MILWAUKEE (April 5, 2017) \u2013 Cousins Subs \u00ae expands franchise network in Wisconsin and Illinois as part of rebranding and growth strategy.<\/p>\n
Over the last several years, Cousins has taken a calculated approach to its growth plan by strengthening its unit-level economics and creating a stronger core of franchise partners. As a result, in May 2016, the Wisconsin-based sub shop announced a rebranding initiative committing to streamline its locations in look and feel\u2014a strategy that positioned the brand for its next phase of growth.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith our remodeling and rebranding initiative underway, now is the right time to revive the brand through Midwest growth, specifically in the Chicagoland area,\u201d said Christine Specht, President and CEO at Cousins Subs. \u201cWe\u2019ve increased our same store sales and average unit volumes positioning us for multi-unit franchise investment.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the revival of the brand, Cousins has signed three new franchise groups to join its system.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key to our franchise growth is dependent on finding the right partners who meet the qualifications needed to successfully transition into our brand\u2014liquidity, restaurant experience, history of multi-unit development, and the capability of multi-unit growth,\u201d said Joe Ferguson, VP of Development at Cousins Subs. \u201cEach of the multi-unit groups entering our system are great representations of the kind of investors we\u2019re looking to have join Cousins.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brothers, Amit and Kalpesh Patel of Chicago, Illinois and Munster, Indiana, are the most recent multi-unit owners to enter the Cousins\u2019 system as of late March 2017. As owners of OM Group, a multi-brand business established in 2006, the Patels have 22 years of industry and management experience. Through OM Group, they oversee more than 1,500 employees across 50 quick service restaurants and approximately 40 gasoline \/ convenient store locations throughout the Midwest. The Patels will enter Cousins\u2019 system as the first group to develop in the Chicagoland market through a multi-unit investment of 10 stores over four years.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Cousins revamped its image and menu, we felt it was the perfect time to take the brand to different markets and what better market than Chicagoland,\u201d said Amit Patel. \u201cThough we will look for other acquisition opportunities anywhere in Wisconsin, our goal is to be a main franchise group of Cousins in the Chicagoland market. We are excited to see the reaction on people\u2019s faces when they receive a fantastic product with great service.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joining Cousins\u2019 system in March 2017 are multi-unit owners, Chad Ellett and Randy Fusch from Reedsburg, Wisconsin along with Mike Gilbertson of South Beloit, Illinois. Collectively, they have 35 years of restaurant industry experience and since 2003, Ellett and Fusch owned and operated two co-branded quick service restaurant concepts in Reedsburg and Stoughton, Wisconsin. As they found success with their existing restaurant businesses, they looked for additional opportunities within Wisconsin leading them to the purchase of two Cousins\u2019 corporate locations in the Madison market\u2014on East Washington Ave. and a location in Oregon, Wisconsin. There is also an opportunity for the group to purchase a third location in the future. In addition, they have signed a development agreement to open two new stores over the next two years between Madison and Rockford, Illinois.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen looking to expand our business, we saw a lot of opportunity with Cousins. We\u2019re looking for a company to grow with and bring to the forefront as a major chain in our market, and Cousins fit into our growth plans,\u201d said Ellett. \u201cCousins is taking initiative through its new restaurant design, while respecting its franchise community. The new design is feasible for the franchisee, which tells me they really care for their brand partners and that\u2019s what makes the whole brand grow as a whole.\u201d Entering the Cousins\u2019 system in November 2016, father-son business owners, John Stewart Sr. and John Stewart Jr., purchased both Cousins\u2019 franchise locations in Sheboygan, Wisconsin as well as a third in Mequon, Wisconsin. Stewart Jr. oversees operations at all three locations and brings more than 19 years of restaurant experience from his family’s business, Food Services Incorporated, which was started by his father twenty-four years ago and sold in 2016. Their business operated restaurant concepts, including franchised, in more than thirty college universities and ten corporate food service locations across four states. In addition to their current locations, the Stewarts have an interest in continued growth with Cousins in both Wisconsin and the Chicagoland area.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe witnessed the process that Cousins was going through with remodeling, restructuring and rebranding and felt it was a great time to move in and grow with the brand,\u201d said Stewart Jr. \u201cTo start with a franchise that is established in the area was very appealing, and Cousins offered consistency in standards and quality. We looked for many other franchise opportunities, but appreciated Cousins\u2019 business model, product, and its family, locally-owned identity, which was much like the identity of our company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur new franchise partners bring many years of restaurant expertise along with proven infrastructure and processes to our brand, and we can learn from their best practices and grow together,\u201d said Ferguson.<\/p>\n
As Cousins moves forward with its Midwest growth strategy, each of the new multi-unit ownership groups add to the increasing momentum driving the brand\u2019s growth in its core markets in Wisconsin as well as in its target market of the greater Chicagoland area.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe new multi-unit franchise groups provide a strong foundation for growth not only in our current markets, but in new markets as well,\u201d said Specht. \u201cWe plan to grow contiguously in markets near our home state of Wisconsin and believe we will experience the most success by growing in these areas first.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cousins is seeking additional multi-unit franchise owners to join its system throughout Wisconsin, Chicagoland and the Midwest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the coming years, there will be opportunities for multi-unit investors to acquire existing restaurants while growing a presence in their trade area and achieving growth in new markets,\u201d explained Ferguson.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a brand, we are confident in our position in the fast-casual marketplace and most importantly in the quality of food we serve,\u201d said Specht. \u201cWe\u2019ve taken the right steps to set up our brand for success and welcome any interested multi-unit investors to learn more about our legacy and future growth plans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those interested in franchise opportunities with Cousins Subs can visit www.cousinssubsfranchise.com .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MILWAUKEE (April 5, 2017) \u2013 Cousins Subs \u00ae expands franchise network in Wisconsin and Illinois as part of rebranding and growth strategy. Over the last several years, Cousins has taken a calculated approach to its growth plan by strengthening its unit-level economics and creating a stronger core of franchise partners. As a result, in May […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newsroom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=132"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cousinsdev.trivera.ai\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}