With many chains focusing on simple menus, La Rosa finds success with expansive all day menu through product resourcefulness and simplified kitchen operations

It’s no secret chicken is hot. Low cost, heartiness and nutritive in value, chicken QSR’s eclipsed the hamburger group in April 2016. However, the segment is fragmented: fried versus grilled, bone versus boneless, fast food versus fast casual, and lunch time versus dinnertime. La Rosa Chicken & Grill’s founder Vincenzo (“Enzo”) Pugliese aims to defragment these niches. Pugliese asserts that his restaurants successfully unite these pieces into a one-stop location with a great return on investment and simplified operations for franchisees, as the brand values taste and authenticity when it comes to its made in-house recipes.

From his operational experience at its 6 corporate restaurants and now four franchisee locations, La Rosa Chicken & Grill feels like it is positioned strongly for franchise growth because of its combination of attractive factors. It has seen positive performance and growth in its corporate locations by offering an expansive menu servicing multiple types of customers at multiple times of day with a high repeat rate. Because franchisees are only required to prepare food, not cook it, restaurant experience requirements are more limited. “Now is the time to get in on ground floor. Now you can buy units. There are not many places like us that have our kind of menu and format,” Pugliese said.

The Numbers

The business argument for La Rosa Chicken & Grill is that it focuses on bringing together fragmented chicken concepts, therefore capturing demand from multiple types of clientele over a bigger part of day than its competitors. The company’s corporate operations have been in place for more than 20 years, and Pugliese reports that these X locations have performed very well. “For the amount of investment you make, our return is much higher than similar concepts in the space. So if you are comparing our return to other concepts, you will find that the numbers speak for themselves,” he said.

Start-up costs to open a La Rosa Chicken & Grill vary from market to market based primarily on the cost of real estate.  The overall investment ranges from $273,800 to $456,500.  This range includes a one-time franchise fee of $35,000.  As with most franchises, La Rosa Chicken & Grill collects a 6% royalty on gross sales to cover ongoing training and support, and for continuing use of the franchise license, marks, etc. More information can be found in the Item 7 of its Franchise Disclosure Document.

No Restaurant Experience Necessary

Offering an expensive menu, La Rosa Chicken & Grill sounds complex, but the company says no cooking is done on site sight; just food preparation and serving the final product. The company has commissaries that prepares, cooks and delivers to franchisees several times a week. The franchisees’ staff prepares the meal and serves it, meaning a limited kitchen need from an operational point of view.

For franchisees not located near La Rosa Chicken & Grill’s home base, the product can be mass produced and distributed. Because of the simplicity of the business model, the customer gets more and so does the franchisee. “We are many concepts put neatly together and focus on being simple for the operator to operate. We teach them how to present and serve food that’s made from ingredients that aren’t overly processed yet can be mass distributed through our network. It takes a big load off their back. We give them something made from scratch that’s very quality oriented. If you dedicate yourself to following the protocol, it works. It’s not complicated,” Pugliese said.

Multiple Types of Customers

The concept is different because it appeals to chicken consumers among many demographics. La Rosa Chicken & Grill offers a well balanced menu with complete meal options at lunch and at dinner. “Another well-known chain had a lunch problem; lunches were slow. We have had lunch salads, wraps and soups from day one. But we also have a dinner menu, and we are busy for lunch and dinner.  No one else has a menu that satisfies so many different types of clientele during more parts of the day than we do. We are unique. You can be as healthy or as hearty as you like,” Pugliese said.

For example, La Rosa Chicken & Grill sells heartier chicken tenders, wings and fries, but it also sells rotisseries, steamed vegetables and salads.

“Longtime customers at my locations have come up to me and said their kids were raised on La Rosa Chicken & Grill because it was a good choice to provide lunch and dinner options to satisfy everyone in the family,” Pugliese said. “There aren’t a lot of concepts offering a menu like ours. They don’t have grill and rotisserie and tenders and wings. We have a proven format that all works together hand in hand. Even if we are in the same market space as other chicken concepts, we don’t mimic them; we stand on our own.”

Repeat Rate

Pugliese emphasizes the restaurant’s reputation for repeat customers.

“You can eat over and over at La Rosa Chicken & Grill and not get tired. We have repeat customers who come in four to five times a week. Our product can be re-consumed over and over. It is price point effective for our customers and its simple ingredients appeals to families who want to provide wholesome meals to their families,” Pugliese said.

Potential Franchisees

La Rosa Chicken & Grill is looking for candidates who have experience owning a franchise. Pugliese ideally wants owner operators.

“We are looking for people who are business oriented and can put his or her heart and soul into the business. Anyone who has owned a business would be a good fit,” he said.

So far, La Rosa Chicken & Grill has awarded four franchises. One franchisee is a former police officer and longtime customer, one already owns an Italian deli and wanted to add to it. A third owned multiple pharmacies and gyms and was also a longtime customer who saw the potential to go big. “If we have the right franchisee, this concept can work anywhere,” Pugliese said.