed training costs for three managers, up to $15,000 each

•$5,000 marketing reimbursement for the new unit opening

dients, the right execution, and the right ambiance, the execution will be great.

“We are not selling products, drinks, or food that are not homemade, because it’s an elevated experience,” Pesce continues.

He likens the menu to “representing what we call abuelita, (Spanish for “grandma”) where the recipes are unique.”

Culturally and internationally, Cortadito hopes to open the Miami area to genuine Cuban cuisine. “South Florida, Miami Beach, and Miami are places where Cuban culture is in there,” Pesce says. “So, everyone internationally that wants to visit Cuba, [they can just visit] Miami, so we took that experience and that advantage because the coffee in Cuba is great.”

The coffee house also serves popular non-Latin food and drinks, like its newly released matcha beverages and its avocado toasts. “We have been working a lot with all the trends, the new ingredients, the new flavors in order to little by little include them in our menu because [Cortadito] is a very young and fresh brand, so we have to be there.”

The internal vision of the ventanita is seen not just through the brand’s cuisine, but also in the ambiance, music, and atmosphere. Cortadito is all about comfort, Pesce says.

“We have a lot of people that love to stay with us, working and studying, but we cover the breakfast shift, lunch shift, and some dinner for the convenience of the customer. We want them to understand that if they’re hungry or want a coffee, we are there.”

Seventy percent of sales are on-site, while 30 percent are off-premises through digital sales, takeout, or delivery.

As Cortadito launches its first West Coast location in Las Vegas, the brand is working on personalizing individual locations.

Since it’s based deep within Miami Beach, the primary Lincoln Lane location serves as a “mandatory stop” for the majority Cuban population, whether they are on their way to work or are just walking through, Pesce says. In Coral Gables, a residential area, a large majority of customers are families eating together on the weekend.

Pesce notes that Miami Beach is very tourist-oriented, however tourists visit the coffee house as often as residents.

team and God carried me through when I couldn’t carry myself,” she says. “Resilience only shows up as a flicker when you’re at the weakest point in your life. You have to dig deep for it and tell yourself your focus should be on where you’re going, not where you’ve been or what has happened to you.”

Today, Daniels-Carter concentrates on her GoTo Foods portfolio, which includes her Auntie Anne’s, Cinnabon, and Jamba restaurants. Through the years, her commitment to teamwork and collaboration in franchising has remained constant. From her very first Burger King location to her expansive portfolio today, she believes that true growth happens by fostering a missionbased team with a shared vision for success.

“Having mission-based employees changes the trajectory of your company because they buy into your passion and transcend the day-to-day operations. We are a family. … I can’t fix all of their problems, but I can make sure my employees know that I love and care about them,” Daniels-Carter says. “You need individuals who understand where they best fit within a company culture … I’ve seen so many great brands over the years falter because their visions just don’t coincide with their teams.”

As she looks to the future, Daniels-Carter is focused on maintaining her position in the industry and managing her current strategies with intention and integrity. She has no plans to slow down her philanthropic work, which she describes as a “faith-driven direction” that keeps her grounded as she operates her restaurants and builds an intergenerational legacy. Her advice for women in the restaurant and franchising industries? Keep going. Leading a multi-national restaurant business has taught her the value of having a clear roadmap and of operating based on her life’s calling: to serve others.

“Women in franchising are critical to the survival of the industry. As women, we must position ourselves in such a way that when opportunity knocks on the door, we are properly aligned to receive it,” DanielsCarter says. “I was the first African American woman to chair the [Triple A] organization, with 66 million members, but I had to position myself years ago to be in a mental place where I could step through that door when it opened for me.”

alongside Giancarlo Esposito and Morgan Freeman in his most recent roles. On a dayto-day basis, Davis has a packed schedule. But he stays up to date on each franchise or restaurant through weekly remote Zoom calls.

Davis sees himself as the “head coach” of his ownership team, noting that his leadership style stems from his football career.

“A lot of the leadership that I learned while playing football, I also learned that I was able to carry that over into the world of business, acting, whatever it is, because it’s simple. It’s all on how you deal with people and how you treat people.”

Anthony Cioffi is also a former professional football player, having spent time in America’s United Football League as well as the Canadian Football League. While at Rutgers University in southern New Jersey, Cioffi was a standout cornerback. His uncle Joey says Anthony was “one of the best defensive backs that came out of there.”

Having worked in his own father’s deli since age 12, Joey opened Salad House in 2011 after his wife and young family yearned for a chain that offered healthier food even picky eaters would enjoy. At present, Salad House operates 19 locations across New Jersey. Anthony “identified Salad House in New Brunswick as being an opportunity as the brand was growing,” Joey says. The location opened in April and is already a community hit for clean eats on a college student budget.

“Just being able to have different people in your corner to help you do things is very beneficial in the business world,” Anthony says. “I’m learning a lot in that aspect, basically leaning on people that have helped us in the past.”

Anthony says the time management and organizational skills he learned while working as a full-time student and full-time football player for Rutgers are extremely important as he delves deeper into the family restaurant business.

For the past 13 years, Salad House has been a full family effort. Anthony likens the business to football, saying teamwork and organization keep everyone on the same page. Anthony says his daily roles at Salad House “[are] not really work because it’s family. We take care of each other, and that’s the best part about it.”

Tallulah Hawley is a staff writer for QSR magazine. She can be reached at thawley@wtwhmedia.com

Where to Invest: Coffee or Pizza?

Franchisees face a compelling choice between pizza’s steady evolution and coffee’s rising opportunities, as both markets offer distinct paths to success.

BY DAVID SWEENEY AND ILYA KHOLODNOV

The new generation of high-growth franchises reveals an intriguing duality: pizza chains remain stable and time-tested (though still evolving with the times), but new categories like coffee and beverage chains are emerging as opportunities ripe for investment. So, the World Coffee Portal report showed that in the U.S. alone 44 new coffee brands grew beyond five locations in the past year.

How can franchisees evaluate the differing potential of these two franchise markets?

The Wide Range of Startup Costs

The financial commitment required to enter the pizza or coffee franchise market varies widely.

Initial investments can range from moderate to substantial. Franchise fees of traditional pizza franchises like Domino’s or Papa Johns vary with reports between $5,000 and $25,000 but the total investment can escalate quickly when considering building costs that can reach up to $1 million depending on the store type. Launch costs are then followed by ongoing fees which include a 5.5 percent royalty fee (6 percent for Pizza Hut) and a 4-6 percent national advertising fee. Franchises like Dodo Pizza offer a middle ground with a $5,000 franchise fee, 5 percent royalty, and an average construction cost of $250,000. Coffee franchises present a similarly varied landscape. Dunkin’, a titan in the coffee and donut space, demands a significant commitment, with total initial investment reports ranging from $437,500 to $1,787,700. This includes a franchise fee between $40,000 and $90,000, along with ongoing royalty and marketing fees totaling 10.9 percent. In contrast, smaller chains like Beans & Brews offer a more accessible entry point, with initial investments ranging from $276,000 to $439,000 and a franchise fee of $30,000. Drinkit, from the Dodo Brands stable has an initial franchise fee of $14,000 with royalties ranging from 6-8 percent.

The Operational Differences of Pizza and Coffee

The operational focus for pizza franchises often centers on supply chain management, delivery logistics, and maintaining consistent quality across high-volume production. Labor management in pizza franchises can be complex, requiring operators to balance in-store staff with delivery drivers and adapt to fluctuating demand patterns. Since most

orders are for takeout or delivery, less attention can be given to the instore dining experience and location’s traffic ability.

For pizza franchises, key performance indicators include average ticket size, online order percentage, customer acquisition cost versus lifetime value and unit cost percentage.

Coffee franchises, on the other hand, thrive on a model of habitual consumption, turning customers into daily visitors. The challenge lies in managing high-frequency and lower-ticket transactions efficiently. Speed of service is critical—just one to two minutes to deliver a drink—as well as training to maximize consistency across hundreds or thousands of drink combinations.

In the coffee world, labor management often focuses on peakhour efficiency and customer service skills. The supply chain for coffee shops, while still complex, typically involves a narrower range of perishable items compared to pizza operations. And since a much larger portion of orders occur and are enjoyed in-store, personable customer service skills are more meaningful for the hiring process. Because of the unique operational model, coffee businesses track a different set of core metrics. These include

Dodo Pizza and Drinkit are among countless pizza and beverage options for curious franchisees.

transaction count (higher volume is necessary to compensate for lower average ticket size), customer retention rate (critical due to the habitual nature of coffee consumption), speed of service (especially important during morning rush hours), attachment rate (measuring success in upselling food items with coffee orders), and daypart sales distribution.

Which Concept Fits Into An Existing Strategy?

For franchisees with existing quick-service concepts, both pizza and coffee present interesting diversification opportunities, each with its own strategic advantages: For franchisees that already operate quick-service restaurants especially burgers or chicken concepts and are familiar with food preparation, marketing, and delivery, launching a pizza franchise may seem like jumping into familiar operational waters. Though many of the operational processes of pizza chains are similar to other concepts, they give operators a chance to diversify customer bases and reach new markets. There’s likely a potential synergy in supply chain management, as some ingredients and suppliers may overlap with existing food concepts. Adding a coffee franchise to an existing food concept may not benefit from those same synergies, but may be better suited to increase sales to the same customer base throughout the day.

There Is No Clear Profitability Leader

Profitability estimates for both coffee and pizza chains tend to range from 12-18 percent net, with P&L structures differing significantly between the two due to operational factors mentioned above. The most profitable choice for a new franchise extension ultimately depends on how well it aligns with the franchisee’s existing operations and background, market position, and growth strategy. Pizza chains offer higher ticket sizes, strong delivery potential, and opportunity to reach new customer segments. While coffee franchises provide frequent visits, daypart versatility, and a new way to serve existing customers. Both sectors offer promising opportunities for growth, provided franchisees can navigate their unique challenges and capitalize on their respective strengths.

AD INDEX

Coates Group .......... Inside Back Cover coatesgroup.com Frymaster ...................................... 45 800-221-4583 | frymaster.com

Ghirardelli ............. Inside Front Cover 888-402-6262 ghirardelli.com/professional

Corral ................................. 47 goldencorral.com/franchise

Churros.com/ideas-guide

Bancard .......... Onsert 866-481-4604 | NYNAB.com

Cloud/Text.Food ....................19 866-511-5521 | pizzacloud.net

David Sweeney and Ilya Kholodnov are in charge of international franchise development at Dodo Brands.

Burger King Franchisee Increases Margins and Improves Employee Safety with Automated Oil Management

Create a safer workplace while improving the bottom line.

Burger King is one of the most iconic fast-food chains in America. Almost all of these restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees like Trinity Corp., which runs seven Burger King locations across southeastern Kentucky.

Mike Dole, director of operations for Trinity Corp., has credited Restaurant Technologies’ Total Oil Management (tom) solution for creating a safer workplace, improving its bottom line, and consistent food quality. TOM is an automated cooking oil management system that delivers, filters, monitors, collects and recycles cooking oil in a closed loop system.

EMPLOYEE SAFETY

Before TOM, employees had to drain used oil from fryers into large buckets and drag those heavy buckets to the waste oil bins outside. This meant the risk of hot oil spilling and splashing onto employees or on the floor, creating slip and fall hazards. Dole empathized with employees who do this work, having done it himself in previous jobs.

“I still have scars on my hands from the burns that I got handling used oil,” Dole says. “But for decades, that’s just been the standard practice for changing oil. I didn’t want that for my teams.”

In addition, Dole claims that he’s had zero workers compensation claims related to oil management since installing TOM.

EFFICIENT OIL USAGE

Even when employees followed procedures before TOM, there was no guarantee Trinity Corp. was optimizing cooking oil usage because oil changeouts were being dictated using a schedule

rather than the quality or frequency of usage.

With TOM, Dole can now use Restaurant Technologies’ cloudbased software to remotely monitor oil usage and filtration activities to determine if employees are following standard operating procedures. These procedures are essential to maximizing oil life, minimizing waste, and vital to delivering food with the quality that customers expect. Having remote visibility into what’s happening in fryers has allowed Dole to see when employees are following procedures or deviating from them.

“With improved visibility and better adherence to the filtration schedule, we’re easily getting an extra two days out of our oil per fryer,” Dole says.

Since switching to automated oil management, Trinity Corp. has increased profits 8 percent and reduced its cost of goods by 6 percent by realizing savings in key areas, including optimizing oil usage.

IMPROVED FOOD QUALITY

Dole also views the high level of quality and consistency of the food being served as another reason for his restaurants’ success as the restaurants average about 25 percent more guests per day than the average Burger King, a statistic that hasn’t gone unnoticed at the corporate level.

With a solid foundation in place, Trinity Corp. and Restaurant Technologies continue to elevate its brand reputation and, together, are set up for success in the coming years. RET

A Cool Recipe for Success in the Quick-Serve Restaurant Industry

The simple strategy that drives beverage sales and improves guest experience.

Running a successful quick-serve restaurant involves more than just delicious food and efficient service. In today’s competitive market, creating unique and tailored customer experiences is essential for distinction and customer retention. To thrive, businesses must craft immersive dining experiences that not only satisfy but also delight visitors, encouraging repeat visits and positive word-of-mouth recommendations. Achieving this requires a comprehensive approach that seamlessly blends various elements, starting with a deep understanding of the target audience.

Identifying the ideal customers allows for personalized offerings tailored to their preferences. Whether catering to millennials in bustling urban settings or families seeking convenience in suburban areas, crafting the right ambiance is crucial. Staff plays a critical role in creating a welcoming atmosphere and driving customer satisfaction.

Additionally, the variety and quality of food and beverages can significantly impact foot traffic and ticket sales. In the realm of beverages, frozen drinks have emerged as sought-after treats, offering unique and indulgent experiences not easily replicated at home. FBD works with restaurant owners to customize their equipment to serve a wide variety of refreshing frozen drinks, including carbonated, uncarbonated, and nitro-infused, to ensure that product offerings align with customer desires.

FBD’s machines allow for frozen beverage flavors to be changed at any time to meet changing consumer demand and market trends. In addition to offering a wide selection of flavors and combinations, FBD’s equipment has self-service capabilities that enhance the in-store experience by allowing customers to craft their unique frozen beverage. The machines are designed for easy cleaning and maintenance, ensuring maximum uptime

and reliability without extensive labor. Unlike others requiring frequent disassembly, FBD machines offer hassle-free cleaning, requiring only annual maintenance. With FBD equipment, the sealed interior environment means staff only needs to clean the machine once a year, eliminating costs from daily labor and ensuring consistent product quality.

When equipment is easy to operate, business owners don’t spend nearly as much time or money on training and expenses are minimized, making routine maintenance easier and faster. Expect higher customer loyalty and repeat sales when equipment is easy and enjoyable to use by consumers.

With a focus on a customizable experience, welcoming ambiance, and innovative beverage offerings, quick-serve restaurants can propel their business to greater success in today’s competitive market. By prioritizing customer satisfaction and continuously seeking ways to improve and innovate, you can create a dining experience that keeps customers coming back for more. RET

Attract More Customers To Your Business With FROZEN BEVERAGE PROGRAMS

Highly Profitable

Frozen beverages are highly profitable up to 80% gross profit, given that they are mostly made up of CO2 & water.

No Daily Hassle

The use of a closed sealed system, in conjunction with bag in the box technology (BIB), means no product mixing or daily disassembly to clean.

Increased Beverage Selection

Our machines are designed to help your customers create unique and personal experiences, while ensuring excellent product quality and consistency.

Low Operating Costs

FBD dispensers are engineered to make a frozen drink quickly and with minimal labor easy to execute and minimal labor- no product mixing or blending.

Palmer Digital Group Raises the Canopy for Dual-Concept Fast Casual Restaurant Chain

Palmer Digital Group, a full-service supplier and installer of custom indoor and outdoor digital kiosks, display enclosures and drive-thru digital menu boards, continues to win quickservice restaurant modernization projects throughout North America, with especially strong momentum in its hometown region. On the heels of a recent wins announcement with Chicago-area barbeque chain The Patio, Palmer Digital Group announces that Chicago-area fast casual chain Bouna Beef will install its turnkey outdoor digital menu board systems at most locations, beginning with two dual-concept locations with Rainbow Cone.

Founded in 1981, Bouna Beef brings Chicago flavors including its signature Italian beef sandwich to 26 restaurants in surrounding communities. In late 2022, Bouna Beef joined forces with regional institution Rainbow Cone, which in 1926 opened its original Chicago location and today operates 10 stores, including one in Florida. One of these locations, in Valparaiso, Illinois, represents the first Bouna Beef/Rainbow Cone dual-concept franchise; a second in Orland Park opens in June.

The dual-concept franchise initiative, along with changing

consumer habits, inspired Bouna Beef to re-evaluate their drive-thru operations. The marketing team was equally invested in the idea, given the challenge of updating multiple, differently sized static message boards in a timely manner.

“It’s not easy to replicate signage for limited time offers when some signs are one to three inches shorter than others, and your signs vary between single, double and triple-panel configurations,” says Mark Kearins, IT director for Bouna Beef. “That leaves the marketing team scrambling to create temporary signage for a variety of dimensions, many of which are unique to one site.”

The Bouna Beef team found their answer upon entering Palmer Digital Group’s booth at the 2022 National Restaurant Association Show. The company soon ordered two triple-panel canopy systems for its Valparaiso location—one for each drive-thru lane—and soon after committed to a larger order for Orland Park, which adds singlepanel preview boards. PDG will also customize the Orland Park canopy menu board structure with the brand’s enduring pink and purple colors famous to its customers.

Kearins said that while Bouna Beef managed the Valparaiso installation in-house, they are outsourcing the Orland Park installation work to Palmer Digital Group. “They have an installation team with experts that understand the electrical and network infrastructure, so we don’t need to bring in a lift to put the canopy systems in place,” says Kearins. “As we start rolling out menu board systems to other locations, which we intend to do, we won’t really have the bandwidth to carry the load ourselves.”

Kearins expects to use PDG’s QSRDSMB346-CANOPY systems at most locations, which have three integrated 46-inch Samsung displays and offer overhead shade and protection from wet weather as customers place their orders. Preview systems will favor single-panel pedestal designs that can be lifted into place and securely mounted by two technicians. They are also in talks to install indoor digital menu board systems at several locations, along with “marketing TVs” for promotional digital signage inside Rainbow Cone locations. RET

with PDG’s all-in-one, turnkey digital menu board solution

A Big Task that Can Be Easily Automated

Something the full-service sector has been doing for a long time.

Turnover has long been an issue for quick-service brands. According to Black Box Intelligence, fast casual and quick-service restaurants have seen employee turnover soar from 133 percent in 2019 to 173 percent in 2022. Rising wages have also complicated plans for fully staffing restaurants. With staff in short supply, operators can find themselves redeploying revenue generating team members to handle critical but non-customer-facing tasks like washing wares. “Quick service restaurants are feeling the impact of rising wages,” says Gretchen King, Vice President of RD&E—Global QSR at Ecolab.

Whereas many full-service brands have long since automated warewashing, the quick-service segment has been slower to make that change, which presents several issues for quick-service brands. First, handwashing wares can be inefficient, King says—a warewashing machine uses up to 75 percent less water. Second, there can be inconsistencies when handwashing wares. When employees are rushed, wares may not be properly cleaned. In addition to food safety risks, restaurants could disappoint customers if partially cleaned items like lobby trays make it into the rotation.

Now is the time to make the switch to automate warewashing, King says, touting Ecolab’s KAY QSR Machine Warewashing Program as the perfect solution for quick-service brands. “Ecolab now offers the XL-RW machine tailor made for quick-service restaurants that delivers a valuable combination of speed, strength, and capacity needed to make machine automation a valuable addition to the quick-service back of house,” King says. With an oversized 10-inch higher door opening, the machine fits wares more common in quick service, like lobby trays and sheet pans. Combine that increased capacity with faster throughput from a speedy 60 second cycle time, and you have the right solution for quick-service restaurants.

Ecolab’s full portfolio of machines come with the expertise and support of Ecolab’s national service team, who are experts on the machine itself, as well as the overall warewashing program. The machine, along with the support from Ecolab’s team, help make restaurants more efficient. It is also a morale boost for team members and managers who don’t want to stay late washing wares after an already long day.

King and her team leverage Computer Aided Design (cad) programs to identify where a machine would work in any restaurant. “That’s an area where we differentiate ourselves,” King says. “We do all the work for restaurant brands in terms of how to retrofit a back-of-house and identify where everything can fit. We want operators to understand that this is possible.”

“Having peace of mind, that we take care of everything with machine design, high performing products, and a robust service team, is hugely impactful to restaurant operators,” King says. “We understand the industry and how hard it is right now; we believe this solution is incredibly valuable for quick-service restaurants.” RET

The XL Warewash Program

FOOD SAFETY

90% MORE SOIL REMOVED* compared to manual only process*

LABOR SAVINGS

WATER SAVINGS

REPURPOSE 2 HOURS OR MORE labor per day*** vs. traditional dump/fill machine

Where Performance Meets Value

Designed specifically for QSR applications, the XL has a higher wash chamber, 50% faster cycle time, faster dry time, and delivers productivity and food safety at a lower total cost.

6,400 GALLONS OF WATER SAVED PER YEAR** Standard Height

SMART SAFES, SMARTER BUSINESS: The Tech Used by a Taco Bell Franchisee

Quick-service restaurants are turning to cash automation to cut costs and improve efficiency.

For MAS Restaurant Group, cash handling wasn’t just about counting coins and bills. It was a complex operation that involved security, efficiency, and a touch of innovation. The group, which operates 120+ Taco Bell restaurants, found itself grappling with the challenges of managing large amounts of cash daily.

“It’s a quick-service restaurant, so, it’s a lot of people coming in and giving you fives and tens and so as a result, you end up with a lot of cash,” says Manny Chavez, director of information technology at MAS Restaurant Group.

To address these challenges, MAS Restaurant Group turned to Loomis, a leading provider of cash management solutions. By implementing Loomis’s advanced technology, the group was able to streamline its operations, enhance security, and improve efficiency.

One of the key benefits of partnering with Loomis was the introduction of smart safes. These safes not only provide secure storage for cash but also offer advanced features like provisional credit and real-time monitoring.

“The thing about smart safes that are valuable to MAS Restaurant Group is the provisional credit,” Chavez says. “Being able to have access to those funds the next day is critical, so that’s a win for us.”

Furthermore, Loomis’s secure pickup and delivery services have significantly reduced the risk associated with transporting large amounts of cash. By automating these processes, the franchisee has been able to minimize human error and potential security breaches.

“Having the ability to not have people with bags of cash running around the city makes our team members safer, which makes us more comfortable with the amount of cash we deal with as a business,” Chavez says.

Similarly, Family Foods and Border Foods, both large Taco Bell franchisees, have experienced significant benefits from implementing Loomis’s cash handling solutions as well. Family Foods reduced daily cash-handling time from 2.5 hours to less than 30 minutes per location, while Border Foods saved 2–3 hours

per day. By streamlining operations and enhancing security, Loomis has empowered these franchises to focus on their core business and provide exceptional customer service.

Despite the great success quick-service restaurant franchisees like MAS Restaurant Group have experienced by using cash handling solutions offered by Loomis, there are restaurants operators who have not heard of this form of automation. For some stores, going cashless is a choice they feel forced to make.

When asked if Chavez had advice to other quick-service restaurant owners who may be thinking of going cashless, he had this to say:

“I think my advice to them would be to really think about it. You’re limiting yourself to a specific payment that isn’t always available. Cash is always available.”

By embracing technology and partnering with Loomis, MAS Restaurant Group has not only improved its cash management operations but also enhanced the overall safety and security of its business. As the restaurant industry continues to evolve, embracing innovative solutions like those offered by Loomis will be crucial for businesses to thrive. RET

CASH HANDLING HEADACHES CURING

SafePoint—The Solution to Operational Pains

Manual cash handling is not only timeconsuming but also leaves your business vulnerable to theft and human error.

SafePoint by Loomis is here to alleviate your operational pains. Our smart safes and cash recyclers offer a secure, efficient way to manage your cash, so you can focus on what matters most—growing your business. Plus, with features like provisional credit, you could have access to your funds overnight.

Save on labor and training costs.

Reduce the risk of internal theft and external threat.

Gain real-time visibility into your cash flow.

Eliminate the need for daily trips to the bank.

Partner with cash handling experts.

Why Restaurants are Switching to Hybrid Drive-Thru Menuboards

Many Americans and business owners are experiencing inflation due to the pandemic and other external factors. The unpredictability of the cost of goods has driven a series of menu changes across the restaurant industry, forcing brands to consider the hardware that has traditionally displayed pricing.

One effective solution for these challenges is implementing hybrid menuboards. This type of board combines digital and static displays, offering more customizable options for managing content across multiple locations.

Hybrid menuboards provide many advantages for restaurant owners during times of uncertainty. First, they offer the

flexibility to quickly change even the most minor of details on a menuboard Secondly, for those brands managing multiple locations, content management systems can simultaneously update multiple digital menuboards at once without any additional labor costs. For example, if a product price increases due to inflation or a seasonal special-needs promotion, digital portions of the board can be changed quickly and easily.

Additionally, hybrid menuboards provide an aesthetically pleasing display that attracts customers while allowing new items or specials to be added without taking up additional space. Restaurant owners also control how they display their products and services when using hybrid menuboards.

Digital components can include custom visuals such as videos or graphics and text descriptions to highlight features or benefits of certain menu items. By having more control over how items are presented on their boards, restaurants can ensure that their menus accurately reflect their brand identity while drawing attention to various offerings. They also allow restaurant owners to create different designs for each location to have a unique look that resonates with customers in each area.

The transition to hybrid menuboards may seem intimidating to some operators, especially those who worry about durability and weather compatibility. However, partnering with the right provider can equate to weather-tempered options as reliable as traditional, static menuboards.

Equipped with LED screens engineered to withstand extreme temperatures, these monitors can operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week without concerns of damage or malfunctions—even in the harshest conditions. This helps reduce maintenance costs and largely eliminates the need for costly repairs originating from extreme environmental exposure.

Hybrid menuboards are effective tools for restaurant owners as they work through periods of inflation by providing flexible and customizable solutions for updating prices and displays across multiple locations quickly and easily. As more restaurants turn toward technology-driven solutions, it’s clear that hybrid systems will play a bigger role in the industry moving forward so that businesses not only remain competitive, but also endure the financial challenges posed by unpredictable external causes. RET

START TO FINISH

Temoc Morfin

Founder and CEO

CILANTRO TACO GRILL

What was your first job? I graduated from Northern Illinois University with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Government. Following graduation, I began working for the circuit court of Clark County, Illinois as a Spanish interpreter. During the second half of my tenure, I served as a juvenile probation officer.

What’s your favorite menu item at Cilantro Taco Grill? Every item on our menu is great because it’s authentic Mexican food! However, if I had to pick a favorite that we currently have on our menu it’s by far the Cecina a la Mexicana.

What’s your favorite cuisine aside from Cilantro Taco Grill?

Whether it’s Chinese food or Japanese food, I’m a huge fan of any Asian cuisine.

Who inspires you as a leader? My first and forever hero is my father, Javier “Don Javi” Morfin. He is not only the inspiration behind Cilantro Taco Grill, but the inspiration behind who I am today as both a man and a leader. Aside from my father, I’ve always admired former President, Ronald Regan.

What’s the best piece of advice that other restaurant executives should hear? The biggest piece of advice for individuals at any leadership level is establishing relationships with your employees.

What’s some of your interests outside of work?

I’ve always had a passion for charity and giving back to the community in any way.

Iwas born and raised in Jalisco, Mexico. In 1981, My parents moved myself and my 10 siblings to Chicago where we have resided since. The experience of learning a new culture, language, and way of life was challenging but has ultimately shaped me into the hard-working, adaptable, and solution-oriented leader I am today. I obtained my bachelor’s degree in 1996, becoming a first-generation college graduate and the first person in my family with a degree. I began my professional career working in politics, but always considered owning my own restaurant one day. It was because of my late father’s belief in that passion, I ventured into the realm of entrepreneurship, aiming to benefit and impact my family and community through food.

In 2013, I decided to open the very first Cilantro Taco Grill, inspired by my home country to bring something different and authentic to the Mexican food space in Chicago, a concept that combines the food we love from taquerias with a modern, refreshed feel.

When we opened the doors to our first location in Stone Park, Illinois and was thrilled with how many people loved our food. It started out as a vision to establish just enough locations for my siblings and I to each own and operate and became a concept that I’m eager to share with the entire country.

Because of Cilantro Taco Grill’s ability to give Latino families an opportunity to build generational wealth, franchising has grown into my next dream.

In August of 2023, that dream turned into a reality as we opened up franchising nationally. Since then, we’ve joined forces with powerful investors like Fransmart and Armando Christian Perez (Pitbull), which has fueled franchise growth within our brand.

Our goal is to grow what we believe is the next generation of Mexican fast casual concepts to more than 1,000 units worldwide over the next 10 years, with initial efforts focused on the nation’s largest markets.