Comparing Investment Models Against Growth Trends

Thank you. And we likewise have Clinton Anderson, the CEO of Fourth, who will be moderating the discussion with Jason. So Jason, how about I let you give the audience some info 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.

Thanks Christina. My name is Jason Morgan, CEO of Original Chop Shop. I've been doing this for about 9 years now. We bought the brand in 2016three unitsand I have actually grown it to 26. Prior to this, I have actually invested the majority of my career in hospitality in some shape or form. After a quick stint of trying to be an accounting professional 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 worker there after private equity purchased the service. Helped grow that from 20 to 150 places, 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 an actually good start.

We're at the counter, we bring the food to the table. It is mostly protein bowlsabout 40 percent of the mix. We likewise do salads, sandwiches. The key to the program is we have a drink element 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 complicated than some of the walk-the-line ideas that are out there, but we think we've got something pretty unique. We're going to add another store this year and at least 4 stores next year. So we will be 31 approximately shops by the end of next year.

Expansion News: Regional Developments for 2026

Hey, everyone. It's fantastic to be with you again. My name is Clinton Anderson. I'm the CEO here at 4th. I have actually been in this function for about six years. 4th, as a number of you know, is a leading service provider of software application solutions to the dining establishment and hospitality industry. Our objective is to assist our consumers achieve success in driving profitability and being efficientmanaging labor, managing stock, and essentially supplying them with tools they require to deliver their vision.

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

And now you're doing the exact same thing at Chop Shop. When you speak to consumers about Chop Shop, they love the location. They discuss its differentiation. And to be able to take what is a reasonably complex idea in regards to providing an excellent experience for the customer, and be able to grow that from a few stores to now north of 30 shops next yearit's fantastic.

We're going to talk about how to scale a restaurant service. Every restaurateur I ever talk to has dreams of taking one store, two stores, 5 stores, and turning it into something much biggerexpanding across the city, across the state, into numerous states, and eventually national, even international reach. It's not simple, specifically in today's environment.

It's not a simple time to drive profitability and development at the exact same time. How do you scale it and make it effective? Second, beyond innovation, how do you scale fantastic teams?

Quick Service Market Share Trends for 2026

The first concern I have for you, Jasonlook, you have actually done this two times now in the dining establishment industry. What are some of the lessons you've found out? What has your experience remained in terms of what it requires to really drive success in expanding dining establishments? Inform me a little about your path, what you experienced along the method, and maybe some of the more difficult lessons you found out.

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

And there's nothing exactly like Chop Shop in terms of what we're doing with a big, varied menu. The majority of brands today are very singularly focused in terms of what they're providing from a food. I feel like we began at a benefit with both brand names by having something special that filled a specific niche nobody else was doing.

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

Essential Strategies for Growing Restaurant Footprints

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

They don't understand their breakeven sales. They don't understand how margin improves as sales boost. I have actually seen so lots of companies where the numbers just do not work.

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If you don't have those two things, you shouldn't be developing shops. Yeah, perhaps both? Because as I hear your description, you've highlighted 3 things: execution, brand distinction, and monetary viability. You have actually got to begin with execution. If you do not have an operating model that works, expanding it just increases problems.

Significant Market Milestones for 2026 Growth

Second, you require a compelling brand name or special principle that resonates with customers. And another key lesson is about going into brand-new markets.

When we broadened to Dallas, I anticipated new shops to do 5070% of Phoenix sales in the very first year. A lot of operators presume brand-new markets will open at complete volume day one. That nearly never occurs. And when the shops open slow, however you've signed leases and built a financial design based on greater volumes, you get overextended.