Article

Teriyaki Madness inks franchise deal with not-for-profit organization

Both entities expect to benefit from the non-profit/for-profit partnership.

July 29, 2014 by Brenda Rick Smith — Editor, Networld Media Group

When Teriyaki Madness announced recently it had closed five new franchise deals, one of the new franchisees stood out from the rest: Brevard Achievement Center, a not-for-profit agency which provides employment training and other life skills support to disabled people.

Brevard Achievement Center bought the rights to five stores in the Orlando, Fla., area, including Brevard and Orange counties. The company is scouting real estate, and if all goes well, hopes to have the first unit open in Orlando sometime around January 2015, and all five up and running within three years of the open of the first store. Michael Haith, chairman of Teriyaki Madness, thinks the arrangement will be a perfect fit.

"I've been doing this a long time, and I rarely see so much synergy," said Haith. "I think this is a direction that we'd really like to expand on. If we can help not-for-profit organizations and people in need grow through our business, we want to do that. It's part of what we all want to do, we all want to give back."

For Teriyaki Madness, the deal is like most other franchise deals. It will give the company an opportunity to enter a new market, and bring it five units closer to its goal of opening 100 units across the U.S. by 2016.

For Brevard Achievement Center, the deal will mean new streams of income to support the center's programs, and new opportunities to connect the center's 450 disabled adults with meaningful employment.

New opportunities
For the past 20 years, Brevard Achievement Center has won government contracts to provide facilities management, janitorial services and groundskeeping services. But the economic downturn in recent years has put a crunch on the public sector.

"Franchising for the nonprofit industry is quickly becoming a growing business for us because so many of us have had state and federal contracts, and with all the budget cuts we're looking for new opportunities," said Guy Klenke, business development manager for Brevard Achievement Center.

Franchising is an attractive option for organizations like his, Klenke adds, because of the guidance and support in place to help franchisees be successful.

While non-profit organizations seeking franchise opportunities are still uncommon, interest is growing.

"Due to the cutbacks and the recession, I am seeing more non-profits seeking out opportunities in franchising compared to, say, two years ago," said Gayle Sutton of Right Franchising, a consultant who helped Brevard Achievement Center in its hunt for the right opportunity. "So far this year, I have had two different nonprofits from different states approach me for help in finding the right franchise for them."

The right fit
Brevard Achievement Center considered four different types of franchise opportunities, and found the fast casual restaurant concept attractive because it would allow the employment of more people and bring in more income.

"Our goal is for a minimum of 50 percent of the labor hours to be filled by individuals with disabilities," explained Klenke. "Each store will probably employ an average of four individuals with disabilities. Multiplied by the five stores, a total of 20 individuals with disabilities will be employed, in addition to other employees."

Brevard Achievement Center's investment in the franchise came from reserve funds set aside by the organization for business development.

The net income goal for each of Brevard Achievement Center's Teriyaki Madness units is $140,000 annually, according to Klenke. When all five stores are up and running, Brevard Achievement Center hopes to net $600,000 per year. The funds will be used to support Brevard Achievement Center's services.

With several decades of successful government contract management under its belt, Brevard Achievement Center could be well-positioned to meet those goals.

"The people running Brevard are very professional," said Haith. "They did their homework. I like educated franchisees, educated prospects that make a decision. We're really excited to work with them, because we think our business model works really well for them. They really match our culture."

Future growth
Haith is hopeful that the partnership will help both Brevard Achievement Center and Teriyaki Madness expand together into non-traditional locations like airports and military bases, particularly because Brevard Achievement Center has a long history with public sector contracts. 

"My goal is to help them be successful in achieving their goals, and I believe their goals expand beyond the five units," Haith said. "We'll learn together. This is an opportunity for a for-profit business to expand our territory and help the community. Whenever we get a chance to do both, that's awesome."

Feature photo: Eric Garma, founder or Teriyaki Madness, and Guy Klenke. Photo courtesy of Teriyaki Madness.

Photo in article: Photo courtesty of Brevard Achievement Center.

About Brenda Rick Smith

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Brenda has more than 20 years of experience as a marketing and public relations professional. She invested most of her career telling the story of entrepreneurial non-profit organizations, particularly through social media.

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