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The breakfast and lunch concept offers franchisees the opportunity to leverage a stellar reputation, winning and habitual service model and high-quality menu to establish a beloved neighborhood restaurant in their community.
Famous Toastery, the 25-plus-unit, North Carolina-based franchise has made a name for itself by offering the freshest breakfast, brunch and lunch offerings in its segment. The brand’s franchisees, who have grown throughout North Carolina since opening in 2005 and franchising is 2013, have become locally famous as pillars in their communities, providing not only uncompromisingly fresh and decadent meals, but a hub for friends, families and neighbors to get together. With this approach in place, the Famous Toastery team is looking to further prioritize a business model and support infrastructure that encourages franchisees to “Be Famous.”
“Our franchisees make Famous Toastery famous, not vice versa,” said Michael Mabry, who joined Famous Toastery’s executive team as president in November 2021. “Without our franchisees, we don’t have a brand. We really want to be famous for having the best franchisees out in the marketplace. This is a locally owned and operated business. The idea that the franchisees are already famous in their markets — famous with their guests, famous with their team members — that puts the famous in Famous Toastery.”
To help incoming Famous Toastery franchisees make a name for themselves when entering a new market, CEO and co-founder Robert Maynard says the team is rolling out a program in which owners are paired with “famous business consultants.”
“Not only will these business consultants support franchisees in day-to-day operations, but it will also help them reach their personal goals,” said Maynard. “We want to help franchisees understand the bigger picture for themselves, their families and their business. This will help them become famous in their communities and execute their business on the highest possible level.”
From the initial onboarding to long after the grand opening, Famous Toastery also provides franchisees with the support and training needed to establish a successful business in their local community.
“We’ve had years and years of seeing what works and what doesn’t work. Franchisees are coming into the system and opening up their locally owned business, and they put their trust in us to give them the platform to succeed,” said Brian Burchill, Founder and Chief Culture Office. “Now, we are really just creating a heightened sense of what we need to give franchisees, in terms of training and support. We want everyone to achieve their goals, including clientele, staff and their families. When I opened the first store, my goal was to establish a sense of trust with the staff, customers and franchisees. That trust enables us to be more than just a business.”
In addition to support, the Famous Toastery consumer offering provides the blueprint that allows franchisees to run a beloved neighborhood establishment, not just another local business. This includes both the fresh, made-to-order menu items that keep mouths watering and seats filled and the longstanding motto of “Every server is your server,” which encourages next-level customer service at all locations.
“Franchisees can expect their local customer base to truly wrap their arms around the concept because of the quality of the food and service,” said Mabry. “These pieces that we do inside the four walls gives franchisees credit among guests and team members. That, along with our emphasis on community involvement and support, helps franchisees become famous in their community. The idea is that when you put the sign up, turn on the lights and open the front door on that first day, we want the community and guests and the team members to adopt us.”
Additionally, Mabry says the flexible lifestyle benefits of Famous Toastery ownership — where franchisees only need to be open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day — also allows for the opportunity to make a significant impact in the community.
“The breakfast and lunch segment has been around forever, and what we are seeing is the attractive lifestyle component also opens up the opportunity for community involvement because of lessened time constraints,” said Marby. “Plus, breakfast is a meal of sharing and connection, which means franchisees become deeply integrated with guests' lifestyles and daily habits.”
Burchill agrees, noting, “Everybody loves breakfast and, right now, people are more cautious with what they put in their bodies and where they go,” he said. “We believe that everything we do is of the highest level of quality, from 100% real butter, maple syrup and fresh orange juice. We pride ourselves on the back-of-house quality that people don’t know about until they try the food. We started this business because we love the breakfast and lunch restaurant business. Breakfast is a habitual meal. If you do it the right way, you will see the same person in your restaurant every day of the week. If you couple that with the service model that we have, franchisees can expect to become famous in their community in no time.”
Now, with the new mantra of “Be Famous” in place, the Famous Toastery team is looking to reach 50 units — doubling its current footprint — by 2024, with the bulk of that development planned for the Carolinas.
ABOUT FAMOUS TOASTERY
Charlotte, N.C.-based Famous Toastery began in 2005 in a small house-turned-restaurant where best friends Brian Burchill and Robert Maynard opened their first breakfast spot. Never compromising fresh ingredients or friendly service, Famous Toastery evolved into a franchise system in 2013 and now has over 25 locations. In 2020 and 2019, Famous Toastery placed on Restaurant Business' The Future 50, featuring the fastest-growing small chains. Famous Toastery was ranked No. 9 in the Full-Service Restaurants category of Entrepreneur Magazine’s Top Food Franchises of 2019 and on Entrepreneur Magazine's Franchise 500 Rankings in 2019. In 2018, Famous Toastery received recognition by CNBC as a top franchise to buy, FSR Magazine as one of the Top 14 restaurant chains ready for lift-off, Inc. 5000’s list of the fastest growing companies and Franchise Times' Top 200+ franchise opportunities. For more information about Famous Toastery, visit www.famoustoastery.com. To learn about franchising opportunities, please visit www.ownatoastery.com.
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