Quick Service Industry Trends

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

Thanks Christina. My name is Jason Morgan, CEO of Original Chop Shop. I have actually been doing this for about 9 years now. We bought the brand name in 2016three unitsand I have actually grown it to 26. Prior to this, I have actually spent many of my career in hospitality in some shape or type. After a short stint of trying to be an accountant for about a year and a half, I transitioned into casino property and operated in business finance.

I was the very first staff member there after personal equity bought the service. Assisted 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 Store. My hope is that we can reproduce the success we had at Zos, and we're off to a really excellent start.

We're at the counter, we bring the food to the table. It is mainly protein bowlsabout 40 percent of the mix. We likewise do salads, sandwiches. The key to the program is we have a drink part also with fresh-squeezed juices and protein shakes. We do all stables, we do breakfast throughout the day.

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A little more complex than a few of the walk-the-line principles that are out there, however we believe we've got something pretty special. We're going to include another shop this year and a minimum of four shops next year. We will be 31 or so stores by the end of next year.

Significant Regional Shifts Shaping 2026 Growth

Hey, everyone. It's terrific to be with you once again. My name is Clinton Anderson. I'm the CEO here at Fourth. I have actually been in this role for about 6 years. Fourth, as numerous of you understand, is a leading supplier of software application solutions to the dining establishment and hospitality industry. Our objective is to assist our customers achieve success in driving success and being efficientmanaging labor, managing inventory, and essentially offering them with tools they need to provide their vision.

It's rare to have companies that are precious and growing rapidly, that can repeat that success every year. Jason, among the factors I was so fired up to have you join our session is the success at Zos was remarkable. I have actually just fulfilled a handful of brands where there was such a strong customer affinity for the brand name.

And now you're doing the same thing at Chop Store. When you talk to clients about Chop Store, they enjoy the place. They discuss its distinction. And to be able to take what is a reasonably complex principle in terms of delivering an excellent experience for the consumer, and have the ability to grow that from a few shops to now north of 30 shops next yearit's remarkable.

We're going to discuss how to scale a restaurant service. Every restaurateur I ever speak to has dreams of taking one shop, 2 shops, five stores, and turning it into something much biggerexpanding across the city, throughout the state, into multiple states, and eventually nationwide, even international reach. But it's not simple, particularly in today's environment.

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

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The very first concern I have for you, Jasonlook, you have actually done this two times now in the restaurant industry. What has your experience been in terms of what it takes to actually drive success in expanding dining establishments?

We talked a bit before we began about LinkedIn, and I have actually got a post teed approximately follow this next week about what the playbook is likepoint by pointfor growing an organization. To me, among the essential things, and I feel very lucky, is that both brands I've been included with are unique.

And there's nothing exactly like Chop Shop in regards to what we're finishing with a large, diverse menu. A lot of brand names today are really singularly focused in terms of what they're using from a foodstuff. I feel like we started at an advantage with both brand names by having something unique that filled a niche no one else was doing.

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

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The 2nd thingI came from a finance background, so a lot of my learnings are more financing and data-driven versus a lot of early start-up restaurateurs who are creative types. They love the food, they built the menu, they developed the brand name.

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

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If you don't have those 2 things, you shouldn't be constructing shops. Yeah, possibly both? Since as I hear your description, you've highlighted three things: execution, brand distinction, and financial viability. You've got to start with execution. If you don't have an operating design that works, broadening it just multiplies problems.

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Second, you require an engaging brand or unique principle that resonates with consumers. And third, the mathematics needs to work. If you do not comprehend your system economics, your fixed and variable costs, you might be broadening blind and losing cash. Precisely. And another crucial lesson has to do with going into brand-new markets.

But when we expanded to Dallas, I expected brand-new stores to do 5070% of Phoenix sales in the very first year. Too numerous operators assume brand-new markets will open at full volume the first day. That practically never happens. And when the stores open sluggish, but you've signed leases and developed a financial model based on greater volumes, you get overextended.