Houston — Shipley Donuts has signed four multi-unit deals to expand its national footprint, including in Las Vegas, its westernmost location, plus multiple new locations in Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth and New Orleans. Development plans include: • Three shops in Las Vegas, marking the brand’s first Nevada locations • Expansion of the brand’s Louisiana presence with five new shops in New Orleans • Three new Atlanta-area shops in Alpharetta, Roswell and Sandy Springs • Build-out of the brand’s Dallas-Fort Worth market with an agreement to open three additional shops throughout the area …
franchise development
Mike’s Red Tacos Launches National Franchising Initiative with 200+ Locations Under Development
San Diego — Mike’s Red Tacos, the celebrated San Diego-born beef Birria brand, is fueling rapid national growth with the launch of a dynamic franchising initiative. An accomplished team of restaurant industry leaders is spurring expansion through a strategic investment in the brand. Together with the original Mike’s Red Tacos founder, they have created remarkable momentum for the brand, securing development agreements with experienced franchisees from Dave’s Hot Chicken, Jersey Mike’s, Blaze Pizza, Dunkin’, Little Caesars, Carl’s Jr, Wetzel’s Pretzels, etc. that total more than 200 planned locations. Leading the …
Dallas — Black Sheep Coffee, an international coffee brand with a rapidly expanding U.S. presence, has secured a 20-store multi-unit development agreement across the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) metroplex. The deal marks a significant step in the brand’s Texas growth strategy and continued expansion across the United States. The agreement will bring 20 additional locations to the DFW region over the next 5 years, with planned sites across Richland Hills, Bedford, Plano, Garland, Rowlett, Mobile City, Sunnyvale, Richardson and Sachse. The expansion builds on Black Sheep Coffee’s established footprint in North …
New York City — Gregorys Coffee, a culture-defining coffee brand born in New York City, has officially launched its franchise program. After nearly 20 years of perfecting the craft coffee experience and scaling to more than 50 cafés, Gregorys is expanding through franchising with a proven brand, a time-tested model, deep guest loyalty and infrastructure built for long term growth. Since opening its first café in Manhattan in 2006, Gregorys has spent two decades earning loyalty through a quality-first approach that touches every part of the guest experience — from …
Wichita, Kan. — Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers has appointed Todd Paladini as chief information officer (CIO), a newly created role and the first CIO position in the restaurant brand’s history. In this role, Paladini will lead the brand’s enterprise technology strategy and partner across the business to help accelerate scalable growth and enhance the guest and franchisee experience. Paladini brings more than two decades of international IT leadership experience, with a track record of building and modernizing technology capabilities for multi-unit, guest-focused brands. Over the course of his career, …
Fort Worth, Texas — HTeaO, the nation’s leading iced tea franchise, has appointed Chris Phillips as chief financial officer. In this role, Phillips will oversee the company’s finance, accounting, information technology and strategic planning functions as HTeaO continues its rapid expansion across the U.S. Phillips brings more than two decades of experience leading finance and strategy for highly franchised, multi-brand restaurant organizations. His background includes senior leadership roles with some of the most recognizable names in the industry, including Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and Darden Restaurants. “Chris brings the rare combination …
Irvine, Calif. — Mountain Mike’s Pizza, a leading family-style pizza chain for nearly 50 years, closed out 2025 with record unit growth, expanded national reach and more. Capping off the year, Mountain Mike’s grew its leadership team with the appointment of Sumi Ghosh as president and COO, strengthening the brand’s operational foundation as it enters its next growth phase. In 2025, Mountain Mike’s Pizza opened 24 new restaurants nationwide, marking the most new restaurant openings in its history, entered six new markets and reached a brand-defining milestone with the opening …
Richmond, Va. — Vicious Biscuit, an award-winning fast-casual breakfast concept, is expanding into Virginia for the first time. The brand has selected its inaugural location in the Old Dominion at 3036 Stony Point Rd. in Richmond, marking a key milestone in its continued national franchise growth. Located in the Stony Point Shopping Center, the 3,678-square-foot restaurant will be operated by franchise partner GR Waldrop, a Virginia native and longtime Jersey Mike’s operator doing business as Big Boys Biscuits, LLC. Waldrop is developing the market as part of a 4+ unit …
Wyoming, Mich. — Bojangles, the legendary, Carolina-born chain celebrated for its iconic chicken, biscuits and breakfast, has officially arrived in Michigan. The new restaurant, located at 1730 28th St. SW in Wyoming, Mich., opened the first week of February — marking Bojangles’ first-ever location in the Great Lakes State. This expansion into Michigan marks a significant step in Bojangles’ strategic growth plan. In the past year, the brand has successfully entered new markets, with its most recent opening in Austin, Texas, following expansions in Brooklyn, N.Y.; Piscataway, N.J.; Las Vegas; …
San Francisco — Starbird has appointed Greg Levin as chief executive officer and board member, effective immediately. Levin will lead the company’s next phase of national expansion, bringing a guest-first leadership mindset, a proven record of scaling premium restaurant brands and deep experience building disciplined, high-performing restaurant concepts and operating systems. As part of the transition, Starbird founder Aaron Noveshen will move fully into the role of chairman of the board. In this capacity, he will continue stewarding the brand’s long term vision and values at the board level, ensuring …