Hawaiian Bros, an island-themed, Quick Service/Fast Casual restaurant, is igniting its fast-paced growth by expanding into a franchise chain. The franchise launch for the brand renowned for its unique and delicious Hawaiian plate lunch cuisine, will be spearheaded by Carey Malloy, the company’s new chief development officer and will be supported by Grant Kreutzer, vice president of franchise development.
“With an outstanding average-unit volume of $4 million for established stores and a culture that balances speed of service and high-quality products exceptionally well, Hawaiian Bros represents an opportunity unlike any other in the restaurant industry. This is an incredible offer for those looking for a new restaurant concept with growth potential for years to come,” says Grant Kreutzer, Vice President of Franchise Development. “We’ve had many inquiries from industry leaders to guests ask us about franchising – and that passion for the brand is what really drew me in.”
Many multi-unit franchisees of legacy quick-service brands get increasingly frustrated with their existing brands due to slow growth and plateaued sales. Some are also weary of complex menus that slow down speed of service. The Hawaiian Bros franchise provides an attractive opportunity to operate a unique restaurant concept with a simple menu – only 81 SKUs that deliver efficiencies with supply chain and a 30-second speed of service standard at the drive-thru windows.
The QSR/Fast-casual brand is looking for multi-unit franchisees with more than 10 years of operations experience who can leverage their market knowledge and align with the ‘ohana culture and Aloha Spirit – showing kindness and treating everyone as ‘ohana, like family, in everything they do.
Hawaiian Bros opened its first two locations in 2018 in Kansas City, MO and has rapidly grown to 36 locations by 2022 across six states, including 5 special outlets (4 ghost kitchens and 1 digital kitchen). With increased system-wide sales of 62% from 2021, and 334% increase from 2020, Hawaiian Bros landed on numerous fastest-growing lists, including recognition as a notable new entrant on the Technomic Top 500 list, the number 11 seat on the Inc. 5000 Regionals Midwest list and a top spot on QSR Magazine’s 40/40 list. With this accelerated growth, Hawaiian Bros recently ranked in the top 5 of the November 2022 QSR Best Brand to Work For Certified report–a testimony to the unique employee culture developed in the restaurants.
“We’re a business built for speed in every sense of the word – from our 30-second drive-thru window time, to the rapid expansion in markets across the country, to bringing our franchise program to life,” says Cameron McNie, co-founder and co-CEO of Hawaiian Bros. “Bringing on Carey and Grant offers our team unbeatable expertise in developing next-level franchise opportunities for our ‘ohana. With the existing and unmatched passion our guests have for the brand, we can’t wait to see the success our future franchisees will bring to Hawaiian Bros.”
Hawaiian Bros differentiates its franchising support to include extensive training, new restaurant opening operations support for 2 or 3 weeks, and assistance with restaurant technology set up and installation for the first new restaurant location opened.
Hawaiian Bros currently has 36 company locations across six states Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Illinois, New York and Texas offering fresh, island-inspired food – no freezers, no fryers, no microwaves. From the variety of juicy chicken marinated with teriyaki or glazed with sweet, savory, or spicy sauces; to the slow roasted Kalua pork – all plate lunches include delicious macaroni salad, a bed of fluffy steamed white rice or vegetables; and for something sweet, the smooth and delicious tropical Dole Soft Serve.
In addition, Hawaiian Bros is perfectly positioned between Quick Service and Fast Casual restaurants by catering to different customer ordering preferences. The restaurant provides a personal, face-to-face guide who stands on the same side of the counter as their customers to walk them through the menu options, and offers a self-service kiosk – both geared to provide the customer with speed and accuracy in receiving their food.
