Minneapolis — STEELE BRANDS®, a Minnesota-based company known for establishing and developing healthy lifestyle restaurants, including its flagship brand CRISP & GREEN®, has signed a record-breaking 40-unit Crisp & Green development deal franchise partner Salads & Smoothies, LLC. This milestone comes at a time when the brand is embarking on its busiest year yet with a goal of 50 locations slated to open across 15 additional states before the end of 2023.
This new 40-unit development agreement adds to Salad & Smoothies’ existing 11-unit agreement with CRISP & GREEN, totaling 51 units. The group is currently operating two locations in Minnesota, and is slated to open all 51 locations by 2028. Its third location is on track to open this spring in Mankato, Minn.
This particular development deal includes several territories throughout the brand’s home state of Minnesota, as well as launches into new markets including Phoenix, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Cleveland and more. Founder Steele Smiley, alongside newly appointed STEELE BRANDS CEO Kelly C. Baltes, are encouraged by the untapped potential that these markets possess.
“Having previous experience with several brands in these key markets, I am confident that CRISP & GREEN will meet a demand that is currently not being satisfied,” says Baltes. “Pairing this with the growing amount of people who are embracing a wellness-driven lifestyle puts us in a great position to reach our ultimate goal to be the #1 healthy fast-casual on the planet.”
Crisp & Green was founded in 2016.
CRISP & GREEN was founded in 2016. For more information, visit www.crispandgreen.com. STEELE BRANDS is the brand development company created by Smiley. Its portfolio includes three fast-casual restaurant brands: CRISP & GREEN, STALK & SPADE and PACO & LIME. The company has more than 250 restaurants built and in development across all three brands in 25 states and growing as of January 17, 2023. For more information, visit www.steelebrands.com.
SOURCE: CRISP & GREEN