Copeland's of New Orleans Expands with Smaller Prototype
The restaurant chain's franchise chief, Andy Gunkler, is counting on restaurant closures and franchisees to support the expansion effort.
By David Farkas, Senior Editor -- Chain Leader, 8/10/2009 11:12:00 AM
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Copeland's of New Orleans Chief Franchise Officer Andy Gunkler |
Hope springs eternal in the restaurant business, even in a recession. To wit: Al Copeland Investment's smaller French Quarter-style prototype that Chief Franchise Officer Andy Gunkler insists will set the Copeland's of New Orleans concept apart from the plain-vanilla boxes that dominate casual dining while maintaining a better than 1-to-1 sales-to-investment ratio. We asked Gunkler to explain.
Is the prototype a facelift or a new business model?
It's a facelift. The first one we did, in Baton Rouge, La., was a remodel of the older prototype. We brought our restaurant up to our new prototype standards. For example, we put a bakery in the restaurant. Bakery sales account for about 8 percent of total sales in the Copeland's brand.
What else did you do?
We redid the bar. We added 20 tables to the dining area. We did the facelift on the outside. Our grand re-opening was in March, and we are very pleased with the increase in sales.
Can you give me a number?
Our sales are up between 5 and 10 percent since then.
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The remodeled Copeland's of New Orleans in Baton Rouge, La., is the latest iteration of a smaller prototype the chain plans to expand into several new markets. |
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Snapshot Concept Copeland's of New Orleans Parent Company Al Copeland Investments Headquarters New Orleans Units 20 Average Unit Volume $3.5 million Check Average $22 Expansion Plans 6 to 10 franchsised locations in 2010; new markets include Florida, Colorado and Kentucky |
How is the Baton Rouge unit different from the new prototype?
Our newer prototype is 6,100 square feet. The existing building in Baton Rouge is 6,500 square feet. The new prototype will seat 220 people.
When will you get a new one open?
Well, a franchisee will probably beat us to it. I'm in Memphis, Tenn., right now looking for a site with a franchisee.
If a perfect site appeared within the next couple of hours, what would it look like?
We need 1.5 acres, good traffic counts, generators to the site, egress, ingress. Pretty typical of casual dining. The nice thing about this is its flexibility. This prototype is very good for conversions and endcaps. What are they saying? That maybe 1,000 casual-dining restaurants will become available this year?
If that's the case, what brands can you convert with the least amount of cost?
Our chairman, Al Copeland Jr., just converted a Lone Star in Kenner, La. I hate to mention other concepts. That was a little less than a 6,000-square-foot building, and we converted that for $1.1 million. He bought land on top of the conversion. From that perspective the sales-to-investment ratio is very strong.
What sets your new prototype apart from competitors?
We makes us different is that no one else has New Orleans cuisine in the marketplace. Our architects and chairman said we need to spell New Orleans. We made the outside look like the French Quarter. It's very distinct. We'll stand out from the vanilla boxes. Our patio has water walls. We have a fire pit going on, too. You'll know it's a Copeland's concept just driving past. The bar areas flows better into the patio. The changes are mainly a better flow for customer and service staff. We reduced the dining room 15 to 20 seats.
How different is the menu?
It's very New Orleans cuisine. We like to call it that because it's Southeastern Louisiana cooking. We don't call it Cajun or Creole. We've come out with small plates, 15 to 18 of them. They're priced from $5.99 to $7.99, and they've helped drive business in this economy. We also have the bakery. As I have said, it is 8 percent of sales. We have also redesigned the bar to improve flow.
What's your goal for restaurant openings in 2010?
Six to 10 restaurants. Franchisees will probably open most of them. We opened three restaurants in 2008 and expect to open one or two this year.
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