Jeff Levine founded Margate, Fla.-based Salad Creations in 2003. The 50-unit franchise company is a “create your own salad” fast-casual concept and also offers more than 10 featured salads and a variety of daily soup specials and fresh wraps.
Prior to creating Salad Creations, Levine co-founded in 1990 New York City’s Brother Jimmy’s BBQ and also created The Bay Club, a nightclub in Long Island’s Hamptons. Since 1993, he has been part of the management team for Lulu’s Bait Shack, a casual dinnerhouse in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and he is also founder of Atlantic Partners Corp., a Boca Raton, Fla.-based executive search firm specializing in accounting and finance and information technology. Today he is only a minority partner in those businesses outside of Salad Creations. The concept recently launched its Sensible Sizing menu, which is designed to address what Levine calls a growing demand for more healthful foods that balance portion size with taste and value.
Why salads?
I had the salad idea in mind since 2000, and I wanted to call it something like the Sourdough Salad Company. My idea was originally more elaborate than today’s reality, with servers and a larger footprint.
When you see a company like McDonald’s spending millions on advertising salads, you know that lifestyles are really changing. Plus, mine changed when I had my first kid: I started making better decisions about eating and exercising. I want to be able to run around with them.
How did you make it happen?
Former Kentucky Gov. John Brown [who with a group of investors bought Col. Harland Sanders’ interest in KFC in 1964] had read my business plan and agreed there was great opportunity in salads. He advised me to keep it simple and helped me start the first unit in a 200-square-foot kiosk. We had lines waiting to get salads, and we had to learn quickly to make them in two to three minutes, though in the beginning it was taking eight to nine minutes.
We sold that eventually and now franchise all units, but it is still there and does very well. Most of the units are now about 1,500 square feet.
FAST FACTS PERSONAL: married, with four childrenHOMETOWN: Boca Raton, Fla.AGE: 40EDUCATION: Ithaca College, degree in criminal justice with a business minorHOBBIES: family, golf, tennis, basketball, traveling and eating in great restaurantsFAVORITE FOOD: saladsMOTTO: “Health is the new wealth.”
What inspired you to roll out the Sensible Sizing menu?
Americans are no longer willing to eat whatever is easiest or cheapest. Better-educated consumers are searching for fresh, unprocessed, healthy foods. We did market research and customers often wanted something smaller, and they didn’t want to waste leftovers.
There really is a lot of pent-up demand for a smaller size. We are seeing 40 [percent] to 60 percent ordering the smaller $4.99 size, but many of them are ordering additional items, so in most cases we are seeing higher check averages.
Is the economy taking a toll on your business?
The biggest challenge right now is rising food costs and the consequence of guests trading down. But as a growing brand offering healthy food and value, we get a lot of recognition. The credit crunch makes financing franchises tough, but it might actually give us some good A-plus real estate opportunities in the next few months.
