Chris Newcomb, founder and CEO of Jackson, Miss.-based Newk’s Franchise Co., spoke with Nation’s Restaurant News Sunday about topics affecting the restaurant industry.
Newcomb founded Newk’s Express Cafe in 2004, in Oxford, Miss. The brand changed its name to Newk’s Eatery in 2013.
Here is how Newcomb replied to seven quick questions:
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How do you feel about the restaurant industry overall as the show gets under way?
We’ve seen a little softening in sales. There’s been a saturation [of restaurants in the market], but we feel we’re in a good position. We’re very culinary driven. Everything is made from scratch. We also provide a unique hospitality environment. We want to keep those touch points.
What’s your growth this year?
We’re in 13 states with 101 restaurants. We have 24 more opening this year.
What do you look for at the show?
I look for innovative ideas in the food area, or maybe technology in the equipment area. We just spent an hour with a back-of-the-house supplier with the new products they are rolling out that are going to be helping with food safety.
What have you seen to help in food safety?
It’s a very precise printer for food labels that prints the exact time something was made and when it should be thrown away. Otherwise it would be the date and not the time, so you aren’t sure precisely when something is expired.
How are you differentiating yourself in this market?
It’s definitely where we make things from scratch. Some of the others do not do that. If it can come in the back door as a raw ingredient, we do that: chicken, beef, shrimp, salmon, salad dressings, sauces, marinades. Everything is made from scratch. I think guests appreciate that — especially the Millennials nowadays get into loving all that. That’s where we make push. And I think guests appreciate that.
How about labor and the minimum wage?
It concerns me. But I’ve been in the restaurant industry around 26 years, and it’s the most adaptive industry I know. We started [when the federal hourly minimum wage] was $3.35, then $5.25 and $7.25. We just find ways to adapt. … As long as we are quick and nimble, we are going to succeed.
What’s the one think on the horizon that you are concerned about?
The Department of Labor concerns me. What excites me is that the whole country seems moved by new food ideas. You are always looking out there for what’s new.
Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected]
Follow him on Twitter: @RonRuggless
