Pokemoto, Muscle Maker, Inc.’s (Nasdaq: GRIL) expanding Hawaiian poke bowl restaurant concept, today announced the signing of a new Pokemoto franchise agreement for the Gallatin, Tennessee market. This new franchise agreement marks the first entry for Pokemoto into the Tennessee market.
Gallatin is a prominent suburb of the Nashville, Tennessee market and was ranked as “The Nicest Place in America” by Reader’s Digest in 2017 and is home to Volunteer State Community College.
Pokemoto has now signed 40 new franchise agreements and continues to focus its growth strategy on franchising while also opening company owned “seed” locations in select markets. The Hawaiian poke chain currently has eight locations in the development and construction stages along with multiple LOIs submitted for lease negotiations.
The Pokemoto franchise model allows for an initial franchise fee of $25,000, per unit, when the agreement is signed while also providing 6% of net sales as an ongoing monthly royalty rate once each location is opened. The company does allow, in certain instances, for discounted fees for multi-unit or special agreements including the newly announced veterans program. The veteran appreciation program offers a $15k discount on the initial $25k franchise fee bringing the total cost per agreement to $10k and is in place as a “thank you” to the men and women who have served in the United States military.
Pokemoto recently announced it has partnered with FranFund, a one-stop funding solution that has pioneered offering multiple funding options under one roof in the franchise space for those interested in a financial lending service. FranFund works directly with VetFran, a strategic initiative of the international franchise association, and offers a discounted pricing structure for veterans.
Michael Roper, CEO of Pokemoto commented “We’re excited to bring Pokemoto to Tennessee with a great franchise partner. We love bringing new franchisees into our Pokemoto Ohana (family)! Over the last few weeks we announced new franchise agreements in Pennsylvania and Texas, now we are adding Tennessee to our expanding portfolio. Pokemoto is in growth mode and our franchise sales team continues to expand the brand via digital targeted marketing efforts, tradeshows, virtual discovery days and more. Once the aforementioned locations open, Pokemoto will have locations operating across 12 states, including Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Mississippi, Florida, Texas and now Tennessee.”
Roper continued “The team continues to execute against our growth strategy. We not only have 40 new franchise agreements in the pipeline, we’ve also recently graduated our first three franchisee groups through their initial hands-on training. We expect these locations should open soon, and we’ll see the “sales to opening” cycle come to fruition. Add in the various corporate owned locations and we expect it will be a busy second half of the year!”
About Muscle Maker, Inc.
Muscle Maker, Inc. is the parent company of “healthier for you” brands delivering high-quality healthy food options to consumers through traditional and non-traditional locations such as military bases, universities, ghost kitchens, delivery and direct to consumer ready-made meal prep options. Brands include Muscle Maker Grill restaurants, Pokemoto Hawaiian Poke and SuperFit Foods meal prep. Our menus highlight healthier versions of traditional and non-traditional dishes and feature grass fed steak, lean turkey, chicken breast, Ahi tuna, salmon, shrimp, tofu and plant-based options. For more information on Muscle Maker, Inc., visit www.musclemakergrill.com, for more information on Pokemoto visit www.pokemoto.com.
About Pokemoto
Pokemoto (www.pokemoto.com) a Hawaiian Poke bowl concept known for its modern culinary twist on a traditional Hawaiian classic has open locations in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Florida, Maryland and Virginia with future locations coming soon in Rhode Island, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, Texas and Tennessee. Pokemoto offers contemporary flavors with fresh delectable ingredients that appeals to foodies, health enthusiasts, and sushi-lovers everywhere. Guests can choose from a list of signature bowls or be bold and build their own unique combination of a base, protein and various toppings and nine different sauces. Vegetarian options are available, and the bowl combinations are virtually limitless. The colorful dishes and modern chic dining rooms provide an uplifting dining experience for guests of all ages. Customers can dine in-store or order online via third party delivery apps for contactless delivery.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may include “forward-looking statements” pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. To the extent that the information presented in this press release discusses financial projections, information, or expectations about our business plans, results of operations, products or markets, or otherwise makes statements about future events, such statements are forward-looking. Such forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “should”, “may,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “projects,” “forecasts,” “expects,” “plans,” and “proposes.” Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, there are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements. You are urged to carefully review and consider any cautionary statements and other disclosures, including the statements made under the heading “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in documents that we file from time to time with the SEC. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of the document in which they are contained, and Muscle Maker, Inc., does not undertake any duty to update any forward-looking statements except as may be required by law.
