Operations

Project Wellness fuels 32% sales increase

Doug Corbin (far left), SVP and CDO of CHOC Foundation, and Patrice Poidmore (near left), associate vice president of CHOC, join Alexis and Steve Schulze, co-founders of Nékter, to celebrate their partnership with Children’s Miracle Network.

November 3, 2020

As with so many restaurant companies, the pandemic initially had a significant impact on Nekter Juice Bar, but a little resilience led to a 32% increase in companywide sales in Q3 2020 versus Q2 2020 with Q3 2020 sales growing more than 3% year-over-year, according to a company press release.

To pull off those numbers, Nekter initiated "Project Wellness," which employed heightened safety measures for guests and employees and amplified its online and delivery platforms. Nekter was soon thriving and continuing its expansion across the country opening double-digit new locations across several states. In fact, by the end of 2020, Nekter will have grown to nearly 170 restaurants with new and existing franchise partners strengthening its presence in Arizona, California, Colorado, Texas and Utah. Nekter also secured franchise agreements to open soon in new markets including Maryland, Missouri and Montana.

"By bringing everyone together quickly and collaboratively under our Project Wellness campaign, we were able to act fast and enact meaningful and productive change for the benefit of our guests, our franchise partners and the Nekter Juice Bar brand," CEO Steve Schulze said in the release. "By concentrating our efforts on safety measures first and our online and delivery platforms, we were able to amplify our role as a leading health and wellness resource for our communities across the country."

Much of Nekter's growth during this time can be attributed to its multichannel ordering and delivery program. With its more than 700,000 subscribers, the platform has been able to increase digital sales by as much as 200% and increase check averages by more than 30% in recent months. Nekter also recently launched contactless and curbside/carside delivery options enhancing guest accessibility while adding more revenue streams for its franchise partners.

"We continue to see an acceleration in franchise queries from across the country, and even internationally, while many of our existing franchisees are doubling down on their growth plans," Schulze said.

Nekter Juice Bar was founded in 2010 and has nearly 170 locations in the U.S.