Essential Strategies to Growing Restaurant Footprints

And we also have Clinton Anderson, the CEO of Fourth, who will be moderating the discussion with Jason. Jason, how about I let you provide the audience some information about your background and you can also tell them a little bit about Chop Store.

Thanks Christina. My name is Jason Morgan, CEO of Original Chop Store. I have actually been doing this for about nine years now. We bought the brand in 2016three unitsand I have actually grown it to 26. Prior to this, I've invested the majority of my profession in hospitality in some shape or kind. After a quick stint of trying to be an accountant for about a year and a half, I transitioned into casino residential or commercial property and operated in corporate financing.

I was the first worker there after personal 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 duplicate the success we had at Zos, and we're off to a truly good start.

We're at the counter, we bring the food to the table. The secret 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 complex than some of the walk-the-line principles that are out there, but we think we have actually got something pretty unique. We're going to add another shop this year and at least 4 shops next year. So we will be 31 approximately stores by the end of next year.

Key Tips to Growing Hospitality Footprints

I have actually been in this function for about 6 years. 4th, as many of you know, is a leading provider of software application solutions to the dining establishment and hospitality market. Our goal is to assist our clients be successful in driving profitability and being efficientmanaging labor, managing inventory, and generally offering them with tools they need to provide their vision.

It's uncommon to have business that are precious and growing quickly, that can duplicate that success year after year. Jason, among the factors I was so fired up to have you join our session is the success at Zos was amazing. I've only fulfilled a handful of brands where there was such a strong customer affinity for the brand.

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

We're going to discuss how to scale a dining establishment service. Every restaurateur I ever speak to has imagine taking one shop, 2 shops, five shops, and turning it into something much biggerexpanding across the city, across the state, into numerous states, and ultimately national, even global reach. But it's challenging, specifically in today's environment.

It's not an easy time to drive success and growth at the exact same time. How do you scale it and make it successful? Second, beyond technology, how do you scale fantastic groups?

Steps to Scale Your Dining Brand

The very first question I have for you, Jasonlook, you've done this twice now in the restaurant industry. What are a few of the lessons you've discovered? What has your experience been in regards to what it takes to truly drive success in expanding restaurants? Tell me a little about your course, what you experienced along the method, and maybe some of the more difficult lessons you learned.

We talked a little bit before we started about LinkedIn, and I have actually got a post teed as much as follow this next week about what the playbook is likepoint by pointfor growing a business. To me, one of the crucial things, and I feel really fortunate, is that both brands I have actually been involved with are distinct.

And there's nothing precisely like Chop Shop in regards to what we're finishing with a big, varied menu. A lot of brands today are very singularly focused in terms of what they're using from a food product. I seem like we started at an advantage with both brands by having something unique that filled a niche nobody else was doing.

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

How to Scale Your Restaurant Concept

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 imaginative types. They like the food, they constructed the menu, they built the brand.

They don't know their breakeven sales. They do not understand how margin improves as sales boost. I've seen so numerous business where the numbers simply do not work.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

If you don't have those 2 things, you shouldn't be constructing shops. Yeah, possibly both? Due to the fact that as I hear your description, you've highlighted three things: execution, brand name differentiation, and financial practicality. You have actually got to begin with execution. If you don't have an operating model that works, broadening it just multiplies issues.

Expansion News: Regional Milestones in 2026

Second, you require an engaging brand name or special concept that resonates with consumers. And 3rd, the mathematics has to work. If you do not comprehend your system economics, your repaired and variable costs, you might be broadening blind and losing money. Precisely. And another key lesson is about getting in brand-new markets.

When we broadened to Dallas, I anticipated brand-new stores to do 5070% of Phoenix sales in the first year. Too lots of operators assume new markets will open at full volume day one.