Corporate Updates: Regional Developments for 2026

Thank you. And we likewise have Clinton Anderson, the CEO of 4th, who will be moderating the discussion with Jason. So Jason, how about I let you provide the audience some information about your background and you can likewise tell them a bit about Chop Shop. And then I'll let you take it from there, Clinton.

My name is Jason Morgan, CEO of Original Chop Store. We purchased the brand in 2016three unitsand I have actually grown it to 26. After a brief stint of attempting to be an accountant for about a year and a half, I transitioned into gambling establishment property and worked in corporate financing.

I was the very first staff member there after private equity purchased business. Assisted grow that from 20 to 150 locations, took it public in 2014, and after that left about a year and a half after going public to do this at Chop Store. My hope is that we can duplicate the success we had at Zos, and we're off to an actually great start.

We're at the counter, we bring the food to the table. The secret to the program is we have a drink part as well with fresh-squeezed juices and protein shakes.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

A little more complex than some of the walk-the-line principles that are out there, but we think we've got something quite special. We're going to add another shop this year and at least 4 stores next year. We will be 31 or so stores by the end of next year.

Significant Regional Shifts for 2026 Growth

Hey, everybody. It's terrific to be with you again. My name is Clinton Anderson. I'm the CEO here at Fourth. I've been in this role for about 6 years. Fourth, as a lot of you know, is a leading service provider of software application options to the restaurant and hospitality industry. Our goal is to help our customers succeed in driving profitability and being efficientmanaging labor, managing inventory, and essentially providing them with tools they require to deliver their vision.

It's uncommon to have companies that are precious and growing rapidly, that can repeat that success year after year. Jason, one of the reasons I was so fired up to have you join our session is the success at Zos was incredible. I have actually only met a handful of brand names where there was such a strong consumer affinity for the brand name.

And now you're doing the very same thing at Chop Shop. When you speak to consumers about Chop Store, they like the place. They discuss its distinction. And to be able to take what is a relatively complex concept in terms of providing a great experience for the client, and have the ability to grow that from a couple of shops to now north of 30 shops next yearit's remarkable.

We're going to speak about how to scale a restaurant organization. Every restaurateur I ever talk to has imagine taking one shop, 2 stores, five shops, and turning it into something much biggerexpanding throughout the city, throughout the state, into numerous states, and ultimately national, even worldwide reach. It's not simple, particularly in today's environment.

Labor is difficult. Inventory costs remain high. It's not an easy time to drive success and development at the very same time. But we're thankful to have you here today, Jason, due to the fact that we're going to go into that subject. The concerns are going to be actually around: how do you grow an organization? How do you scale it and make it successful? How do you reproduce early success? And from there, after we discuss your experience and the lessons you've found out, we 'd like to then say: well, look, how could technology help? How can you utilize technology as a multiplier to duplicate early success to far-reaching success? Second, beyond innovation, how do you scale excellent groups? And last but not least, AI.

Steps to Scale a Restaurant Concept

The very first concern I have for you, Jasonlook, you've done this two times now in the restaurant market. What are some of the lessons you've learned? What has your experience been in regards to what it takes to really drive success in expanding restaurants? Inform me a little about your path, what you experienced along the way, and possibly some of the more difficult lessons you found out.

We talked a bit before we began about LinkedIn, and I have actually got a post teed as much as follow this next week about what the playbook is likepoint by pointfor growing a business. To me, among the crucial things, and I feel really fortunate, is that both brands I've been involved with are distinct.

And there's absolutely nothing exactly like Chop Shop in terms of what we're doing with a big, diverse menu. A lot of brands today are very singularly focused in terms of what they're offering from a food item. I feel like we started at a benefit with both brand names by having something special that filled a niche no one else was doing.

Since it's just more difficult to stick out when there are 10, 20, 50 principles within a 2- or three-mile radius attempting to do the exact same thing. A lot of it begins with the brand. Does your brand name have something unique that nobody else is doing? That's unusual.

Comparing Investment Models Against Market Trends

The 2nd thingI originated from a finance background, so a lot of my learnings are more financing and data-driven versus a great deal of early startup restaurateurs who are imaginative types. They enjoy the food, they developed the menu, they constructed the brand name. I most likely couldn't do that from scratch. However if you offered me something that has all those components in location, I can take it from there and put the playbook in location.

They do not understand their breakeven sales. They do not understand how margin enhances as sales increase. They don't understand cash-on-cash returns. I have actually seen many companies where the numbers just do not work. And yet people say: let's open 10 more. And I'll state: why? It doesn't make money. Stop. You need to discover an idea that is unique.

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

If you do not have those 2 things, you should not be constructing shops. Yeah, maybe both? Due to the fact that as I hear your description, you've highlighted three things: execution, brand name distinction, and financial viability. You have actually got to start with execution. If you don't have an operating design that works, broadening it just multiplies problems.

Quick Service Industry Growth

Second, you require an engaging brand name or distinct concept that resonates with clients. And 3rd, the math needs to work. If you do not understand your unit economics, your repaired and variable costs, you might be expanding blind and losing cash. Precisely. And another key lesson is about going into brand-new markets.

But when we broadened to Dallas, I anticipated new stores to do 5070% of Phoenix sales in the very first year. A lot of operators assume new markets will open at full volume the first day. That almost never occurs. And when the shops open sluggish, but you've signed leases and built a monetary model based upon higher volumes, you get overextended.