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Balance Grille is an Asian fast-casual restaurant from cofounders Prakash Karamchandani and HoChan Jang, with a focus on clean eating and lighter fare, including bowls, tacos, and bubble tea. The Toledo, Ohio-based restaurant currently has four restaurants and is looking to expand to new markets, particularly Texas, Colorado, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and more, with its new franchising program, just announced in January.
The company initially dipped its toes into franchising in July 2022, with the opening of a location in Arvada, Colo., which is also the brand’s first outside of Ohio. The company’s second franchise location will be opening this fall in Wylie, Texas as part of a five-store development agreement. The company has franchise developments currently registered in Texas, Michigan, Indiana, and Kentucky.
Balance Grille stands out in the crowded fast-casual sector with its healthier fare prepared in an open kitchen format, digital technology-focused operations with a loyalty app that has built-in ordering capabilities, and a manager-less employment model that has helped with turnover rates.
The average check for Balance Grille is $19.22, and the average square footage is 1,900-2,400-square-feet.
Nashville-style hot chicken sandwiches aren’t only found in the Southeast anymore: The Budlong Hot Chicken is a four-unit Nashville-inspired-Chicago-based hot chicken fast-casual concept with a simple menu of spicy chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders and macaroni and cheese. The company is owned and backed by Craveworthy Brands— a new restaurant group and emerging brand incubator that was created by former Jimmy John’s CEO Gregg Majewski in January.
The Budlong just began the process of franchising and is set to complete its FDD by April 1, with a goal of getting 50 units signed an/or in development in the first year. The company is in the process of building two corporate stores in Chicago and Dallas and plans to have 100 restaurants open by 2027. Budlong is initially targeting the Midwest region and Texas “with other regions quickly to follow.”
The Southern fried Nashville hot chicken spot distinguishes itself from other competitors with a small, streamlined menu, made-to-order sandwiches with a customizable level of spice, and a competitive pricepoint.
The average check size is $23 and average store size is 1200-2000 square-feet.
Floozie Cookies is bringing its plant-based baked goods across the pond from London to North America, with the recent announcement of a franchising plan for the U.S. and Canada. Known for its menu of indulgent vegan cookies stuffed with ingredients like homemade jam, Biscoff cookie butter, and date caramel, Floozie plans to have 100 locations open over the next five years.
Currently, the popular cookie brand founded by Canadian pastry chef Kimberly Lin as part of Game Changers Investors, has two locations open in the U.K., one franchise in Dubai, with many more to come, thanks to the investment from Oakscale, in strategic partnership with TPG International. The five-year plan is to have 130 U.S. locations and 366 worldwide.
“While Floozie Cookies started out as a passion project during the pandemic, it’s been nothing short of incredible to see the brand take on a life of its own with international expansions and a loyal following of vegan cookie fans behind it,” Chef Lin said in a statement. “I’m thrilled to continue growing our footprint working with new partners internationally and continue developing the brand.”
The average check is between £7.70-£8.40 (or $9.38-$10.23), and average store size is 1,000 square feet for a store, though kiosks are available at a smaller footprint.
Gyro Shack is a Boise, Idaho-based quick-service Greek restaurant known for its menu of traditional and modern twists on gyros, including breakfast gyros and Philadelphia cheesesteak gyros.
“Gyro Shack is one of, if not the only, quick-service Greek restaurant in the restaurant space,” a representative for the company told Nation’s Restaurant News. “We provide new, elevated and interesting options of the Chicago-Style gyro in a fast, efficient and high-quality manner.”
Currently, the company has nine locations with goals of bringing its concept to new markets around the United States. Since announcing franchising, Gyro Shack has signed an agreement in Albuquerque, New Mexico with goals of adding three to four locations this year and 40 restaurants over the next five years.
The average check is $17.50 and stores range in size from 800 square-feet drive-thru-only locations to 2,000-square feet with dine-in.
Love & Honey Fried Chicken — a small business in Philadelphia owned by Laura Lyons — is making the leap from a singular fast-casual fried chicken spot to an emerging brand. The company announced a franchising partnership with Franchise Founders on Feb. 26 with an Instagram post and has since received 30+ active franchising leads.
Although Love & Honey plans to expand thoughtfully and carefully, with owners Todd and Laura Lyons looking first to expand the brand regionally to other areas of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. The ultimate goal is to partner with the right people, in the right markets, and bring Love & Honey’s buttermilk fried chicken sandwiches, chicken family meals and famous tater tots global.
The average check is $25-$30 and the typical store size will be 1,500-2,000 square-feet.
MAD Greens began in 2004 as a salad concept and has since been acquired by Coors Family Company, AC Restaurant Group. The company operates under the Salad Collective, a parent company of fast-casual brands including MAD Greens, Snappy Salads, and Tokyo Joe’s.
Over the past eight years, the company has expanded to 25 locations and now, after announcing franchising in Feb. 2023, plans to have 50% more stores under development by the end of the year.
MAD Greens is known for its “crazy” salads, macaroni bowls, grain bowls, and wraps and wants to make healthy eating “fun and approachable” especially for families.
“From a consumer standpoint, MAD Greens is a fresh, fast-casual restaurant brand serving healthy, fast, and fully customizable salads, wraps, and bowls convenient for any on-the-go lifestyle,” a representative for the company said. “MAD Greens is beloved for its fresh, friendly outlook on eating healthy food that satisfies all taste preferences and dietary restrictions.”
Although MAD Greens has not signed any franchising agreements yet, the plan is to expand into new markets including Arizona and Texas. The average check is $21 and store size is 2,000 square-feet.
Milkshake Factory is an 11-store retro-inspired dessert concept known for its indulgent, handspun milkshakes, sundaes, floats, and homemade chocolates, with flavors like peanut butter brownie and fried ice cream. The company prides itself on classic – not trendy or Instagrammable – desserts, so thinks it has legs to appeal to a wide range of customers.
The company, owned by the Edwards family, just announced franchising this month in partnership with Franworth shared services platform, and has plans to expand to hundreds of units beginning in May, with a focus on all major metropolitan markets across the United States. The expansion will be primarily through franchising, though there are plans to build on the corporate store portfolio with all locations currently based in Western Pennsylvania.
“Continuing our family legacy with the Milkshake Factory is a top priority,” co-founder, Chris Edwards said in a statement. “We have designed a business model created with the same amount of operational excellence and product quality that has been consistent throughout our past.”
The average check is $13-$15 with average store size of 1,100-1,600 square-feet.
