The Melt

What does a three-star admiral’s aide in the Pentagon have in common with a manager in training at Domino’s Pizza? For&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-melt-ceo-ralph-bower-franchise-growth-strategy-2731478" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Ralph Bower</a>, CEO of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-melt-ceo-ralph-bower-franchise-growth-strategy-2731478" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">The Melt</a>, the answer is everything.&nbsp;In this&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMQtmYsiEmA&utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-melt-ceo-ralph-bower-franchise-growth-strategy-2731478" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">episode of the “Meet the Franchise” podcast</a>, 1851 Franchise Publisher&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/powills/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-melt-ceo-ralph-bower-franchise-growth-strategy-2731478" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Nick Powills</a> sat down with the man who traded a prestigious military career for a $4.75-an-hour entry-level restaurant job because he saw a newspaper ad claiming pizza managers made more than admirals. That leap of faith kicked off an impressive trajectory through the executive ranks of Yum! Brands, Popeyes and Domino’s, led Bower to his current mission: transforming The Melt from a startup into a high-volume powerhouse.Under Bower’s leadership, The Melt didn’t just grow. It exploded. By stripping away complex corporate mission statements and replacing them with a single core value, he pushed average unit volume from a modest $700,000 to a staggering $3.5 million, with some locations topping $6 million.As The Melt prepares to bring its fanatical culture to the national stage through franchising, Bower shares the operational playbook he learned at sea and perfected in the kitchen.A transcript of Bower’s interview with Powills has been provided below. It has been edited for style, brevity and clarity.Nick Powills: All right, Ralph. I usually start with a scripted question, and I’m still going to ask it in some form. You’ve got plenty of credibility, so you don’t need to give the full backstory. I usually ask how people accidentally fell into franchising, because everyone seems to fall into it. Start with your story before The Melt, then we’ll get into The Melt.Ralph Bower: I came to franchising in a pretty unconventional way. I went to Annapolis, was aboard a ship and then stationed in the Pentagon. While I was there, I was getting ready to go back to sea and saw an ad in the newspaper saying Domino’s Pizza store managers were making more than the admiral I was working for.I thought, “I think I could be an average Domino’s Pizza store manager.” So I went from being an admiral’s aide to a three-star admiral in the Pentagon to being a manager in training at Domino’s making $4.75 an hour. I had a 1-year-old at the time. I’m proud that it only took me six months to work my way up to $5.25 an hour.But I worked my way up through the Domino’s system and then spent several great years at Yum!, eventually becoming COO and president of Popeyes and CEO of Pei Wei.Powills: I hear something in that opening story that I think will matter as we go: A military background teaches operational discipline better than almost any other kind of training. You didn’t have a traditional restaurant background when you saw that ad. Did your time in the military set you up for success? Did it give you a playbook you could rely on when you got to Domino’s?Bower: I think running a restaurant is more similar to being in the military than one might guess. The first thing the military teaches you is how to work with people from all walks of life. Aboard a ship, you’re going to have people who are extraordinarily smart and people who maybe aren’t. You’re going to have extremely hard workers and others not so much. You’ll have people with a ton of natural talent who need very little leadership and others who need a lot more. That’s not all that different from being in a restaurant. One of the things I love about the restaurant business is the opportunity to work with an extraordinarily varied cross-section of people.Great leaders figure out how to adapt their leadership style to what each individual needs. Those individuals shouldn’t have to adapt to you. You learn that in the military and it’s true in restaurants.People often say it must be easier in the military because everyone has to do what you tell them to do. But that’s an extraordinarily broad misconception. The military is no different than anywhere else. The best way to build alignment and a team is through influence. It’s always better to lead people to self-discovery than to force them to do things your way.Powills: Another aspect that seems transferable is the ability to deal with crises. Business owners who can push through brick walls succeed and those who can’t stall out. Is that another part of this?Bower: I definitely think that’s true. I talk about three principles of running a shift at The Melt: be in charge, give direction and attack bottlenecks. That’s true in anything you do. In a crisis, you want a leader who’s in charge and giving direction. Where things break down is when leaders go silent. The crises in the military are different from those in restaurants, but the leadership requirement is the same.Powills: You’re a humble guy, but I’m going to say this: your principles and philosophy on leadership give foundational elements from the bottom all the way to the top. And they carry on beyond Domino’s, Popeyes or Pei Wei.Is part of the magic that instead of putting pressure on the business, you put pressure on operational leadership and people development?Bower: People misunderstand what makes a restaurant successful. As leaders, it’s important to take the complicated and make it simple. I always say simple is better than perfect.I believe two things are required to be a great restaurant company: You have to run great restaurants and you have to have great food. If you do those two things, you’ll be successful.Most people understand the great food part. What’s harder to grasp is how important it is to run great restaurants. That’s the blocking and tackling you do every day, and it’s probably more important than the food.During COVID-19, over an 18-month period, our sales more than doubled and nearly tripled. If we hadn’t had the processes and systems to run great restaurants, guests would have come once, seen chaos and never returned.The reason we’ve quintupled our average unit volumes is that when the business came, we were fanatical about running great restaurants. Today, our average unit volumes are $3.5 million. We have several restaurants over $5 million and a couple over $6 million. Back when our AUVs were $700,000, we were just as fanatical about what we called peak-period performance.What we thought was a peak period at $700,000 is very different at $6 million. But because we built those foundational steps early, we were ready when sales came.Powills: That speaks to negative and positive crises. At $700,000 or $6 million, you still need a leader who calms nerves and keeps consistency so things don’t go off track.Bower: I was fortunate early in my career to meet Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino’s. He was a former Marine and I was a former Navy guy. I asked him one day, “What’s the best way to raise sales in a restaurant?” He said, “Handle the rush.”That’s what he told every franchisee. Handle the rush. I think that gets lost sometimes. I talk to my operators seven days a week at 9 a.m., and we talk about how we handled the rush the night before.If you handle the rush and deliver what we call an “I Love It Here” experience, guests will come back.Powills: Handling the rush applies to customers, but also to your staff. Showing compassion, empathy and appreciation afterward matters too.Bower: Absolutely. The guest experience will never exceed the team member experience. If you don’t deliver an “I Love It Here” experience to your team, it’s hard for them to deliver it to guests.We had a situation recently where two team members had to leave early due to a family emergency. We were short-staffed for hours late at night. Service suffered a little. But what I thought about the next morning was the stress on those team members.Powills: You once told me you only have one core value: “I Love It Here.” You shared a story about an employee who didn’t speak English and what that meant to you. Why just one core value?Bower: Leaders need to make things easy to execute. When I first came to The Melt, our average unit volumes were about $700,000. I thought $1.5 million would be nirvana.I’m fanatical about guest feedback. One day, a guest review at one of our highest-volume restaurants said, “I love it here.” I started thinking about what would happen if every guest felt that way. Within weeks, we ripped up every mission and vision statement and replaced them with one goal: deliver an “I Love It Here” experience to every guest. We don’t tell our teams how to do it. Twice a day we rally and ask team members what “I Love It Here” means to them. And then we say, “Just do that.”I’ve worked for companies with beautiful mission statements that never translated to the restaurant level. At The Melt, any team member can tell you our number one goal.I once asked a team member who spoke almost no English what our goal was. Seeing him work so hard to say, in English, “Deliver an ‘I Love It Here’ experience to every guest,” gave me goosebumps.Powills: Was that a moment where you paused and realized you’d done something bigger than building a good burger brand?Bower: Absolutely. Recognition matters. I had a fry cook named Zach in downtown San Francisco. I asked him what it meant to deliver an “I Love It Here” experience on fries. He said, “I want my fries so hot they burn your hands.” I gave him a “baddest alligator in the swamp” pin in front of his team. He cried and told me it was the first recognition he’d ever received. He said he’d be buried wearing that pin.I’ve thought about that every day for the past 10 years.Powills: You’ve built volumes that put you at the top of franchising. How long did it take you to realize culture is currency?Bower: I’d like to say I knew it right away, but it took me 25 years. It wasn’t until The Melt and “I Love It Here” that I fully understood the power of alignment. Everyone has values. The magic is getting everyone aligned around them.Achieving something as a team is far more meaningful than achieving it as an individual. I learned that in the military, then again at Domino’s and throughout my career.Powills: As you launch franchising, does it worry you that franchisees need to be true extensions of the culture? And how do you build a team within a franchise system?Bower: The only people we want at The Melt are those who get excited about delivering an “I Love It Here” experience. If you can’t be fanatical about that, it’s not a fit. As a franchisor, your job isn’t to deliver “I Love It Here” to the guest; it’s to deliver it to the franchisee. That means profitable restaurants, great training and great support.At Popeyes, the turning point was realizing the franchisee was our customer. We’ll have that same culture at The Melt.Powills: What’s the dream now?Bower: I want to deliver “I Love It Here” to every state in the country. The best way to do that is with franchisees who know their markets. With the right partners, I believe we can take this nationwide.Powills: Love it, Ralph. Seeing this in action changed my perception. The foundation here is incredibly strong. The sky’s the limit. Thank you for sharing your story.Bower: Thank you, Nick. I appreciate the time.Powills: For Ralph, I’m Nick. This was another episode of “Meet the Franchise.”Watch the full interview&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/live/IMQtmYsiEmA?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-melt-ceo-ralph-bower-franchise-growth-strategy-2731478" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

The Melt Franchise Strategy: CEO Ralph Bower on Scaling Restaurant AUVs

1851 Franchise

https://www.youtube.com/embed/IMQtmYsiEmA

CEO Ralph Bower discusses the "I Love It Here" philosophy that took The Melt to $3.5 million in average unit volume and why simple execution is the key to his new national franchise expansion. 

How Military Leadership and Operational Discipline Drove The Melt to Record-Breaking AUVs

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What does a three-star admiral’s aide in the Pentagon have in common with a manager in training at Domino’s Pizza? For&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475/">Ralph Bower</a>, CEO of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">The Melt</a>, the answer is everything.&nbsp;In this&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMQtmYsiEmA">episode of the “Meet the Franchise” podcast</a>, 1851 Franchise Publisher&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/powills/">Nick Powills</a> sat down with the man who traded a prestigious military career for a $4.75-an-hour entry-level restaurant job because he saw a newspaper ad claiming pizza managers made more than admirals. That leap of faith kicked off an impressive trajectory through the executive ranks of Yum! Brands, Popeyes and Domino’s, led Bower to his current mission: transforming The Melt from a startup into a high-volume powerhouse.Under Bower’s leadership, The Melt didn’t just grow. It exploded. By stripping away complex corporate mission statements and replacing them with a single core value, he pushed average unit volume from a modest $700,000 to a staggering $3.5 million, with some locations topping $6 million.As The Melt prepares to bring its fanatical culture to the national stage through franchising, Bower shares the operational playbook he learned at sea and perfected in the kitchen.A transcript of Bower’s interview with Powills has been provided below. It has been edited for style, brevity and clarity.Nick Powills: All right, Ralph. I usually start with a scripted question, and I’m still going to ask it in some form. You’ve got plenty of credibility, so you don’t need to give the full backstory. I usually ask how people accidentally fell into franchising, because everyone seems to fall into it. Start with your story before The Melt, then we’ll get into The Melt.Ralph Bower: I came to franchising in a pretty unconventional way. I went to Annapolis, was aboard a ship and then stationed in the Pentagon. While I was there, I was getting ready to go back to sea and saw an ad in the newspaper saying Domino’s Pizza store managers were making more than the admiral I was working for.I thought, “I think I could be an average Domino’s Pizza store manager.” So I went from being an admiral’s aide to a three-star admiral in the Pentagon to being a manager in training at Domino’s making $4.75 an hour. I had a 1-year-old at the time. I’m proud that it only took me six months to work my way up to $5.25 an hour.But I worked my way up through the Domino’s system and then spent several great years at Yum!, eventually becoming COO and president of Popeyes and CEO of Pei Wei.Powills: I hear something in that opening story that I think will matter as we go: A military background teaches operational discipline better than almost any other kind of training. You didn’t have a traditional restaurant background when you saw that ad. Did your time in the military set you up for success? Did it give you a playbook you could rely on when you got to Domino’s?Bower: I think running a restaurant is more similar to being in the military than one might guess. The first thing the military teaches you is how to work with people from all walks of life. Aboard a ship, you’re going to have people who are extraordinarily smart and people who maybe aren’t. You’re going to have extremely hard workers and others not so much. You’ll have people with a ton of natural talent who need very little leadership and others who need a lot more. That’s not all that different from being in a restaurant. One of the things I love about the restaurant business is the opportunity to work with an extraordinarily varied cross-section of people.Great leaders figure out how to adapt their leadership style to what each individual needs. Those individuals shouldn’t have to adapt to you. You learn that in the military and it’s true in restaurants.People often say it must be easier in the military because everyone has to do what you tell them to do. But that’s an extraordinarily broad misconception. The military is no different than anywhere else. The best way to build alignment and a team is through influence. It’s always better to lead people to self-discovery than to force them to do things your way.Powills: Another aspect that seems transferable is the ability to deal with crises. Business owners who can push through brick walls succeed and those who can’t stall out. Is that another part of this?Bower: I definitely think that’s true. I talk about three principles of running a shift at The Melt: be in charge, give direction and attack bottlenecks. That’s true in anything you do. In a crisis, you want a leader who’s in charge and giving direction. Where things break down is when leaders go silent. The crises in the military are different from those in restaurants, but the leadership requirement is the same.Powills: You’re a humble guy, but I’m going to say this: your principles and philosophy on leadership give foundational elements from the bottom all the way to the top. And they carry on beyond Domino’s, Popeyes or Pei Wei.Is part of the magic that instead of putting pressure on the business, you put pressure on operational leadership and people development?Bower: People misunderstand what makes a restaurant successful. As leaders, it’s important to take the complicated and make it simple. I always say simple is better than perfect.I believe two things are required to be a great restaurant company: You have to run great restaurants and you have to have great food. If you do those two things, you’ll be successful.Most people understand the great food part. What’s harder to grasp is how important it is to run great restaurants. That’s the blocking and tackling you do every day, and it’s probably more important than the food.During COVID-19, over an 18-month period, our sales more than doubled and nearly tripled. If we hadn’t had the processes and systems to run great restaurants, guests would have come once, seen chaos and never returned.The reason we’ve quintupled our average unit volumes is that when the business came, we were fanatical about running great restaurants. Today, our average unit volumes are $3.5 million. We have several restaurants over $5 million and a couple over $6 million. Back when our AUVs were $700,000, we were just as fanatical about what we called peak-period performance.What we thought was a peak period at $700,000 is very different at $6 million. But because we built those foundational steps early, we were ready when sales came.Powills: That speaks to negative and positive crises. At $700,000 or $6 million, you still need a leader who calms nerves and keeps consistency so things don’t go off track.Bower: I was fortunate early in my career to meet Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino’s. He was a former Marine and I was a former Navy guy. I asked him one day, “What’s the best way to raise sales in a restaurant?” He said, “Handle the rush.”That’s what he told every franchisee. Handle the rush. I think that gets lost sometimes. I talk to my operators seven days a week at 9 a.m., and we talk about how we handled the rush the night before.If you handle the rush and deliver what we call an “I Love It Here” experience, guests will come back.Powills: Handling the rush applies to customers, but also to your staff. Showing compassion, empathy and appreciation afterward matters too.Bower: Absolutely. The guest experience will never exceed the team member experience. If you don’t deliver an “I Love It Here” experience to your team, it’s hard for them to deliver it to guests.We had a situation recently where two team members had to leave early due to a family emergency. We were short-staffed for hours late at night. Service suffered a little. But what I thought about the next morning was the stress on those team members.Powills: You once told me you only have one core value: “I Love It Here.” You shared a story about an employee who didn’t speak English and what that meant to you. Why just one core value?Bower: Leaders need to make things easy to execute. When I first came to The Melt, our average unit volumes were about $700,000. I thought $1.5 million would be nirvana.I’m fanatical about guest feedback. One day, a guest review at one of our highest-volume restaurants said, “I love it here.” I started thinking about what would happen if every guest felt that way. Within weeks, we ripped up every mission and vision statement and replaced them with one goal: deliver an “I Love It Here” experience to every guest. We don’t tell our teams how to do it. Twice a day we rally and ask team members what “I Love It Here” means to them. And then we say, “Just do that.”I’ve worked for companies with beautiful mission statements that never translated to the restaurant level. At The Melt, any team member can tell you our number one goal.I once asked a team member who spoke almost no English what our goal was. Seeing him work so hard to say, in English, “Deliver an ‘I Love It Here’ experience to every guest,” gave me goosebumps.Powills: Was that a moment where you paused and realized you’d done something bigger than building a good burger brand?Bower: Absolutely. Recognition matters. I had a fry cook named Zach in downtown San Francisco. I asked him what it meant to deliver an “I Love It Here” experience on fries. He said, “I want my fries so hot they burn your hands.” I gave him a “baddest alligator in the swamp” pin in front of his team. He cried and told me it was the first recognition he’d ever received. He said he’d be buried wearing that pin.I’ve thought about that every day for the past 10 years.Powills: You’ve built volumes that put you at the top of franchising. How long did it take you to realize culture is currency?Bower: I’d like to say I knew it right away, but it took me 25 years. It wasn’t until The Melt and “I Love It Here” that I fully understood the power of alignment. Everyone has values. The magic is getting everyone aligned around them.Achieving something as a team is far more meaningful than achieving it as an individual. I learned that in the military, then again at Domino’s and throughout my career.Powills: As you launch franchising, does it worry you that franchisees need to be true extensions of the culture? And how do you build a team within a franchise system?Bower: The only people we want at The Melt are those who get excited about delivering an “I Love It Here” experience. If you can’t be fanatical about that, it’s not a fit. As a franchisor, your job isn’t to deliver “I Love It Here” to the guest; it’s to deliver it to the franchisee. That means profitable restaurants, great training and great support.At Popeyes, the turning point was realizing the franchisee was our customer. We’ll have that same culture at The Melt.Powills: What’s the dream now?Bower: I want to deliver “I Love It Here” to every state in the country. The best way to do that is with franchisees who know their markets. With the right partners, I believe we can take this nationwide.Powills: Love it, Ralph. Seeing this in action changed my perception. The foundation here is incredibly strong. The sky’s the limit. Thank you for sharing your story.Bower: Thank you, Nick. I appreciate the time.Powills: For Ralph, I’m Nick. This was another episode of “Meet the Franchise.”Watch the full interview&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/live/IMQtmYsiEmA">here</a>.

Franchising is everywhere. Burgers are everywhere. But what’s far less common is a brand that can hold up when the hype fades, labor gets tight, and guests start making real choices.“If you are going to build a great restaurant company, you have to start with great food, but great food is not enough,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475">Ralph Bower</a>, CEO of The Melt. “You have to have a brand that stands out and is differentiated…it must be special for it to be able to expand and grow.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">The Melt</a> has that and more.”The Melt, the West Coast-based burger brand, isn’t selling franchises yet, but the story is already compelling because it’s rooted in what the brand is doing today inside real, company-owned restaurants. And the corporate performance speaks loudly.<h2>A Brand Built in Company Stores (On Purpose)</h2>Plenty of brands rush to franchise before they’ve truly tested the model. Bower says The Melt did the opposite. What differentiates The Melt is that every part of the concept, from the menu to the operating rhythm to the culture, has been built, tested and refined entirely in company-owned restaurants.“Our goal was never to build a franchise business; Our goal was to build a great restaurant business,” said Bower. “When you own and operate every restaurant, there’s nowhere to hide. You feel every decision in real time. The labor, food costs, and guest experience. That work is what gives us confidence that we’re ready to introduce franchising and prepared to scale the right way.”The real breakthrough for The Melt came when they launched their signature MeltBurger alongside their amazing melted sandwiches. “Our MeltBurger has changed everything. Guests tell us every day that our burger is the best they’ve ever had. It is special and it is different from anything else you’ve ever tried. Over a third pound of angus and wagyu beef chopped with two slices of aged cheddar that melts into every nook and cranny,” said Bower.&nbsp;That shift gave the brand a clear centerpiece and something customers could build their habits around. Cheese-forward comfort food, crispy fries, and indulgent hand-spun shakes, all made with premium ingredients and no artificial additives.&nbsp;“What wins customers is that it delivers on value without cutting corners,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregvojnovic">Greg Vojnovic</a>, Head of Franchising for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">The Melt</a>. “You’re getting a premium burger at a price point that makes sense, and that consistency keeps people coming back.”From a franchising standpoint, that simplicity matters, Vojnovic says. Customers understand the menu instantly and when restaurant brands execute reliably, they tend to scale better than concepts built on complexity.&nbsp;“If you go into a Melt, it is very relaxed,” Vojnovic said. “We are busy, but the execution piece is straightforward. At The Melt, hospitality and friendliness are top-notch. Our teams enjoy being there, and that energy shows up in the guest experience. That culture of hospitality and commitment is what builds loyalty with the customer.”Today, the Melt operates 19 company-owned locations, including one non-traditional food court unit with eight more restaurants either under construction or in development, and plans for more growth. The geographic concentration in the West is intentional. Rather than racing to plant flags nationwide, The Melt has stayed focused on the work that actually determines long-term success.<h2>Corporate Performance Under Real-World Conditions</h2>Because all locations are currently company-owned, The Melt can speak openly about corporate performance.“Our company-owned locations have a $3.4+ million AUV with the top third of locations averaging over $5.0 million,” Vojnovic said. He also points to standout locations, including a 1,900 square foot Stanford-area restaurant doing more than $6 million annually despite being an in-line unit with only a small patio. In our industry, many talk about operators having ‘skin in the game’. Here at The Melt, we’re living that. We are focused on operating successful and profitable restaurants.”These results are backed by a few key operational strengths. Through its “Melt After Dark” strategy, restaurants generate nearly 40% of sales after 8 p.m, which is a daypart most fast-casual brands simply ignore. The Melt realized that when the setup is right, high-quality burgers actually travel very well, and The Melt has fully embraced off-premise instead of fighting it.“There’s no specialized equipment, no over-engineering,” Vojnovic said. “Two clamshell grills, two fryers, two 20-inch impingers, a shake machine, walk-in refrigeration and prep tables. We have a very durable, straightforward operating model. High sales, strong profitability. What’s not to love?”<h2>Leadership That Knows Restaurants and Franchising</h2>For prospective franchisees, leadership and support often matter as much as the menu. Vojnovic is quick to point to the operating and financial discipline behind the brand.<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475">Ralph Bower</a>, for example, brings decades of big-brand operating experience to his role as CEO of The Melt. A seasoned restaurant executive with more than 25 years in senior leadership, Bower previously served as CEO of Pei Wei. Before that, he was president of the U.S. division at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and held senior leadership roles with Yum! Brands, KFC and Domino’s Pizza.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-federico-b20384161?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F">Rick Federico</a>, a board member of The Melt, is a seasoned restaurant industry executive and board leader with decades of experience scaling and leading national brands. He previously served as chairman and CEO of P.F. Chang’s, where he spent nearly two decades guiding the company’s growth.John Morlock, VP of Operations The Melt, is a seasoned restaurant industry executive with decades of experience in operating leading national brands. He previously served as COO of PotBelly, COO of Sbarro and as an operator and executive of Boston Chicken.<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/renaescottmarketing/">Renae Scott</a> is a seasoned Chief Marketing Officer with more than 20 years of experience driving growth for leading franchise restaurant brands including Carl’s Jr., Round Table Pizza, Togo’s, and The Melt. She specializes in building marketing platforms that increase unit-level sales, strengthen franchisee profitability, and support successful new market expansion. Recognized by the Carl’s Jr. franchise organization for her outstanding contribution to franchisee performance and system growth, Renae brings deep expertise in digital strategy, loyalty ecosystems, local store marketing, and brand transformation. She is known for aligning brand vision with operator success and delivering measurable, sustainable results across franchise systemsVojnovic himself brings decades of experience in franchise development and restaurant growth. His career includes leading development efforts at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, where he helped reposition the brand and more than double the system size, adding over 1,000 new Popeyes restaurants, as well as serving as chief development officer at Arby’s during a period that returned the brand to net positive unit growth. He later helped create Inspire Brands as employee #6 following Arby’s acquisition of Buffalo Wild Wings.<h2>Why The Melt Looks Ready to Franchise</h2>At this stage of the brand’s evolution, the direction is clear and it’s grounded in purpose as much as performance.“Our goal has always been to deliver an ‘I Love It Here’ experience to every guest,” Bower said. “By staying nimble, innovative, and guest-focused, we’ve grown sales fivefold. Now we’re ready to thoughtfully expand, sharing the world’s meltiest burgers with even more fans.”That mission-led mindset is shaping how The Melt approaches franchising.This article and the information contained on this website are for information purposes only. This is not an offer to sell a franchise. Any offer to sell a franchise will only be made pursuant to a Franchise Disclosure Document and only following registration by Melt Franchising, LLC in any state requiring registration before sale. We are not currently offering franchises for sale, but intend to offer franchises in the&nbsp;future.For more information, visit<a href="http://www.themelt.com">&nbsp;www.themelt.com</a>.

With corporate restaurants averaging around $3.4 million in annual sales, a streamlined kitchen and a hospitality-first culture, The Melt is crafting a franchise model designed for serious operators.

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LOS ANGELES —&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">The Melt</a>, the fast-casual brand known for its signature MeltBurger and home to the “World's Meltiest Burger”, has named&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregvojnovic">Greg Vojnovic</a> as head of franchising as it prepares to expand beyond its current company-owned footprint in California and Arizona.Vojnovic brings over 30 years of experience in restaurant and franchise development to the role. A third-generation restaurateur, gold medalist in the U.S. Chef’s Open and former “Hot Concept of the Year” operator, he has held senior leadership roles across some of the industry’s most recognizable brands. His career includes leading development efforts at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, where he helped reposition the brand and double its size by adding more than 1,000 restaurants. He also served as Chief Development Officer at Arby’s during a period when the brand returned to net-positive unit growth. Following Arby’s acquisition of Buffalo Wild Wings, he helped in the creation of Inspire Brands as the sixth employee hired.&nbsp;Most recently, Vojnovic served as a restaurant operator and consultant, advising brands on growth strategy and acquiring and operating multi-unit restaurant portfolios across multiple brands and states.Vojnovic joined The Melt following a strategic consulting engagement that began in the fall, during which he worked closely with the leadership team to assess the brand’s readiness for franchising. That process led to the creation of a new franchising entity and Vojnovic’s transition into a full-time leadership role.“There was no assumption that franchising was the next step,” said&nbsp;<a href="http://linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475">Ralph Bower</a>, CEO of The Melt. “The real question was whether The Melt had all the pieces that make a concept durable and appealing over the long term. Great food alone is not enough. After going through the business, the operations, the culture and the economics, we concluded that offering a franchising opportunity in addition to our company expansion would be an attractive and responsible next move for this brand.”Unlike many emerging concepts, The Melt has historically operated entirely through company-owned restaurants, an approach Bower believes gives the brand a meaningful advantage as it enters franchising.“Everything here has been built, tested, and refined in company stores,” Bower said. “The operating model is tight. The culture is authentic. And the food delivers every single time.”At the center of the menu is the MeltBurger, the brand’s signature offering and the foundation of its identity. Each MeltBurger features a craveable blend of 100% all-natural Angus and Wagyu beef, cooked on the grill and smothered in aged cheddar, with the brand’s house-made pickle-jalapeño mix.&nbsp;“You walk into a Melt and it’s busy, but it’s also relaxed,” said Vojnovic. “Execution is straightforward. There’s no specialized equipment, no over-engineering. Two clamshell grills, two fryers, two impingers, a shake machine, and smart prep. It’s a durable kitchen designed to support high volume, strong profitability, and a reasonable investment. That combination is hard to find.”Today, the brand boasts average unit volumes of approximately $3.4 million across its corporate locations open for more than 12 months and over $5 million for the top third of company restaurants open for more than a year. Those results are supported by a streamlined kitchen design, a strong late-night and delivery business, and a culture centered on delivering an “I Love It Here” experience to every guest.At the heart of that momentum is a leadership team deeply rooted in restaurant operations.“Ralph Bower is a proven, operator-first leader,” Vojnovic said. “From his time as President of Popeyes and CEO of Pei Wei, he understands how to build brands that last. Rick Federico brings decades of experience scaling iconic restaurant concepts as the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of P.F. Chang's China Bistro, Inc., and Norman Award recipient. This is a team with a real, battle-tested perspective and that matters when you’re building for long-term growth.”As Head of Franchising, Vojnovic will oversee the development of The Melt’s franchise platform, including franchisee recruitment, market strategy and long-term system growth.&nbsp;“Our mission at The Melt is to deliver an ‘I Love It Here’ experience to every guest,” said Vojnovic. “By staying nimble and relentlessly guest-focused, we’ve grown sales fivefold. Now, we’re ready to thoughtfully expand beyond California and share the world’s meltiest burgers with even more fans.”Vojnovic emphasized that franchising will follow the same disciplined, operator-first mindset that has guided the brand’s turnaround and growth.“This is not about selling out the map,” said Bower. “We’re taking a disciplined, operator-first approach to franchising, and bringing Greg on full-time is a critical part of that strategy. He understands what it takes to build restaurant brands and scalable franchise systems. Our responsibility is to protect the brand, support our franchise partners and make sure this opportunity is built for long-term success. Greg is the right leader to help us do that.”Now, with its franchising infrastructure in place, The Melt is excited to start welcoming experienced operators who align with the brand’s culture and operational standards.&nbsp;“The Melt is being handcrafted to be one of the best franchise brands in America,” Vojnovic said. “And we’re going to take the time to do it right.”About The MeltFounded in San Francisco in 2011, The Melt is on a mission to serve the world’s meltiest, most craveable comfort food-made entirely with 100% all-natural ingredients and no artificial additives, ever. Best known for its signature MeltBurger-a bold blend of premium Angus and Wagyu beef, topped with aged cheddar, house-made pickle-jalapeño mix, and served on a toasted artisan bun-The MeltBurger delivers unforgettable flavor in every bite. The menu features juicy MeltBurgers, toasty grilled melts, crispy buttermilk-brined chicken, creamy mac &amp; cheese, skin-on fries seasoned with custom Melt Spice, and thick, hand-spun shakes. Every item on the menu is made with real, high-quality ingredients you can feel good about. Recognized as one of the Top 20 Fast Casual Restaurants for Guest Satisfaction by Nation’s Restaurant News and a Top 50 Brand in Fast Casual’s 2025 Top 100 Movers &amp; Shakers, The Melt is rapidly becoming a standout in the fast casual space. With industry-leading sales comps and double-digit year-over-year growth, the brand is expanding quickly-including recent openings in Arizona and Davis, CA. Whether it’s your first visit or your fiftieth, The Melt delivers bold flavors, feel-good vibes, and warm hospitality that keeps guests saying, “I love it here.” Learn more at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.themelt.com">www.themelt.com</a> or follow @TheMelt on social media.&nbsp;

image of Greg Vojnovic,  Head of Franchising for The Melt

Veteran restaurant executive brings decades of franchise experience as the World’s Meltiest Burger brand prepares to launch its franchising platform.

The Melt Welcomes Greg Vojnovic as Head of Franchising to Lead its National Expansion

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Most restaurant turnarounds start with a bold new idea.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">The Melt’s</a> started with two simple questions.“When I joined The Melt in August of 2016, I asked our guests and our crew members: If you were CEO of The Melt, what would you change - and what would you never change?” said CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475/">Ralph Bower</a>. “We received over 1,000 replies.&nbsp; That input became the backbone of everything we’ve built.”What followed was not a quick fix, but a disciplined rebuild. The leadership team listened closely, tightened operational fundamentals, and aligned the organization around a singular goal: delivering an “I Love It Here” experience for every guest, every visit.Fast forward nearly 10 years, and all that hard work has totally transformed The Melt into a fast-casual spot that handles big crowds, is open late, uses smart tech and is designed from the ground up for profitable franchise expansion.<h2>A Turnaround Rooted in Operational Discipline and Guest-Led Insights</h2>Before changing the menu or accelerating growth, The Melt focused on fundamentals. Bower personally visited every restaurant to identify where the experience was breaking down.“If you're going to have a great restaurant company, you have to run great restaurants. At the time, we lacked some of the most basic operational disciplines that make restaurants successful,” Bower said. “Guests were standing in long lines just to place an order. Something as simple as adding a second register and closely monitoring service levels immediately improved the experience.”Those early fixes set the tone for the broader turnaround. The Melt clarified standards, established accountability, and ensured that every improvement was tied directly to the guest experience.Still, Bower is quick to note that operational excellence alone doesn’t create demand.“You can’t operate your way out of an average product,” he said. “We had to ask ourselves a hard question: Is our food truly as good as it could be? And what makes it special?”<h2>A Differentiated Brand Experience That Drives Demand and Loyalty</h2>In 2017, The Melt rebuilt its menu from the ground up. Anything guests felt they could easily make at home didn’t make the cut.“Our Grilled Cheese sandwich was good,” Bower said. “But people told us, ‘I can make that at home.’ So we created our “Three-Cheese Classic.” An indulgent, unique and unmistakably Melty Grilled Cheese sandwich that our customers think is the best they’ve ever had.”That same philosophy guided the development of the MeltBurger, now the brand’s signature item. Made with a third-pound blend of 100% all-natural Angus and Wagyu beef, chopped and smothered in aged cheddar right on the grill through a proprietary cooking process, it delivers a craveable, melty experience guests can’t replicate anywhere else.&nbsp; It is unique….it is differentiated….and it is unforgettable.”“We even created a specialized chopper so the cheese and our house-made pickle-jalapeño mix melt directly into the burger as it cooks,” Bower said. “That’s how you get what people now call the ‘World’s Meltiest Burger.’”In early 2019, a single guest review helped crystallize the brand’s direction.“I read a review from our Stanford location that simply said, ‘I just love it here,’” Bower said. “The ‘I Love It Here’ philosophy became our mission. Every guest. Every visit. Every team member. That’s not a tagline. It’s how we decide what belongs and what doesn’t.”That philosophy extends beyond guests to the people running the restaurants.“The guest experience will never exceed the crew member experience,” Bower said.During the pandemic, that belief was put into action as The Melt continued paying team members during closures and provided free meals to first responders.“It wasn’t a PR move,” Bower said. “It was about doing the right thing.”The result has been uncommon stability in leadership. Nearly all of the brand’s general managers have been with The Melt for five years or longer, providing consistency, stronger training, and operational continuity across locations.<h2>Built to Win Where Others Can’t: Late-Night, Tech-Forward and Market-Smart</h2>One of The Melt’s most powerful differentiators is its late-night business.“Most fast-casual places close around 9 or 10 p.m., but The Melt decided to keep their doors open until 2 a.m. or even later in many locations,” Bower said. “Our move to focus on late night came about by listening to our guests. In most areas guests are left with fast food as their only option late-night. We decided to change that”&nbsp;&nbsp;Technology plays a supporting role, not a leading one. The brand has implemented DoorDash smart scales to reduce order errors, large-format kiosks to improve throughput and average check, and a growing loyalty program to drive repeat visits.“We don’t chase trends,” Bower said. “We implement tech that solves real problems.”<h2>Why The Melt Is Ready for Franchising</h2>Looking ahead, The Melt is using its “Live, Work, Play, Learn” approach to target high-traffic areas that draw mixed crowds, especially late-night customers, while keeping day-to-day operations efficient. With the average corporate location pulling in about $3.4 million in sales in a 1,900 to 2,300 sq. ft. endcap, the company can grow at a comfortable, efficient pace rather than being pressured into expanding too fast.“Our mission at The Melt is to deliver an ‘I Love It Here’ experience to every guest,” Bower said. “By staying nimble, innovative, and guest-focused, we’ve grown sales fivefold and are now expanding beyond California and sharing the world’s meltiest burgers with even more fans.”The brand’s growth philosophy remains deliberate.“We’re not trying to be the biggest brand out there,” Bower said. “We’re building something that lasts. Something people love.”For experienced operators seeking a long-term opportunity, The Melt’s journey offers a clear signal. The brand’s success was not overnight. It was earned through years of listening, refining, and executing with intention.“And when guests walk in and say, ‘I love it here,’” Bower said, “that’s when you know you’re doing something right.”For more information, visit:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">https://www.meltfranchising.com/</a>.

Over the past decade, The Melt successfully overhauled everything from its menu to its operations. Now, the brand is ready for franchise expansion in busy markets.

The Melt’s Fast Casual Turnaround Built for Franchise Growth

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<a href="https://www.themelt.com/">The Melt</a>, the tech-forward, fast-casual sensation known for its innovative take on melted comfort food, is further building its Southern California presence via a new Torrance location at the Del Amo Fashion Center, according to a report by&nbsp;<a href="https://whatnow.com/los-angeles/restaurants/the-melt-planning-slated-to-join-del-amo-fashion-center-in-torrance/">What Now Los Angeles</a>. This marks another strategic win for the chain as it brings its signature "I Love It Here" culture to one of the largest shopping malls in the United States.The Torrance move signifies a disciplined growth strategy. It’s also one that reflects a calculated move into high-traffic retail. Founded in California’s Bay Area in 2011,&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/the-melt/info">The Melt</a> has grown from a California favorite into a powerhouse with a broader presence. With 11 locations in Northern California, six in Southern California and two in Arizona, the brand is leveraging its popularity to bridge the gap between regional cult favorite and national contender. The new announcement follows previously reported plans for upcoming California locations in Long Beach and Hollywood Park, signaling a concerted effort to embrace the Los Angeles metro area and beyond.&nbsp;What sets The Melt apart in an increasingly crowded fast-casual sector, and what makes the Del Amo expansion particularly noteworthy, is the brand’s commitment to quality and technology. The Melt has built a loyal following through its specialized "MeltBurger," which features a high-quality blend of Angus and Wagyu beef. And, by combining premium ingredients with a seamless ordering experience, The Melt has created a model that thrives in high-traffic retail environments based on the concepts of speed and quality. That operational efficiency has helped it succeed in premier, high-volume shopping destinations.The Melt is part of a larger expansion trend in Southern California, highlighting a shift in the fast-casual landscape. Today, specialized single-concept brands like The Melt are gaining ground on larger competitors. By securing the new Del Amo Fashion Center location, the brand is doing more than opening another restaurant. It is positioning itself alongside larger national brands and signaling that a tech-enabled, guest-focused model is ready for bigger stages.Read the original article&nbsp;<a href="https://whatnow.com/los-angeles/restaurants/the-melt-planning-slated-to-join-del-amo-fashion-center-in-torrance/">here</a>.To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/the-melt">https://1851franchise.com/the-melt</a>.

The Melt franchise expansion, The Melt California

The new Torrance restaurant marks the brand’s latest move deeper into Southern California, pairing its MeltBurger menu with a tech-forward ordering model.

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The former CVS at Seventh Street and Bellflower Boulevard won’t sit empty much longer. California-based fast-casual burger chain&nbsp;<a href="https://meltfranchising.com/">The Melt</a> is moving into the space as part of the ongoing redevelopment at Bixby Village Plaza,&nbsp;<a href="https://hoodline.com/2026/02/goodbye-cvs-hello-grilled-cheese-chain-wave-hits-east-long-beach-corner/">Hoodline recently reported</a>, and will occupy one of four restaurant spaces carved out of the larger retail footprint near California State University, Long Beach. The opening represents the first location in Long Beach for the chain, which operates 20+ units in California and Arizona.<a href="https://lbpost.com/esd/eat-see-do-2/eat/the-melt-luna-grill-urbane-cafe-coming-to-new-restaurant-space-in-east-long-beach/">According to The Long Beach Post</a>, developer&nbsp;<a href="https://westarassociates.com/">Westar Associates</a> has finished construction on the new retail dining space, and&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/the-melt/info">The Melt</a> is completing interior construction work. The plaza location draws steady daytime traffic from the university as well as the nearby Tibor Rubin VA Medical Center in one of the area’s more active commercial corridors.The Long Beach expansion is a significant part of the brand’s broader Southern California expansion efforts. Earlier this year, The Melt announced plans to open&nbsp;<a href="https://whatnow.com/los-angeles/restaurants/the-melt-planning-major-socal-expansion-this-year/">eight new locations</a> across the area, nearly doubling its SoCal footprint. It’s an aggressive growth strategy. And it follows a successful brand pivot led by CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-bower-237b475/">Ralph Bower</a>, who continues to shift brand focus toward enhanced quality, including a proprietary burger blend of Angus and Wagyu beef and a melt-heavy menu that encourages high-frequency visits.This redevelopment is a textbook case of how modern fast-casual brands are salvaging otherwise functionally obsolete big-box retailers. By carving out a specialized space, The Melt can focus on its "I Love It Here" service philosophy without the overhead or operational drag of a massive standalone building.With signage already visible and kitchen equipment being moved in, the Bixby Village Plaza location is on track for its late summer debut. For Long Beach residents, it’s the arrival of a long-awaited comfort food staple. For the brand, it’s a major milestone in its journey to dominate the Southern California fast-casual landscape.Read the full article&nbsp;<a href="https://hoodline.com/2026/02/goodbye-cvs-hello-grilled-cheese-chain-wave-hits-east-long-beach-corner/">here</a>.To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/the-melt/">https://1851franchise.com/the-melt/</a>.

The Melt brings its signature MeltBurgers and tech-driven fast-casual dining to a strategic new restaurant hub, marking the brand’s first expansion into the high-traffic East Long Beach market.

How Military Leadership and Operational Discipline Drove The Melt to Record-Breaking AUVs

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