St. Petersburg, Fla. — WOWorks, the parent company of better-for-you restaurant brands Saladworks, Frutta Bowls, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, The Simple Greek, Barberitos and Zoup! Eatery, has opened 23 new restaurants so far this year, with 15 additional locations currently in development. This brings WOWorks’ total footprint to nearly 240 restaurants nationwide and puts the company on pace for nearly 40 new stores by year’s end.
New restaurants have launched across the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and Southeast — including Ohio, Missouri, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Florida, Alabama, Virginia, Georgia and Texas — as well as WOWorks’ first expansion into Canada, with a new Frutta Bowls location in Cambridge, Ontario. Growth spans traditional retail footprints as well as high-traffic non-traditional venues, including university campuses at the University of Georgia’s Tate Student Center and the University of Notre Dame, as well as a healthcare facility debut at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
“Consumers today want food that fits their life: fresh, customizable and genuinely good for them,” says Kelly Roddy, CEO of WOWorks. “That’s exactly what WOWorks was built for, and it’s why our brands are resonating with guests from coast to coast as we open new doors nearly every week in a multitude of venues.”
Co-branded restaurants account for nearly half of the openings year-to-date. Pairings such as Saladworks and Frutta Bowls and Barberitos and Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh allow WOWorks and its franchisees to serve complementary menus under one roof, maximizing real estate efficiency and giving guests more reasons to visit. Several existing single-brand restaurants have also added Frutta Bowls as a second brand this year, a conversion strategy designed to drive incremental revenue from proven locations.
“We’re excited to see so many of our franchisees continue to expand within the WOWorks platform,” adds Roddy. “They are doubling down on brands they already know deliver results and picking up new brands that fit within spaces they already are operating.”
Founded in 2020, WOWorks is a subsidiary of Centre Lane Partners, LLC. Its portfolio includes Saladworks, Barberitos, Frutta Bowls, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, Zoup! Eatery and The Simple Greek. For more information, visit www.woworksusa.com and www.woworksusa.com/a-place-to-invest/.
SOURCE: WOWorks