How a Host at 810 Billiards & Bowling Became a Corporate Executive in Just 3 Years

In 2018 Kendall Cheri took a position as a host lead at her local 810 Billiards & Bowling, the six-unit bowling, dining and entertainment franchise. Today, she’s the brand’s director of operations, playing an integral role in the growth of the emerging franchise. How did a store-level employee rise through the ranks to the brand’s executive team in such a short time? She says it all comes down to shared values.

For four years before joining 810, Cheri had worked as the food and beverage director at a local retirement home in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. There, she befriended an elderly couple who were regulars in the dining hall.

“You get very close with people,” said Cheri. “Especially since eating is kind of the highlight of their day at that time in their life. That’s when they get to socialize with everybody in the community. As an employee, you’re a big part of that experience.”

The couple she remembers most is a husband and wife who lived in separate parts of the facility. The husband suffered from dementia. He lived in the memory care branch of the facility, while his wife stayed in general assisted living. So for them, meals together were sacred. Cheri had a front-row seat for many of those meals.

Then, one day, on the assisted living side, the wife passed away. Three days later, her husband died.

“It broke my heart,” said Cheri. “I kind of looked at them like grandparents who I talked to all the time and helped take care of. They were very sweet individuals.”

Feeling the weight of the couple’s deaths, Cheri realized she had let her work in nursing homes become too personal, so she decided to step away in search of a new career path. At home and in between jobs, she saw that across the street from her apartment in Myrtle Beach, a new 810 Billiards & Bowling was being built.

An emerging franchise at the time — and one still building momentum in 2022 — 810 Billiards & Bowling is a classic bowling alley concept with an upscale twist. The franchise bills itself aptly as an “eatertainment,” combining a full-service dining-and-bar model with a range of entertainment options from bowling lanes to live music, billiard tables, a bustling arcade, classic board games, mini-golf and more.

Cheri saw the “Now Hiring” sign outside the new location, so she filled out an application and secured a job as a host lead. It was meant to be a stopgap. “I was looking for something to do while I figured out what I really wanted to do,” she said.

That was in 2018. Three years later, in the fall of 2021, after several promotions in rapid succession, she accepted a corporate role as Director of Operations, tasked with helping lead 810 Billiards & Bowling into the future as it aims to reach 250 total stores in the next 10 years.

“For us, the most important thing we look for in both employees and franchisees is a shared philosophy of putting people first and standing behind what we say we’re going to do,” said Michael Siniscalchi, 810’s Founder and CEO. “So when we find those people, we don’t just hang on to them; we empower them and reward them with support and facilitate ways for them to grow within our company and advance our culture. Kendall is definitely one of those people.”

Just a few months into her new executive role, 1851 Franchise caught up with Cheri to discuss her journey, her priorities as director of operations and how 810 became the opportunity she didn’t know she was looking for.

1851 Franchise: You’ve moved up the chain so fast at 810 Billiards and Bowling. What has that experience been like? Give us the journey.

Kendall Cheri: So I started as a host lead, which is basically just a shift lead but specifically for the host department. The general manager at the time found out that I had a background in food and beverage and that I was strong in the kitchen. So one night, about two months into my employment, we were getting really busy so he called me and said, “Hey, can you come into the kitchen?” I was like, “Uh, sure.” I helped them out in the kitchen that night, and after that, they promoted me to a floor manager. 

Four months after that, they made me assistant general manager at the Conway, South Carolina location that had just opened. Four months after that, I became the general manager of that location. Then, about a year and a half ago, Mike [Siniscalchi] asked if I would be interested in doing some additional work alongside my general manager duties, and I said, “Absolutely. I’d love the challenge.” I worked alongside him for about six months before they offered me the role of director of operations.

1851: Wow. So it happened that fast?

Cheri: Yeah. I started in 2018 and was offered the director position in 2021.

1851: What was it about 810 and about the brand that made you want to continue to grow with them and be more involved?

Cheri: Mainly the culture. I had worked in hospitality and was never really happy with the culture. You know, the fast food and restaurant mentality is usually to just come to work, make my tips and go home. It’s never like that at 810. They’ve created such a team dynamic from Mike and Charlotte [Siniscalchi] to management, all the way down to the bussers. And that created an immediate emotional connection to the company for me because you don't see businesses run like that very often.

1851: What opportunity did you see for yourself at 810?

Cheri: Well, it intrigued me that it was such a young company. A short time after I started in 2018, we grew by two units. Seeing that, I realized there was so much opportunity for rapid growth, and that automatically sparked my interest. 

But it’s also how we’ve grown. Even as we’ve added new units, we’ve always maintained a 100% open-door policy. You hear a lot of companies say that, but here, we really live it. I have staff members in Arizona who’ll call me in South Carolina and say, “Hey, I've got an issue. How do I get this fixed?” And I either help them or find somebody who can. I know 98% of all the employees' names at our company. We look out for each other. We keep it very close-knit and make sure everyone feels valued. You don't find that very frequently.

1851: How important is it to you to continue that tradition and advance that culture?

Cheri: That's my number two priority. My number one priority is obviously to continue to build our brand, enhance our connection throughout the communities we’re in and continue to grow the business. But number two is that culture. You can't succeed in a business without having a positive culture because it’s your employees who make you successful. So this culture is very important to me.

1851: What would you say 810 is doing well right now?

Cheri: Customer service and connections. You never get bored at 810, guests and employees alike. There's always something to do. We’re here to engage with our guests. Say you have a guest who's struggling with bowling — you have a two-year-old in there, right? You pull over the little dinosaur ramp, help them get the ball up there and help them get it down the lane. That’s a small thing, but it’s going to create a connection with those guests. It shows those parents, Hey, we're not just here to serve you and take your money. We're here to have fun with you. To make sure you have the best experience you can possibly have.

1851: What do you look for in a franchisee?

Cheri: Someone who shares our core values. There are really four. First, we have transparency, which is a huge one for me. Then it’s the “we before me” mentality, which is really a “family first” kind of thing. You have to be approachable, which goes back to the open-door policy and is right in line with everything we do here at 810. And lastly, it’s going the extra frame, which just means making sure that you do everything in your power to make sure our guests have the best experience possible and you create that connection that comes back to us as repeat business.

1851: Did I catch a bowling pun in there?

Cheri: Yeah — going the extra frame. It’s a big part of what we do.

1851: If I was a potential franchisee, what would your elevator pitch be?

Cheri: I'm not a salesperson. I'm no good at that. The only thing I have for you on that one is that you will have our full support. We're 100% behind the success of all 810s, whether it's corporate or a franchise. We look at them the same. We give them the same benefits. The same resources. We're here to help you succeed because we can’t succeed without our employees and franchisees.

1851: What goals does 810 have for future growth?

Cheri: Our 10-year goal is to have 250 locations — a mix of franchise and corporate. And I just think that's an amazing goal to be working towards. We have six units open now and we have two in the pipeline for February. It’s picking up quickly. It’s an exciting time at 810.

1851: Finally, what goals do you have for yourself in this new director of operations role?

Cheri: Just to continue to learn. It's been a great opportunity for me. But no one is perfect. No one has all the knowledge, myself included. I'm young. I’m 31. So I’m trying to soak up as much as I can from my director of marketing, my director of sales, and Mike himself. I love learning every aspect of the business. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my time at 810 it’s that you never really know what's in store for you. Sometimes you just have to trust the process. It's been a wonderful journey for me, and I look forward to continuing to learn and grow.

The total investment necessary to begin operation of an 810 Billiards & Bowling franchise is $1,427,500 to $2,474,000, including a $50,000 franchise fee. For more information on franchising with 810 Billiards & Bowling, visit 810bowling.com/franchising.