Young Ones to Watch Update: Austin Evans of Lean Kitchen Company

In 2016, Austin Evans and partner J.R. Robinson had a pretty good business idea.  

The meal prep business was booming, but they felt no one was addressing healthier options. By the time we caught up with Evans last year and selected him as one of our Young Ones to Watch, business was booming with 10 franchisees across four states.  

But with the pandemic wreaking havoc on the economy, we wondered: Could young guys like 27-year-old Evans sustain the momentum?  
 
Let’s find out. 

1851 Franchise: Remind me what Lean Kitchen does. 

Austin/J.R So basically, we're the fastest growing meal prep company in the country that's franchising. We have a really cool model. Franchisees do a minimum of two locations, you open your first location that is your sort of commissary kitchen, if you will, that you own. We teach you how to build out a kitchen, we teach you how to make all the meals, recipes, everything. You come to training with us. And then once it's rockin’, you open your subsequent store, and you start transporting meals to that store. Then franchisees might buy a territory where then they'll deliver to their second, third, fourth, fifth locations until that kitchen is maxed out and then so on.  

1851: How many franchises do you have today? 

We started franchising in 2018. We currently have 38 franchises sold and, I believe, 16 set to open by the end of this year. So good healthy, growth. It is fast growth, but it's very controlled, we aren’t just selling franchises to anybody and everybody. We don't just award franchises to anybody and everybody. We want successful franchises. That has sort of been the backbone of how we've grown. 

1851: So what are the distinguishing factors of who you will work with? 

Evans: I'd say number one, they must have a level of humility. Because franchisees who think they know everything aren't going to be good franchisees in any system. Somebody who's willing to listen and learn. Work ethic, obviously. I've talked to people who are in professions where they look to invest in a business, but they really don't want to work anymore.  They want to travel and hang out with their family. That's great. Just not for a franchisee. So I think it’s work ethic, humility, and, honestly, if personalities click.  

1851: Did you have to make much changes to your business due to COVID-19? 

Evans: I wouldn't say we hardcore changed it, but we did a little pivot. Our delivery business grew substantially. We already did delivery before, people would order meals by Friday at midnight, and we would deliver to them, or drop them off, or have them ready for pickup on Mondays. Our delivery grew 378%  

1851: What kind of support did your franchisees need this year?  

Evans: I wouldn't say anything out of the ordinary, to be honest. I mean, with a pivot we created more graphics and programs around our delivery program. One large change was we decided this year was a great time for us to slow down on new franchise sales, not because it was out of control, but just slow down due to the fact that I wanted to make sure our franchisees have our 100% support and attention throughout this year. So we actually paused our new franchise efforts before from about February or March all the way up until about September. I just pumped the brakes and said we're gonna give all of our attention to our franchisees.  

1851: Has this year taught you anything? 

Evans: What I would say is having humility, you know, the first step to being humble is being grateful. So be grateful for what you have. And then humble yourself. You don't know everything. Seek advice. Seek wisdom and knowledge from people who have done what you've done or who have more experience than you.  

1851: Looking ahead to 2021, what’s in store for Lean Kitchen? 

Evans: Nothing out of the ordinary, just keep our head down on what we're doing. We're going a very good, very strong, healthy route for our franchise system. And just keep franchisees the sole focus of our business. And like I said, one healthy franchise, one successful franchise at a time. That's the way we'll keep operating.