Biscuit Belly Builds for the Future as Franchise Momentum Sets Stage for Record-Breaking 2026

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How Biscuit Belly's "Damn Good" Biscuits Are Proving Breakfast Is Big Business 

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After playing a crucial role in the growth of pizza franchise Papa Johns alongside his brother,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-h-schnatter">“Papa John” Schnatter</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbellyfranchise.com/leadership/chuck-schnatter/">Chuck Schnatter</a>, a long-time member of the brand’s executive team and investor himself, has learned a great deal about what makes a restaurant franchise succeed. A great menu can draw a crowd, but real systems, standardization and strong unit economics are what build a legacy. That’s what he was focused on when he invested in&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbellyfranchise.com/">Biscuit Belly</a>, the 13-unit Southern-style breakfast and brunch franchise.“You always have to start with the people. You invest in people first and concepts second,” Schnatter said. “In any company, until you have good leadership, you’re not going to have a good concept.”<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-c-4663465b/">Chad</a> and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-coulter-%F0%9F%8D%B3-70053b2a/">Lauren Coulter</a>, co-founders of&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly/info">Biscuit Belly</a>, caught Schnatter’s attention before the biscuit concept even launched.<h2>A Chef-Driven Foundation and a Resilient, Scalable Model</h2>Schnatter initially partnered with the Coulters on their wine and southern-tapas concept, LouVino. While the concept was successful, the team quickly realized how demanding a chef-driven concept serving the dinner crowd would be. The menu was also so chef-driven that it was difficult to replicate, so they began to pivot. As they thought up Biscuit Belly, the scalability was immediately apparent.“We felt like Biscuit Belly was a much more repeatable concept than LouVino,” Schnatter said. “Once we had the model, even though it was chef-driven, we could duplicate it … franchise it and grow it ourselves.”Schnatter also recognized the power of Biscuit Belly’s unique menu. While the brand is focused on biscuits and other Southern breakfast-style foods, there’s enough diversity to build resilience.“When you’re in pizza, 40 percent of your cost is cheese. So if cheese goes up, your costs go through the roof,” he said. “If you look at our menu, we've got pork, chicken, turkey, eggs, dairy, and wheat. All of those hold about equal weight, so if one goes up, it doesn’t crush our food cost.”<h2>Capturing the Next Wave</h2>Early on in the concept development process, Schnatter also recognized a massive opportunity in market positioning. Biscuit Belly operates in the breakfast and brunch segment, which is not nearly as saturated as the dinner space. And its colorful, vibrant brand identity appeals to a younger demographic that demands an elevated experience.“This isn’t your grandfather’s bacon and eggs,” Schnatter said. “Biscuit Belly is the next wave in breakfast. It’s where 18 to 45 year olds want to be.”Biscuit Belly’s model caters to the “the camera eats first” mentality, and the Instagrammable nature of the food lends itself to social sharing. This is another key driver of brand awareness, turning everyday guests into promoters of the brand — another differentiator Schantter recognizes and loves.In addition to great food and strong potential in the market, Biscuit Belly’s ability to get into the industry when it did, with a model as strong as it has, has positioned it to capitalize on this “next wave.”<h2>The Quality of Life Benefit</h2>One of the most important advantages Biscuit Belly offers its operators is a more balanced lifestyle. In the traditional restaurant world, much of the demand occurs on nights and weekends, and operators must adjust accordingly. This can be draining for owners, and it can also make staffing difficult.&nbsp;Biscuit Belly, however, flips this dynamic entirely. Closing in the early afternoon all week, owners benefit from more free time and a one-shift model that makes staffing easier and boosts employee retention.“Whether you’re an owner or employee, you’re out of there by 3:30 on a Friday. You can still go to your kid’s basketball game or make it to a concert,” Schnatter said. “You can have a life where you’re getting out of work when everyone else in the restaurant world is just arriving at work.”<h2>A Blueprint for Growth</h2>For Schnatter, the decision to back Biscuit Belly is based on a recognition of infrastructure and the potential for explosive growth. Whether growing from location one to two or 2,000 to 2,001, Schnatter says the growth process requires the same rigorous discipline.By applying the hard-won lessons of the pizza industry to the breakfast and brunch industry, Schnatter is supporting Biscuit Belly in its strategic approach to national growth.“I understand what it takes to run a restaurant company and finance a restaurant company. And I’ve been a franchisee with Papa Johns, so I’ve interacted with systems from both the franchisor and franchisee standpoint,” Schnatter said. “The same concepts apply whether you’re selling coffee, chili, pizza or biscuits. The fundamentals are the fundamentals, and you’ve got to follow them.”To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly">https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly</a>.&nbsp;

Photo of Chuck Schnatter inside Biscuit Belly location

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Andrew and Rachel Adams took their time before stepping into a restaurant. The idea kept coming up, but the math had to work beyond food costs and rent. It had to work on a calendar.&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbellyfranchise.com/">Biscuit Belly</a> finally gave them a model that fit how they live in Hoover, with daytime hours and a playbook that rewards showing up in the community, getting to know regulars and using catering to reach beyond the four walls.“I had talked about restaurants for years. Rachel had always said no, just because of the time commitment,” Andrew said. “We really love to travel and do different things, so that was always her hiccup in the road, the time commitment. When&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly/info">Biscuit Belly</a> came up, they reached out to our hospitality group that we’re a part of to see if they would be interested in franchising. They brought it to us.”<h2>A Daytime Model That Made Ownership Sustainable</h2>For Andrew and Rachel, Biscuit Belly’s hours solved the one problem that kept pushing restaurant ownership to the back burner. The restaurant runs early, then it clears. That meant they could be hands-on during the rush and still have their evenings. Before they signed, they went to the corporate stores to see it for themselves. They tried the food, watched how the operation ran and made sure the experience felt consistent from location to location.“The hours were a huge plus, 7 to 2 during the week and 7 to 3 on the weekends, and still have nights available and a little bit better hours to travel with,” Andrew said. “That was a huge selling point for us with work-life balance. We checked out all the corporate stores at the time, made sure it was a really consistent product and something that we could get behind, fell in love with it, and decided it was the perfect match.”<h2>Why Brock’s Gap Made Sense</h2>With the brand decision made, the next priority was selecting the right pocket of Hoover, Alabama. The Adamses landed at&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbelly.com/hoover/">The Village at Brock’s Gap</a>, a newer shopping center in a fast-growing area where rooftops, schools and daily routines create a strong breakfast and brunch daypart. It also offered a steady stream of community moments, from school drop-offs to local catering needs, where a morning brand can become part of someone’s week.“Hoover is continuing to grow. There are new shopping centers coming up, and this is one of the newer ones,” Rachel said. “People are just learning where we’re at. There are a lot of houses around here, too. It’s been really good to see people come in after they drop their kids off for school. It’s definitely continuing to grow, and we’re excited about what’s to come.”<h2>Building Awareness the Old-Fashioned Way</h2>Newer developments can mean a slower start, especially when a restaurant is tucked back from the road and customers do not immediately realize it is there. Early on, the Adamses leaned into community outreach and treated it as part of the weekly routine, not a one-time opening push.“Just informing people in the community that we’re back here and that this exists behind the shopping center that’s close to the road,” Rachel said. “We spent the first year getting out, taking samples out and catering, talking about catering, just to get awareness out.”That same outreach mindset carried into their catering strategy. Rather than waiting for new guests to discover the restaurant on their own, they used catering to introduce Biscuit Belly to groups across the Birmingham metro area, including customers who might not typically make the drive to Hoover for breakfast.“We continue to want to see the brand grow, and obviously our store as well,” Andrew said. “Catering has really helped us get our name out to parts of Birmingham that don’t necessarily come to Hoover a whole lot, but still, like downtown. We had a couple caterings this morning. There’s 150 people total that had Biscuit Belly this morning that didn’t even come in the restaurant.”<h2>A Menu That Feels Familiar, Then Surprises You</h2>Breakfast is a crowded category, and the Adamses see the menu as one reason Biscuit Belly can stand out. Andrew describes the concept as approachable, but still different enough that customers can find a favorite and keep exploring.“For the brand, it’s a southern menu with a twist,” Andrew said. “People can still get that down-home cooking, biscuits and gravy, but they still get to try something different. Something they would not have thought about, some flavors they probably wouldn’t have put together.”<h2>Support That Shows Up in Real Time</h2>As first-time restaurant owners, the Adamses point to franchisor support as a stabilizer, especially when the learning curve is steep. Rachel said marketing has helped them stay visible and keep customers engaged.“Marketing, for sure, coming up with new ideas and new ways to gain new customers and keep existing customers,” Rachel said. “They run a lot of fun campaigns and things that grab your attention.”Training has also been hands-on, with support before opening and continued updates as new items and limited-time offers roll out.“We went to Kentucky and had manager-owner training there. They came down to our store and helped get us ready, our staff ready,” Rachel said. “There’s a great training program in place that continues to update as new menu items come out, and LTO items, they help support us.”Andrew also pointed to accessibility as a practical advantage. When a question comes up in the middle of a busy week, being able to reach someone quickly matters.“All of the corporate employees have been readily available,” he said. “If we need to pick up the phone, call, text, email, everyone gets back to us really quickly.”<h2>Becoming Part of the Weekly Routine</h2>For the Adamses, the long-term win is not novelty. It is repeat business and word of mouth, built through the kind of consistent experience that turns a first visit into a habit. Rachel said she sees that momentum in the guests who return on the same days each week, then bring someone new.“We get people that come in every single week. We have different groups that come in on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” she said. “We see a lot of the same faces, and it’s nice to see new people and also see those familiar faces bringing new people.”To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly">https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly</a>.

Biscuit Belly Franchise - Hoover, Alabama - Andrew and Rachel Adams - 1851 Franchise

A Biscuit Belly Franchise in Hoover, Alabama, That Let This Working Couple Keep Their Nights

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. —&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbellyfranchise.com/">Biscuit Belly</a>, the fast-growing brunch franchise known for its scratch-made biscuits and Southern hospitality, closed out the year with enough signed deals and planned openings to put the brand within reach of 20 operating restaurants by the end of 2026. After signing six leases this year and opening one new location in Summerville, South Carolina, the brand enters the new year with one of the strongest growth outlooks in its history.“We’re at 13 locations now, and we're confident we'll hit that 20-location market by the end of next year,” said CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-c-4663465b/">Chad Coulter</a>. "We’re bringing on additional team members to help get us there because we know it’s there — and we have to execute at a high level.”Throughout 2025,&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly/info">Biscuit Belly</a> focused heavily on building a robust development foundation and aligning new real estate opportunities for the year ahead. The brand’s lease activity this year includes sites across North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas and Ohio, which will expand Biscuit Belly’s presence from six states to nine once they open. Two of the most anticipated locations are in Columbus, Ohio, and Houston, Texas.“The Columbus location will open in the Grandview neighborhood, fairly close to Ohio State’s campus,” Coulter said. “Because of this location, competition for the space was fierce. There were 9 LOIs on the space in the first week, but after talking with the Landlord, she really liked the concept and chose us to move forward. We are working with some branding experts to make this location really pop, as we want it to be our flagship store in the market.”&nbsp;&nbsp;Franchise development also saw meaningful growth this year, including two new multi-unit signings — one in Houston and one across the Florida Panhandle. These groups reflect the type of operators the brand continues to attract as it scales.“One of the groups was a multibrand, multi-unit group in concepts like Auntie Anne’s and Cinnabon,” Coulter said. “They’re very hands-on operators. The individual out in Houston has a ton of retail experience and is building the team around her that’ll really make her successful.”Biscuit Belly also reviewed its operating costs in 2025, updating supplier agreements and shifting to new vendors with lower prices. The company said it also reached substantial reductions in commission rates with major delivery platforms. “Even with the challenges of traffic and inflation, our store-level profitability is as strong as it’s ever been. We will continue to fine-tune the model without sacrificing quality or the integrity of the brand,” Coulter said.Catering has continued to gain traction, now representing 10 percent or more of sales across the system and growing by large double-digit percentages over last year. The brand plans to build on that progress in 2026.“Next year we’re bringing on a first-party catering ordering service and have hired an internal catering sales team to continue that momentum on the catering side," Coulter said.&nbsp;Looking ahead, the company is concentrating on opening the stores already in development and bringing its count to 20 locations by the end of 2026. Biscuit Belly is also working toward adding two or three more multi-unit operators and lining up at least five additional projects for 2027 in the regions where it already has support, including parts of Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida and Texas. Coulter stated that the pipeline is already shaping up very nicely beyond 2026, with a goal of between 25 and 30 locations by the end of 2027.“We want to be smart with what we’re doing,” Coulter said. “We’re not just looking to open stores for the sake of unit count growth.About Biscuit Belly:Founded in 2019 and franchising since 2020, Biscuit Belly opened its first location in Louisville, Kentucky, where it became known for its creative approach to Southern comfort food classics with a focus on large, gourmet biscuit sandwiches. With a chef-cultivated menu, the brand has paired its Southern-inspired offerings with genuine hospitality to create an upbeat, fun environment where guests can enjoy a delicious meal with family and friends. With thirteen locations currently open in Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, the brand has a goal to reach 20 open units by the end of 2026. For more information, please visit&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbelly.com/">https://biscuitbelly.com/</a>.&nbsp;

Biscuit Belly Franchise - End of Year Wrap-Up - 2026 - 1851 Franchise

Biscuit Belly Finishes Year Strong and Looks Ahead to a 20-Unit Footprint in 2026

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Restaurants have lived with the same equation for years: ingredients rise, guests push back on price and margins erode.&nbsp;<a href="https://biscuitbellyfranchise.com/">Biscuit Belly</a>, the fast-growing brunch franchise known for its scratch-made biscuits and Southern hospitality, has chosen a different path. Instead of passing costs to customers, the breakfast-and-brunch brand treats cost of goods as a controllable system — one that can be redesigned with smarter sourcing, tighter procurement and precise, kitchen-level changes that guests never notice.“[COGS] is one of your biggest costs other than labor. It can affect profitability and your ability to continue to expand within the brand,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-c-4663465b/">Chad Coulter</a>, founder and CEO of&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly/info">Biscuit Belly</a>. “To offset that, you have to raise prices. However, consumers are tired of spending more money and they’re starting to get sticker shock.”<h2>A Portfolio of Ingredients, Not a Single-Commodity Bet</h2>Biscuit Belly avoids being hostage to any one commodity. Its highest-volume purchases span potatoes, dairy, eggs, produce, chicken, beef, turkey and pork. That diversity acts like a shock absorber when a single commodity experiences a spike. Operators in narrow categories can get whipsawed when one input moves. Biscuit Belly’s broader basket spreads risk across the P&amp;L and steadies margins through swings.“If you own a burger or chicken-focused restaurant and your most purchased protein increases in price substantially, you get crushed,” Coulter said. “For us, if one thing goes up, it’s not really going to affect you.”<h2>Procurement as Partnership</h2>With risk distributed, Biscuit Belly went after unit economics. The team renegotiated its broadline agreement, added an outsourced procurement partner and kept multiple suppliers in play. Those steps do more than shave dollars off case prices; they align incentives so vendors invest in the system’s growth. When suppliers believe the brand will open more doors, they are more flexible on terms today to earn volume tomorrow. That mindset extends beyond food into disposables and paper, where basis-point improvements compound at scale.<h2>How Biscuit Belly Found Savings Guests Never Notice</h2>Biscuit Belly has made inflation an opportunity to sharpen its recipes without sacrificing quality. By reengineering menu items, the brand built a more efficient kitchen model that safeguards both margins and flavor.“We were able to switch our biscuit mix to a different manufacturer and save 40 percent on one of our top-five items,” Coulter said. “We shifted the ratio of our melted butter, heavy cream and a couple of other ingredients in our biscuit mix and saved six or seven cents a biscuit. It had zero impact on the final product because we tested it many times over several months.”<h2>Agility That Shows Up on the P&amp;L</h2>Lean decision-making lets the brand move faster than larger systems. Menu tests run quickly, LTOs pivot in weeks rather than years, and supplier switches roll out without operational churn.&nbsp;“We’re extremely nimble,” Coulter said. “We can pivot and test, and pivot again and test again until we get it right fairly quickly.”When eggs spiked, a distributor’s local farming contract muted the hit. When disposables crept up, a paper distributor change delivered a 20 to 30 basis-point improvement. The cadence is constant: watch the market, test alternatives, lock in savings.<h2>What It Means for Franchisees</h2>Lower, steadier input costs reduce the need for aggressive price increases and the traffic risk that follows. Biscuit Belly’s playbook — diversified ingredients, negotiated scale, recipe-level engineering and speed — turns inflation from a headwind into a margin opportunity. It’s not a one-time fix but a discipline embedded in leadership focus and field feedback. For owners, that means a model built to protect profitability in a volatile economy, not just in ideal conditions.To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly">https://1851franchise.com/biscuit-belly</a>.

Biscuit Belly Franchise - Cost of Goods Sold - Inflation - 1851 Franchise