Aziz Hashim is on a Mission to Disrupt Restaurant Ownership

The history of “the restaurant” is often traced back to Boulanger in 18th century Paris, and in the hundreds of years since those first humble establishments, the industry has seen its fair share of innovators and shakeups.

Add NRD Capital Management to that list of restaurant disruptors.

NRD Capital is the first franchisee-sponsored and -managed investment fund focused on investing in and accelerating the growth of restaurants, and managing partner Aziz Hashim has plans to turn the restaurant ownership game on its head.

Hashim, a highly regarded executive in the franchising world who has worked with top brands such as Popeye’s, Subway, KFC and Taco Bell, is now looking to change the food service industry through a series of investments and acquisitions of legacy food brands with superior products.

To that end, NRD Capital made its first big splash by acquiring Frisch’s Restaurants, known the world over as Frisch’s Big Boy and famous for its full service family-style dining.

Though Frisch’s is a natural fit for Hashim’s grand plans, the decision for the initial investment was not made hastily.

“During the last year, our team thoroughly analyzed many potential acquisitions, looking for a successful brand that had tremendous potential and which could benefit from our expertise,” Hashim said. “We settled on Frisch’s because we believe it is perfectly positioned for growth and because its business model is friendly to multi-unit franchisee expansion.”

It is that focus on multi-unit franchise operations that truly sets NRD Capital and Hashim’s mission apart from other restaurant investment groups.

Hashim has made it clear that the next step for Frisch’s, a brand already firmly planted in the minds of American consumers, is to grow the brand by adding new franchise operators. Hashim is confident that the $175-million investment in Frisch’s Restaurants will position the brand for accelerated new development.

In order to facilitate that development, Hashim’s team is not getting complacent—even when it comes to an established brand like Frisch’s. In fact, now that the acquisition is finalized, the brand is already being updated with a "Frisch's Big Boy 2.0" plan to appeal to a younger set of consumers.

This includes the addition of new appetizers and shareable plates while expanding beverage choices to offer greater coffee variety as well as signature drinks.

Finally, Hashim has plans to aggressively add new franchise units in the Midwest and into Tennessee, while exploring new, smaller design layouts in non-traditional locales like university campuses.

Still, new innovations aside, the franchising component is what really has Hashim and the restaurant industry excited. Frisch’s currently has only 26 franchises among its 121 restaurants. Expect that number to increase as NRD Capital steers the brand in an exciting new direction.

According to Hashim, Frisch’s is still just the first of many acquisitions as he continues to upend and innovate restaurant ownership.

“Our team is very excited about the Frisch’s acquisition. We already have a second acquisition in process now, and I have been very pleased with the reception NRD has had in the M&A market,” Hashim said.

Nick Powills, CFE, founded No Limit Agency in 2008 and serves as Chief Brand Strategist for the Chicago-based firm. No Limit is a full-service communications agency that establishes and elevates brands by bridging Public Relations, Social Media, Marketing, Advertising, Digital, and a lot of creativity, to best strategize well-rounded and successful campaigns for 50+ global franchise brands. By presenting visionary ideas and building real relationships, No Limit is able to create effective media branding strategies to help companies grow. Nick currently leads a staff of writers, media strategists, designers, social media experts and digital producers in an office think-tank where brands are humanized for strong, compelling media stories. Prior to starting No Limit at the age of 27, Nick spent four years working at a franchise PR agency where he mastered the art of building rapport with media outlets and creating newsworthy pitches for earned media placements. He holds a Bachelor of Journalism from Drake University in Iowa.

Aziz Hashim is on a Mission to Disrupt Restaurant Ownership

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