Franchise News
Fast Casual: Fast Casual Chi’Lantro Poised To Grow After Shark Tank Deal
Jae Kim finally wins Shark Tank over on his third attempt on the show
On November 11, 2016, Chi’Lantro founder Jae Kim was offered $600,000 for 20 percent equity from shark Tank’s Barbara Corcoran, reports Fast Casual. Austin, TX-based Chi’Lantro (a mashup of the words “kimchi” and “cilantro”), has grown 25% year over year since its inception in 2010. Finally finding success on his first Shark Tank attempt, Kim now says he plans to use the investment to continue expanding his Korean BBQ-inspired restaurant across Texas and beyond.
Kim opened Chi’Lantro by maxing out his credit cards and using his entire savings. Originally working from one food truck, there are now four brick-and-mortar locations around Austin.
"Barbara is the perfect person for Chi'Lantro's growth,” Kim told Fast Casual. “She values the culture of Chi'Lantro and sees and trusts my vision to grow our company into a billion dollar company. Barbara grew her company from having nothing, so she was able to relate how I continue to grow my company today."
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About the Author
Nick Powills
FollowNick 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.
