by UFG | Apr 3, 2024 | News
Vast Coworking Group™ announced today the promotion of several longstanding leaders to its executive team, both recognizing their numerous contributions as well as strengthening the company’s leadership as it enters a significant growth period. They include:
- Paula Mercer, former VP of Operations, has been promoted to Vice President of Vast. Since joining United Franchise Group™ 16 years ago, Mercer has been an integral part of the team, known for her unwavering drive, exceptional leadership skills, and ability to motivate those around her. In her elevated role, Mercer will continue to steer Vast toward innovative solutions and more incredible successes.
- Tammy Senter has been promoted to Vice President of Operations, Venture X. Previously serving as a National Sales Manager for Venture X, Senter has significantly impacted the brand’s growth and service quality and has developed a strategic vision for Venture X which she will apply to her new role.
- Brad Johansson has been promoted to Vice President of Operations, Office Evolution. Johansson previously served as Director of Operations and has been a Franchise Business Consultant to the brand for over six years. A franchising veteran, Johansson will leverage his forward-thinking approach and deep understanding of the coworking model to spearhead initiatives that will elevate Office Evolution, with a focus on innovative solutions, community engagement, and operational agility to meet the evolving needs of members.
- Darcy Masciotro, CFE has been promoted to Vice President of Operations, Intelligent Office. With more than 16 years of multi-unit leadership and franchise operation experience, coupled with a high-energy leadership style, Masciotro will lead Intelligent Office’s operations with a focus on enhancing efficiency, fostering collaboration, and ensuring that the brand’s coworking spaces continue to be vibrant hubs of creativity and productivity.
“Having the right people in the right roles is fundamental to any company’s success and we are incredibly fortunate to have such passionate individuals as part of our team, many of whom have been involved with United Franchise Group for several years. Each of their unique experiences and strengths add so much to our organization and will be instrumental in taking Vast to the next level,” said Ray Titus, CEO of United Franchise Group.
Vast Coworking Group™ is an affiliated company of United Franchise Group™ (UFG).
by UFG | Apr 1, 2024 | News
Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lindsey Coffelt. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Lindsey thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today
Building relationships and learning to network! I wish we would have gotten branded apparel and business cards, joined and attended networking events and meetings as soon as we decided to open our store.
Lindsey, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
When we decided to start our own business, we started researching business models and found franchising to be the most effective way to get up and running. We discovered Graze Craze while doing our research and instantly fell in love with the concept. Graze Craze is a unique business model based on charcuterie, the creative arrangement of meats, cheeses, fruits, and dessert items on an attractive board. Graze Craze is leading a nationwide food trend known as “grazing” by offering charcuterie-style grazing boxes for personal snacking or larger social gatherings. The grazing style allows people to enjoy small portions of food during the day or at special events.
My husband, Silas, and I did not have any experience or knowledge in this industry, but franchising provides a built-in support system and a framework that helps you get your business up and running. It’s one thing to know about a trend and a whole other thing to know how to make it a business. We’re incredibly grateful for Graze Craze because they lay out all the processes and structure for you. A franchisee’s role is to execute the ideas they’ve provided – which are really thoughtful, efficient, and fun!
I’ve owned the Okemos Graze Craze for a little over a year. I oversee all administration, marketing, sales, accounting, and human resources for the business. It’s hard work, but if you invest your time and energy in the right places, it truly pays off. I was very proud to receive the Social Media Presence Award at the annual Graze Craze Brand Expo. To be recognized in just my first year of ownership – that really blew my hair back. I am proud of my work marketing our location, and what an honor to be recognized by so many other marketing professionals!
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
Start ASAP! I started a private Facebook group and took people along our journey of building out our store, training, etc. People felt included and loved the behind the scenes posts. When we opened, we had a fan base. Post everyday and anywhere they’ll let you. Make your posts entertaining, short, informational, and most importantly, authentic. People can smell AI from a mile away. Don’t forget to put your contact information or signature at the bottom of each post to make it easy for people to find you.
Let’s talk M&A – we’d love to hear your about your experience with buying businesses.
We were given an opportunity to purchase an existing Graze Craze store in a great area by Detroit. We jumped at the chance and are currently working on pivoting it from B2C to B2B. We are reaching out to businesses, venues, and getting involved with area chambers and networking groups.
by UFG | Mar 28, 2024 | News
Graze Craze, the world’s leading charcuterie franchise, is celebrating 2023 as a record-breaking year of growth where it nearly doubled its brand footprint, opening 35 new locations throughout the year. The brand made entry into new U.S. states including Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Nevada, and New Mexico, as well as launched international operations in Australia and France. The rapidly growing concept also signed 51 franchise agreements in 2023 and has plans to develop new locations in the coming years in key markets like Quebec, Southern California, and New England.
“I’m confident that 2023 will go down in our company history as a landmark year that set the stage for our future growth and success,” says Cory Hibbard, President of Graze Craze. “It was a banner year for our brand and our franchise owners were a mainstay of our tremendous performance. In keeping a curated convenience mindset, we’ve developed a winning recipe for success that will remain paramount as we continue to grow in 2024 and well beyond.”
In addition to its significant unit growth in 2023, Graze Craze also achieved notable sales success with Q4 marking its 10th consecutive quarter of positive growth, which has propelled the brand’s performance in the first two months of 2024. Graze Craze has already seen a 38% increase in comp sales for existing stores over 2023 and is on track to close out Q1 as another positive quarter.
Contributing to this growth was the brand’s ongoing commitment to menu innovation. Graze Craze introduced a new signature board to its menu in 2023, the Brunch Board, which allowed the brand to target and serve a new daypart and has become the perfect bagel-and-donut brunch alternative, well-received by customers and franchise owners alike. Graze Craze also rolled out several limited-time boards throughout 2023, including its Game Day Board in September and Holiday Board in November, the latter of which accounted for 27% of the brand’s systemwide sales in the month of December.
Looking ahead, Graze Craze will maintain its focus on providing its customers with curated convenience, offering catering and dining solutions that appeal to a variety of taste palettes and diets. The brand is on track to open 60 locations in 2024, 15-20 of which are projected to open in the first quarter alone. The brand is also accelerating its international expansion with the opening of its first store in Quebec in Canada. By year-end, Graze Craze has a goal to surpass 100+ locations and have an established footprint in five countries worldwide. With 175 total locations in its development pipeline to be opened in the next several years, Graze Craze is well-positioned for long-term and sustainable future growth.
“Graze Craze is aptly named because there is a definite craze around this concept, and our growth is a testament to that,” says Ray Titus, CEO of United Franchise Group, of which Graze Craze is an affiliated brand. “We only opened the first franchise location for this brand in 2022 and to be on track to surpass 100 locations by the end of 2024 really reinforces the viability of this franchise opportunity and the strong demand among consumers and businesses. With a record-breaking year behind us, we’re looking forward to 2024 being another year of explosive growth.”
Graze Craze is a part of the Big Flavor Brands foodservice division of United Franchise Group (UFG), the global leader for entrepreneurs with over 1600 franchises in more than 60 countries and 2500+ franchisees.
by UFG | Mar 28, 2024 | News
Graze Craze, a charcuterie franchise, had a a record-breaking year in 2023, nearly doubling its footprint opening 35 locations and entering Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Nevada and New Mexico. The brand also launched international operations in Australia and France and signed 51 franchise agreements for Quebec, Southern California and New England, according to a company press release.
“I’m confident that 2023 will go down in our company history as a landmark year that set the stage for our future growth and success,” Cory Hibbard, president of Graze Craze, said in the release. “It was a banner year for our brand and our franchise owners were a mainstay of our tremendous performance. In keeping a curated convenience mindset, we’ve developed a winning recipe for success that will remain paramount as we continue to grow in 2024 and well beyond.”
In addition to its significant unit growth in 2023, Graze Craze achieved its 10th consecutive quarter of positive growth, seeing a 38% increase in comp sales for existing stores over 2023. It is on track to close out Q1 as another positive quarter.
Contributing to this growth was its commitment to menu innovation. For example, Graze Craze introduced the Brunch Board, allowing it to target and serve a new daypart and rolled out several limited-time boards, including its Game Day Board in September and Holiday Board in November.
The brand is on track to open 60 locations in 2024, 15-20 of which are projected to open in the first quarter. By year-end, Graze Craze will surpass 100 locations.
Graze Craze is an affiliated brand of United Franchise Group.
by UFG | Mar 27, 2024 | News
Alex Springer joked his “international project” with wife Méline Enguent began well before the pair became master franchisees and brought charcuterie board concept Graze Craze to France.
“I’m German, Méline is French,” Springer explained, and they began looking for a new food business in 2020 after moving from Germany to the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region in southeastern France four years prior. Graze Craze, which they discovered after talking to United Franchise Group representatives at a trade show in Paris, seemed an ideal fit.
“We quickly saw the advantages of this concept. It’s fresh product and it’s in correlation with the French style of eating,” said Springer. “Here, we call it aperitif or apéro time, where people will eat and drink late into the night.”
Enguent noted Graze Craze likewise is in line with “new tendencies we saw after COVID, this want to gather again and also to have quick delivery.” In addition to its consumer appeal, Graze Craze is positioned as a fresh alternative for corporate catering, and “totally changes the perception of meetings” for French businesses,” she added.
Enguent and Springer opened their first Graze Craze in October in Ollioules, close to the French Riviera city of Toulon. “In a 20-minute drive we have around half a million people and about 50,000 businesses,” said Enguent. “We’re a coastal city, a harbor city, and a rather large tourist destination.”
As the master franchisees for the country, Enguent and Springer will sign on and support sub-franchisees and likely open more of their own locations. Graze Craze is their second franchise brand. The first, Flunch, is what brought them back to France in 2016.
“I got a call from my father on a Friday telling us his director, who’d been there for 19 years, was leaving,” said Enguent, whose background is in international business. “That Monday, we gave our notices to our employers and said, we’re going to embrace the entrepreneurship life.”
The couple took over the Flunch business in Ollioules that Enguent’s father had been running since 1995 as one of the early franchisees for the self-service, cafeteria-style restaurant concept. Owned by the Mulliez family, which Springer called “one of the most powerful families in France,” Flunch has more than 160 locations, including a handful in Italy.
“We serve 300 to 400 people a day,” said Enguent of their restaurant, and the more complex operations of Flunch played into their decision to find a simpler model, one that’s also less expensive to run than a traditional restaurant.
Like many countries in Europe, France has been hit with high energy prices due to lingering effects of the pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war and Israel-Hamas conflict. The Graze Craze model, with its charcuterie board menu of cured meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables, dips, jams and crackers, doesn’t require the purchase of costly kitchen equipment. “We’re serving mainly products that don’t need to be cooked,” said Springer, and stores typically occupy just 800 to 1,200 square feet.
Since opening their store less than six months ago, Springer and Enguent have focused heavily on marketing and brand awareness efforts, tapping into their professional networks to push office orders and corporate gifting, which then serve to help create individual customers. “People see it in a corporate setting, then they are curious and will go online and order,” said Enguent as she emphasized the importance of getting outside the store to educate the market.
“The first learning is we thought people would go through the website to order. We are seeing traffic, but not conversion,” she said. “The conversion comes from the work we’ve been putting into networking. Meeting people and explaining what Graze Craze is all about.”
UFG leverages international footprint
Part of the Big Flavor Brands food division of Starpoint Brands, which itself includes multiple franchises within United Franchise Group, Graze Craze has 64 locations open in the United States. UFG bought a majority stake in Graze Craze’s franchising arm and began selling units in June 2021, folding the business into the newly created Big Flavor Brands in 2023.
Many of UFG’s brands, including Signarama, Transworld Business Advisors and Fully Promoted, have international locations, and UFG has a corporate office in Sydney, Australia. “International expansion is kind of ingrained in Starpoint and UFG from when we were just Signarama,” said Graze Craze President Cory Hibbard. “I don’t think we ever looked at Graze Craze and thought international wouldn’t be a big piece of expansion early on.”
The brand is opening a new store just about every week in the U.S., said Hibbard, and with no other franchise doing charcuterie boxes and boards at scale, Graze Craze wants to be first to market internationally as well. The company debuted its corporate store in Sydney last fall, with plans to sell it to a franchisee who would then oversee the concept’s growth in Australia, following the master franchise approach UFG takes with its other brands.
Graze Craze has master franchisees in Quebec, Dario Subotic and Tea Maric, who are preparing to open their first location, and the brand is also targeting London and other European markets. The “grazing” style of eating inherent in charcuterie has “been around for hundreds of years,” noted Hibbard, which indicates staying power for Graze Craze. “We’re not just trying to capitalize on a trend.”
Franchisees, whether they’re in the U.S. or another country, need to be comfortable persevering and pushing through the challenges of growing an upstart brand, said Hibbard, and be willing to get outside their stores to drive awareness.
“We almost look at this business as a marketing business, not a food business, because we really need to educate customers about who we are and the different applications for charcuterie,” he said. Franchisees “need that passion and enthusiasm to make a splash in the market.”
