Regional Milestones in Brand Scaling

Thank you. And we likewise have Clinton Anderson, the CEO of 4th, who will be moderating the conversation with Jason. So Jason, how about I let you give the audience some details about your background and you can also tell them a little bit about Chop Shop. And after that I'll let you take it from there, Clinton.

My name is Jason Morgan, CEO of Original Chop Shop. We purchased the brand in 2016three unitsand I've grown it to 26. After a short stint of trying to be an accountant for about a year and a half, I transitioned into casino residential or commercial property and worked in business financing.

I was the very first employee there after private equity bought the company. Helped grow that from 20 to 150 locations, took it public in 2014, and then left about a year and a half after going public to do this at Chop Shop. My hope is that we can replicate the success we had at Zos, and we're off to an actually excellent start.

We're at the counter, we bring the food to the table. The key to the program is we have a beverage component as well with fresh-squeezed juices and protein shakes.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

A little more complicated than a few of the walk-the-line concepts that are out there, however we believe we have actually got something pretty special. We're going to include another store this year and at least 4 stores next year. So we will be 31 or two stores by the end of next year.

Profitable Business Ventures Arising in 2026

I have actually been in this role for about 6 years. Fourth, as many of you know, is a leading company of software solutions to the restaurant and hospitality market. Our objective is to assist our clients be effective in driving profitability and being efficientmanaging labor, managing inventory, and generally providing them with tools they need to provide their vision.

It's rare to have companies that are cherished and growing quickly, that can repeat that success every year. Jason, one of the factors I was so fired up to have you join our session is the success at Zos was remarkable. I've only satisfied a handful of brands where there was such a strong client affinity for the brand name.

When you talk to consumers about Chop Shop, they enjoy the location. And to be able to take what is a fairly complicated concept in terms of providing a great experience for the customer, and be able to grow that from a few stores to now north of 30 shops next yearit's remarkable.

We're going to speak about how to scale a restaurant organization. Every restaurateur I ever speak to has imagine taking one shop, 2 shops, 5 shops, and turning it into something much biggerexpanding throughout the city, across the state, into numerous states, and ultimately national, even international reach. It's not simple, especially in today's environment.

It's not a simple time to drive success and growth at the same time. How do you scale it and make it successful? Second, beyond technology, how do you scale terrific teams?

Steps to Scale Your Restaurant Brand

The first question I have for you, Jasonlook, you've done this twice now in the dining establishment industry. What has your experience been in terms of what it takes to really drive success in expanding restaurants?

We talked a bit before we started about LinkedIn, and I've got a post teed as much as follow this next week about what the playbook is likepoint by pointfor growing an organization. To me, among the essential things, and I feel extremely lucky, is that both brand names I've been included with are special.

And there's absolutely nothing precisely like Chop Store in terms of what we're doing with a big, varied menu. A lot of brand names today are extremely singularly focused in regards to what they're offering from a food. I feel like we began at an advantage with both brand names by having something unique that filled a specific niche no one else was doing.

A lot of it begins with the brand. Does your brand have something special that no one else is doing?

National Milestones in Brand Expansion

The second thingI came from a financing background, so a lot of my knowings are more financing and data-driven versus a lot of early start-up restaurateurs who are creative types. They like the food, they developed the menu, they constructed the brand.

They do not know their breakeven sales. They don't comprehend how margin enhances as sales boost. They do not comprehend cash-on-cash returns. I have actually seen so lots of business where the numbers simply don't work. And yet individuals state: let's open 10 more. And I'll state: why? It does not generate income. Stop. You require to find a principle that is unique.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

If you do not have those 2 things, you shouldn't be developing shops. Due to the fact that as I hear your description, you've highlighted three things: execution, brand name differentiation, and financial viability.

Quick Service Industry Trends

Second, you need a compelling brand or special concept that resonates with clients. And third, the mathematics has to work. If you don't comprehend your unit economics, your repaired and variable expenses, you might be broadening blind and losing cash. Precisely. And another key lesson is about entering brand-new markets.

When we expanded to Dallas, I anticipated brand-new stores to do 5070% of Phoenix sales in the first year. Too numerous operators presume brand-new markets will open at complete volume day one.