Katie Lee

Pet Project

by Katie Lee June 21, 2021

— By Katie Lee — How Cincinnati-based boutique retailer, Pet Wants, is both a growing cause and a growing company. We’ve heard all about the pandemic’s doom-and-gloom effect on retail, but 2020 actually ended up being a boon to the pet industry. As record numbers of people in quarantine opened their homes to four-legged friends, pet stores continued to be essential businesses in high demand. What a pet needs and what a pet wants are embodied in an up-and-coming Cincinnati-based retailer, Pet Wants, a boutique franchise of high-quality pet …

June 21, 2021

construction and design Cover Story From The Magazine remodels restaurants

Driving Force

by Katie Lee March 25, 2021

Just in time for its 50th anniversary, Schlotzsky’s rolls out two new prototypes with plans to build on lessons learned during COVID-19. — By Katie Lee — At Schlotzsky’s, the drive-thru has always been a driving force of its business. Eighty-five percent of its 339 locations already had a drive-thru — often with double lanes — and this positioned the sandwich chain well when COVID-19 changed the world in early 2020. Schlotzsky’s already understood customers’ evolving needs — and the pandemic accelerated that evolution. Several years prior to the …

March 25, 2021

Cover Story From The Magazine restaurants

Plans in Motion

by Katie Lee December 17, 2020

— Interview with Tim Welsh, Chief Development Officer — QDOBA was already making key changes prior to the pandemic. With a variety of smaller floor plans and a revamped digital suite already in the works pre-COVID, QDOBA Mexican Eats was on the right track — little did it know — to have the best possible chance to weather a global pandemic. Today, the Mexican fast-casual franchise continues with plans to open 30 new restaurants before year end and to have 1,000 open restaurants within the next 5 years. With …

December 17, 2020

Cover Story franchise development From The Magazine retailers

Jersey Mike’s Great Ride

by Katie Lee October 9, 2020

— By Katie Lee — Even during a pandemic, Jersey Mike’s continues to grow and evolve — adding 200 stores this year and fully funding the ongoing retrofits of its 1,800+ locations. Ten years ago, Retail & Restaurant Facility Business first featured Jersey Mike’s on its cover. At the time, the iconic sub sandwich chain, which launched in 1956 in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, had 450 stores open and under development in 29 states. One short decade later? Jersey Mike’s is just getting started. The company has more than …

October 9, 2020

Cover Story franchise development From The Magazine restaurants

Healthy Track Record

by Katie Lee April 10, 2020

— By Katie Lee — Tropical Smoothie Cafe has opened more than 100 restaurants each year for the past 3 years — and continues to grow on pace to reach 1,000 locations by 2021. When Retail & Restaurant Facility Business last interviewed Tropical Smoothie Cafe (TSC) more than 3 years ago, we were talking about its milestone 500th location. Now, with more than 830 cafes open — 124 opened in 2019 alone — the fast-growing concept remains on track to reach 1,000 locations in 2021 and 1,500 locations …

April 10, 2020

Cover Story franchise development restaurants

Second Century Growth

by Katie Lee February 20, 2020

— Interview by Katie Lee — As A&W approaches the second year of its second century of operation, it looks to a promising future while also honoring its iconic past. With almost 1,000 locations open in the U.S. and Asia, A&W Restaurants — which first introduced its famous root beer in 1919 — knows a thing or two about growth and longevity. In its first 100 years, A&W weathered every up and down that a restaurant could face. Early in 2020, Retail & Restaurant Facility Business interviewed Paul …

February 20, 2020

Cover Story franchise development From The Magazine restaurants

All in the Family

by Katie Lee November 19, 2019

— By Katie Lee — At Mamoun’s Falafel, it’s one big, happy (growing) family — with over 40 new franchises soon to join the fold. As one of the oldest falafel restaurants in New York City, Mamoun’s Falafel has long held the title of being the most authentic and flavorful falafel in the city. The first location opened in Greenwich Village in 1971 and has been family owned and operated for over 45 years. Founder Mamoun Chater, who had emigrated from Damascus, Syria, had little time for the …

November 19, 2019

Cover Story From The Magazine

Finding a Better Way

by Katie Lee October 25, 2019

— Interview by Katie Lee — At Blink Fitness, it’s not just another gym — it’s a better approach to customers, to franchisees and to facility operations overall. As Thomas Flaherty of Blink Fitness likes to say: “There’s always a better way for everything. Find it!” In Blink, the founders seem to have created that “better way.” From understanding why people join gyms — because it makes them feel good — to utilizing technology to keep customers happy and labor demands low, the New York City-based concept differentiates itself …

October 25, 2019

Cover Story retailers

Retail Footprint

by Katie Lee May 16, 2019

Skechers grows its brand by growing its physical retail presence — from 1,000 stores 5 years ago to more than 3,000 today. — By Katie Lee — Grow. From its store count and sales to expanding corporate headquarters, grow is what Skechers does best, regardless of physical retail climate, regardless of industry trends. In 1992, when Robert and Michael Greenberg (father and son, respectively) launched a new footwear brand inside a small beach house in Manhattan Beach, California, little did they dream that by 2010 — during a recession, no …

May 16, 2019

construction and design Cover Story green building/LEED Industry Content

Building For the Future

by Katie Lee May 16, 2019

While developers might take a decade to plan, design and build a project, how many technological changes take place in that time? Here’s how Urban-X Group has been planning for almost a decade with its River Landing Shops & Residences, to open in 2020 in Miami. — By Katie Lee — Trends and technology tend to burst on the scene, evolve and grow with ferocious speed — often faster than you can plan for them. While an entire rideshare industry has been born and boomed within just the last decade …

May 16, 2019

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