Dillas Primo Quesadillas has spent years building the systems that make support possible. Before offering franchises, the company spent more than a decade refining its restaurant model in its company-owned restaurants in DFW, creating operating systems and simplifying every part of the business so owners can focus on growing instead of solving daily problems. Today the brand operates 11 restaurants across Texas and Louisiana and is targeting 150 by 2020. The Dillas Quesadillas franchise opportunity is built on that groundwork.

"We spent a decade getting it right before we sold a single franchise," said Kyle Gordon, co-founder and CEO of Dillas. "We may be young in franchising, but we are deep in operations and how to run Dillas."

A Simple Menu Creates Faster Operations

One of the biggest advantages of Dillas is its focused menu. It is what lets the brand run two-minute peak drive-thru times. Instead of offering dozens of products that require complicated preparation, the brand centers its operation around grilled-to-order quesadillas made with fresh ingredients.

The kitchen is designed to move quickly while keeping food quality high. Even though ingredients are prepared fresh and much of the food is made from scratch, the menu is engineered to reduce unnecessary prep work, limit waste and make every position in the kitchen easier to manage.

"Our operation is designed around a focused menu," said Maggie Gordon, co-founder and president. "It allows us to deliver two-minute drive-thru times that would be very difficult with a more complicated operation. While we are a very fresh kitchen, everything's made from scratch, and we have a lot of high-quality ingredients, we have also menu-engineered it to where there's not tons of prep. So it's very operator-friendly.”

Systems Come Before Support

The support at Dillas starts long before a franchise owner opens the doors. Dillas built its operating model so franchise owners can succeed without years of restaurant management experience. Training teaches franchisees how to run the restaurant, but the simplicity of the operation allows them to learn quickly.

"It all comes down to the systems," Kyle said. “It doesn't matter how big your support team is if the systems inside the restaurant don't work.”

That gives the corporate team more time to help owners with bigger-picture business decisions, including leadership development, accounting, technology, marketing, site selection and planning for future locations. Instead of constantly solving operational problems inside the restaurant, the support team can focus on helping franchisees build stronger businesses. Every period, that work runs through a Deep Dive: a working session on the restaurant’s P&L and scorecard that ends with a short list of priorities for the next period. 

Using Data to Make Better Decisions

Dillas also continues investing in technology that helps franchisees improve performance. The company built its Primo Execution Engine (PEX), an internal system that brings together data from across the business and turns it into practical recommendations. Rather than simply showing reports and dashboards, the system ranks the likely root causes behind a number and points to the specific fix. It runs today in every Dillas restaurant, company-owned and franchised.

"It gives franchisees visibility into how our corporate restaurants are performing and where their restaurants may be performing differently, whether that's better or worse,” Maggie said. “The goal is for everyone to learn from each other and use that data in a meaningful way. The next phase puts a weekly brief straight into each general manager’s inbox.”

A Simple Framework for Solving Problems

One of the tools used throughout the company is what Dillas calls the MOM philosophy. MOM is short for Manpower, Operations, and Marketing. It gives franchisees a clear process for identifying where challenges begin before they affect financial performance. The framework starts by looking at staffing and culture before moving into operations, financial performance and marketing.

“The prioritization framework helps franchisees identify where a problem starts instead of just looking at the end result,” Kyle said. “If something is off track, like being down a couple of points on the P&L, we don't start with the financials. We go back to the beginning. Do you have the right people? Are you properly staffed? Is the culture healthy? Are employees being onboarded the right way? Are the basics in place, from uniforms to the restaurant environment? Then we look at the operations to see where improvements need to be made.”

The system also creates a common language throughout the organization, making it easier for franchisees and the support team to work together.

Helping Owners Build More Than One Restaurant

Dillas measures performance through a scorecard that tracks key areas such as drive-thru speed, customer feedback, sales growth, financial results and online reviews. Strong results across those areas show that a restaurant is ready for additional growth.

"Our goal is to help franchisees be as profitable as possible," Kyle said. “When they operate at a high level, it creates the opportunity to open another restaurant.”

By combining a focused menu, proven operating systems and ongoing business support, Dillas has created a model designed to help franchisees succeed from their first location through future expansion. Rather than relying on constant corporate intervention, the brand gives owners the tools to operate confidently on their own while knowing experienced support is available as they continue to grow.

To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/dillas-quesadillas.