Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina is continuing to expand its national footprint with the announcement that it is launching an aggressive expansion plan in North Carolina and the upstate of South Carolina. Markets targeted for franchise development include Charlotte and surrounding cities from Gastonia to Concord; the metro regions of Raleigh, Durham, Asheville, and Winston-Salem; and the Greenville–Spartanburg region of South Carolina.
In order to share information about Salsarita’s and its expansion opportunities in North Carolina, the company is hosting a franchising seminar on March 4 at the Lake Point Salsarita’s at 2908 Oak Lake Blvd. from 5 to 7 p.m.
“Salsarita’s is setting its sights on building a nationally competitive franchise brand, and we’re looking for qualified candidates with foodservice, operations, and real estate experience in Charlotte and the surrounding regions to join our team,” says Paul Mangiamele, president and CEO of Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina. “We invite interested parties to attend our franchising seminar to learn more about our franchise concept and how we can help harness their entrepreneurial drive to succeed.”
The state of North Carolina has over 25 Salsarita’s locations and with new restaurants opening across the country, the company is quickly gaining brand recognition. In addition to expanding its presence in North Carolina, Salsarita’s announced that Jacksonville, Florida; Birmingham, Alabama; Detroit; Memphis/Nashville; Upstate New York; and Baltimore will be key markets for its 2010 expansion plans.
“We are excited about the momentum we’ve already created with 15–20 new restaurants in queue for this year,” Mangiamele says. “With more customers visiting fast-casual concepts instead of traditional full-service, sit-down restaurants, Salsarita’s is well positioned to succeed and is a compelling investment for new franchisees or those looking to expand their franchise portfolio. Fresh-Mexican is an up-and-coming concept and Salsarita’s fills this growing niche in the franchise industry.”
Salsarita’s experienced success in 2009 with new restaurants opening in Charlotte and Greenville, North Carolina; Clarence, New York; Jacksonville, Florida; Murfreesboro and Knoxville, Tennessee; and other markets around the country. In addition, new development agreements were signed for the opening of more than 15 locations in the U.S.
The company is closing in on its first hundred restaurants with the goal of having 200 restaurants open and operating by the end of 2014. Most recently, a location opened in Auburn University in Alabama and restaurants in Puerto Rico; Tyler, Texas; and Overland Park, Kansas, are slated to open this winter.
