Operations

The Local Culinary waiving franchise fees on ghost concepts

Provided

November 17, 2020

In an effort to help restaurants drum up business during the pandemic, The Local Culinary, a virtual restaurant group, is waiving all initial fees for new franchisees through the end of the year, according to a company press release.

Since launching its virtual model two months ago, the Miami-based company has signed five franchise agreements in three states. The model allows independent restaurants to incorporate the company's made-for-delivery brands into their existing kitchen spaces and operations, adding to their menu offerings and expanding their customer bases.

"Based on the success we're seeing with our current franchisees participating in the program, as well as new challenges we anticipate restaurants will face this winter, we wanted to offer a truly risk-free opportunity to join our program, waiving initial franchise fees for those who come onboard by the end of the year," Alp Franko, founder of The Local Culinary, said in the release. "We are passionate about helping independent restaurants survive the pandemic, while also setting our partners up for long-term success to thrive in a very competitive industry."

In the cooler months ahead, outdoor dining is set to decrease, and experts predict that demand for food delivery services will continue. To help restaurants prepare for the slower months, The Local Culinary is waiving the $50,000 entry fee for its ghost kitchen franchise model through the end of the year. Restaurants who sign on as a franchisee of The Local Culinary may maintain their existing brand name, space and operations, simply adding on with services that complement their offerings, Franko said. They receive on-site training from the company's chefs, exclusivity in their territory, assistance in optimizing their kitchen for delivery and tablets to field orders.

In addition, the franchisees receive qualitative and profit-driven brands with well-studied menu engineering.

"Our franchisees are seeing an instant return on investment, noting sales are up by 15 or 20 percent on average after coming onboard," Franko said . "We are committed to working with each restaurant owner and operator to create a strategy that works for them, adjusting the model to address the varying consumer demands in each of these new areas."

Joining the six existing franchisees in Florida, The Local Culinary's brands will be implemented into the existing kitchens of independent restaurants in San Francisco, San Jose and San Mateo, California, as well as , New Orleans and New York City.

With 50 individual mini-restaurants operating in the same kitchen to produce a range of menus, The Local Culinary cuisines vary from Mexican, Italian and Asian and include items such as burgers, fried chicken, rice bowls, gourmet salads and more. Each of the delivery-only concepts are available to consumers through Uber Eats, Postmates, GrubHub and DoorDash.