News

Froots to revitalize franchise system

Froots announced that its management is returning to drive franchise development efforts.

February 22, 2016

Froots, a national quick service franchise focused on healthful food and beverages, announced that its founder, David Lopez, and former COO, Scott Mortier, are returning to day-to-day management of the brand to drive franchise development efforts, according to a company press release.

Lopez founded Froots in 2001, when he was 19, and quickly opened two more locations due to high demand. Customer inquiries about the franchise opportunity began coming in, leading Lopez to begin franchising Froots in 2004. After taking a heavy hit with the recession, the franchise scaled back franchise-development efforts to focus on supporting existing franchisees, the release stated. With this change, new management came in, leading Lopez and Mortier to shift their attention toward building other franchises.

Today, Froots has more than 30 U.S. units as well as several international locations, and expects to add 50 restaurants in the next two years.

"Over nearly a decade, we've watched Froots be poorly managed and dwindle from 90-plus locations to below 40 units. We want to revive Froots and bring a whole new life to the brand," said Mortier, now the company's EVP of Business Development.

To further develop the restaurant's menu and operational systems, Lopez and Mortier recently formed a mutually beneficial partnership with executives of Gyroville, a Miami-area fast casual, build-your-own Mediterranean franchise.

"The timing is right," Lopez said. "Our existing units are all solid performers, posting positive comps. With this strong base, I knew that we could really grow Froots if we pulled in the right people to develop the brand and were strategic with the franchises we award. Our goal is to build a World-class brand, growing one successful franchisee at a time — ultimately, becoming the leading healthy food destination in the quick-service space."

Froots caters to a growing segment of the U.S. population that is more health-conscious. Froots also extends into the $2 billion U.S. juice and smoothie bar market, which has experienced a 2.9-percent increase in annual growth since 2010.

"We're going to be very careful during our franchise sales process to ensure we're partnering with people who have the right expectations of opening a QSR franchise and have the drive to succeed," Lopez said.

Ideal franchisees are owner-operators, but do not need prior restaurant experience due to the company's training program. Froots has a franchise program that provides franchisees support from the day the franchise agreement is signed through site selection, construction, training and creating a comprehensive marketing plan that is designed to keep customers returning.

Froots has both storefront and kiosk business models available with costs ranging from $140,150-$321,750 and $92,600-$157,600, respectively, including the $25,000 franchise fee. Prospective owners can also purchase three units for a total franchise fee of $40,000.