Why the Famous Toastery Model Makes Good Business Sense

When entrepreneur’s explore opportunities in the restaurant industry, QSR franchise brands are hot on their radar. They’re proven models, often the products and labor are cost effective and many brands have become household names, making marketing a whole lot easier. But once potential franchisees dig a little deeper into their research they find that many QSR opportunities also present a challenge, in that they are 16, 18 or sometimes even 24 hour per day, 7 day a week businesses. And often times a lifestyle lacking in work-life balance is a key reason people seek new business opportunities.

With the ability to fill this niche need for restaurant opportunities that still offer a healthy work-life balance; enter Famous Toastery, a leader in the brunch segment. The brand leadership is predicting another year of substantial growth in 2016; and not only because breakfast is one of the hottest trends in the restaurant business today.

“Breakfast is something people eat every day, whether it’s a piece of toast and a cup of coffee or a full meal. Brunch is continually gaining popularity all across the country,” said Famous Toastery CEO, Robert Maynard. “So we’re not only the better breakfast leader with our food quality, but entrepreneurs are taking note of our business model and realizing you can be in the restaurant business and still enjoy life - those two elements combined have put us in a tremendous spot for growth in 2016 and beyond.”

Specializing solely on breakfast, brunch and lunch, Famous Toastery prides itself on being a one-shift operation, serving customers for 8 hours per day. Franchisees and their staff are able to come to work daily and still have time in the day to be with their families. Some may initially look at this and think with a business that’s only open 8 hours per day, you’ll only make 8 hours per day level revenue, but that’s where people end up pleasantly surprised.

Take for example popular QSR brand Noodles & Company. Most locations have operating hours from 10:30 or 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. - typically between a 10 and 11 hour day. According to the company's FDD (Franchise Disclosure Document) the AUV (Average Unit Volume) for a single location is $1.15 million per year. Famous Toastery has achieved an impressive AUV of $1.49 million per year.

How is this possible? A combination of high quality ingredients and menu items offer the ability to serve customers at just a slightly higher price point than your average QSR while maintaining high demand for the product.

With one shift per day, franchisees’ hiring needs are less. You don’t need multiple managers to cover multiple shifts or multiple hostesses. With the full service model, servers and kitchen staff are relying heavily on gratuity to supplement their income.

The breakfast model is also one that provides a unique opportunity for regular customers—people will typically eat breakfast every day, whereas foods like burgers and pizzas are only reserved for special occasions. With breakfast, between the necessity of the meal and the wide variety of menu options Famous Toastery sees 35 percent of its customer base more than once per week.

Through a combination of taking advantage of an otherwise untapped market, developing a product that speaks for itself and finding a sweet spot in pricing, Maynard and his team take pride in having created a business model where franchisees can make a million and a half dollars a year and beyond, and still only work 8 hours per day.

Click here to learn more about Famous Toastery.