Corner Bakery Cafe has signed an agreement with Yum & Chill Restaurant Group to bring 30 locations to Florida and New Jersey over the next five to seven years. Plans call for 20 cafes in New Jersey and 10 cafes in the Tampa/St. Petersburg market.
The new restaurants will help boost the local economy in those states by adding more than 1,200 jobs locally.
Growth will be focused in Northern and Central New Jersey, as well as Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties in Florida.
Based in Warren, New Jersey, Yum & Chill Restaurant Group is a team of highly experienced restaurant developers with a diverse portfolio of brands. Partner Nirav Mehta says Corner Bakery Cafe will be a welcome addition to both areas.
"We are excited that Yum & Chill and Corner Bakery Cafe are teaming up to help grow the brand in these two states," Mehta says. "With the young, professional, and active culture in these particular markets, we feel that Corner Bakery Cafe caters to the needs of tomorrow while addressing today's healthy lifestyles."
Since being acquired by Roark Capital Group in 2011, Corner Bakery Café has accelerated its national expansion plans through franchising, with plans to double the brand's presence in the next three years. The bakery cafe brand boasts a unit-level EBITDA (Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) or more than 18 percent and an average unit volume exceeding $2.2 million.
"There are multiple untapped markets in New Jersey and Florida which make perfect sense for our restaurant brand to thrive," says Mike Hislop, CEO of Corner Bakery Cafe. "We've perfected the Corner Bakery Cafe business model by running company-owned cafes for more than 20 years and know that our brand caters well to dense populations and family-focused lifestyles."
