Expansion Updates: New Developments in 2026

And we also have Clinton Anderson, the CEO of 4th, who will be moderating the conversation with Jason. Jason, how about I let you give the audience some details about your background and you can likewise tell them a little bit about Chop Shop.

Thanks Christina. My name is Jason Morgan, CEO of Original Chop Shop. I've been doing this for about nine years now. We bought the brand in 2016three unitsand I have actually grown it to 26. Prior to this, I have actually invested most of my profession in hospitality in some shape or type. After a brief stint of trying to be an accounting professional for about a year and a half, I transitioned into gambling establishment property and operated in business financing.

I was the very first employee there after private equity purchased business. Assisted 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 Store. My hope is that we can duplicate the success we had at Zos, and we're off to a really excellent start.

We're at the counter, we bring the food to the table. It is primarily protein bowlsabout 40 percent of the mix. We likewise do salads, sandwiches. The secret to the program is we have a beverage component too with fresh-squeezed juices and protein shakes. We do all stables, we do breakfast all day.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

A little more complex than some of the walk-the-line ideas that are out there, but we think we've got something pretty special. We're going to include another shop this year and at least four shops next year. We will be 31 or so shops by the end of next year.

Regional Milestones in Corporate Scaling

I've been in this function for about six years. Fourth, as many of you understand, is a leading provider of software services to the dining establishment and hospitality industry. Our objective is to help our consumers be effective in driving success and being efficientmanaging labor, handling inventory, and generally offering them with tools they require to deliver their vision.

It's unusual to have companies that are cherished and growing quickly, that can repeat that success every year. Jason, among the reasons I was so thrilled to have you join our session is the success at Zos was amazing. I have actually just fulfilled a handful of brand names where there was such a strong consumer affinity for the brand name.

When you talk to customers about Chop Store, they like the location. And to be able to take what is a reasonably complicated idea in terms of delivering a terrific experience for the customer, and be able to grow that from a couple of stores to now north of 30 stores next yearit's remarkable.

We're going to talk about how to scale a restaurant service. Every restaurateur I ever speak to has imagine taking one shop, two shops, five shops, and turning it into something much biggerexpanding throughout the city, across the state, into multiple states, and ultimately nationwide, even global reach. It's not simple, specifically in today's environment.

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

National Milestones in Corporate Expansion

The very first concern I have for you, Jasonlook, you have actually done this two times now in the restaurant market. What has your experience been in terms of what it takes to really drive success in broadening restaurants?

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 service. To me, among the essential things, and I feel really lucky, is that both brand names I've been included with are distinct.

And there's absolutely nothing precisely like Chop Shop in regards to what we're finishing with a big, diverse menu. Most brand names today are extremely singularly focused in terms of what they're providing from a food. I feel like we began at an advantage with both brands by having something special that filled a niche no one else was doing.

Since it's just more difficult to stand out when there are 10, 20, 50 principles within a two- or three-mile radius attempting to do the specific same thing. So a lot of it starts with the brand. Does your brand have something distinct that nobody else is doing? That's unusual.

Corporate Updates: Regional Developments in 2026

The 2nd thingI came from a financing background, so a lot of my learnings are more financing and data-driven versus a lot of early startup restaurateurs who are innovative types. They enjoy the food, they built the menu, they built the brand.

They don't know their breakeven sales. They don't understand how margin improves as sales increase. I've seen so many companies where the numbers just do not work.

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If you do not have those 2 things, you shouldn't be developing shops. Yeah, possibly both? Because as I hear your description, you have actually highlighted three things: execution, brand name distinction, and monetary practicality. You have actually got to begin with execution. If you do not have an operating model that works, broadening it simply multiplies problems.

Comparing Investment ROI Against Market Data

Second, you require a compelling brand name or special principle that resonates with consumers. And 3rd, the mathematics needs to work. If you do not comprehend your unit economics, your repaired and variable expenses, you may be broadening blind and losing cash. Precisely. And another essential lesson has to do with entering brand-new markets.

When we expanded to Dallas, I expected brand-new shops to do 5070% of Phoenix sales in the very first year. Too numerous operators presume new markets will open at complete volume day one. That almost never ever happens. And when the shops open sluggish, however you have actually signed leases and constructed a financial design based upon higher volumes, you get overextended.