HOMETOWN: Carmel, Calif.
EDUCATION: B.S. in physics, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo; Th.M. in theology, Dallas Theological Seminary
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: real estate consulting; working on Capitol Hill as aide to Rep. Jim Barcia, D-Mich.; founding Elevation Burger
PERSONAL: married, two children ages 4 and 5 1/2
HOBBIES: reading, spending time with the kids, studying number theory, cooking
Hans Hess, the founder and chief executive of the fast-casual “better burger” brand Elevation Burger, concluded that the production line in his growing chain needed to move more rapidly, so he took it upon himself to design a proprietary conveyor-style griddle that would speed up the cooking process. The griddle, which currently has a patent pending, can produce significantly more product than standard griddles in comparable concepts while cutting down the customer wait times, he said. It debuts this month at Elevation Burger’s new prototype in Germantown, Md.
Hess appears to take a similarly hands-on approach to differentiating the Arlington, Va.-based Elevation chain, which he founded in 2005 and today has 18 company and franchised locations. Elevation Burger positions itself under a health halo, featuring only 100-percent USDA-certified organic grass-fed beef and freshly cut French fries cooked in pure olive oil. The chain’s limited menu also offers hand-scooped milk shakes.
Talk a little about your new griddle.
It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen. You put the bun and the freshly packed patty on this 20-foot-long cast-iron griddle, and it cooks it in four minutes. It looks like a tank tread. It also can produce three times as much product as standard griddles. It allows us to service most customers in about five to eight minutes, even during peak service times. Our kitchens are all open, so guests can literally watch their burgers being made from start to finish.
Is the better burger sector getting more congested?
Yes. That’s why we’ve spent so much time thinking about differentiation and innovation.
What are the main challenges for you?
Nailing good real estate — that’s definitely becoming more competitive. Also, we’re pretty picky about our franchisees. Our franchisee sales rate has tripled. We’re on track to sell three to four times as many franchises this year [compared with last year]. We want people who are experienced in franchising and are looking for a long-term relationship. We currently have 25 groups contracted to open 130 units.
What do you look for in a franchisee?
They should be passionate, well capitalized and have experience.
Can you discuss Elevation Burger’s plans for growth?
We have over 100 units in development. We should have 30 locations opened by end of 2011 and plan to open about 30 more in 2012. I think that number will continue to double over the next four years. We’re also expanding in the Middle East. We opened in Kuwait, and that outlet is doing sales volumes that are two and three times what we’re doing domestically [average unit volume in the United States is about $1.1 million]. We also expect that the new prototype will generate average unit volumes that are 40 to 80 percent higher than regular stores.
Where do you see Elevation Burger in five years?
There are so many different ways to answer that. We’ll be in more cities — we have development plans from coast to coast. We’ll be as far west as California, as far north as Maine and as far south as Florida. I also see us becoming a concept that will be embraced five to 10 years from now. Even during the recession same-store sales increased. We’re not faddish. We’re based on growing trends. Burgers are classic, and we’re combining that with a growing health consciousness. Sales of organic foods have grown by double digits over the last decade. What we’re doing is based on people’s changing desires. The three focuses of our business are: people, planet, profit.
Contact Paul Frumkin at paul.frumkin@penton.com.
