For nearly 50 years, Miller’s Famous Sandwiches has remained a dining institution in and around East Providence, Rhode Island. Today, with the third generation of family owners at the helm, Miller’s has officially launched its franchise opportunity and is ready to introduce its signature Roast Beef and variety of other mouthwatering sandwich options to throngs of new customers.
With two flagship stores already satisfying customers of all demographics in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, Miller’s intends to expand its footprint across the East Coast. President Gwendolyn Graham hopes to see approximately 5-7 restaurants open up over the next few years in an area that extends from the Northeast down to Florida.
“People love Miller’s and we’re excited to begin providing our unique product and services to customers in other communities across the country,” says Graham. “Franchise expansion doesn’t mean that we’ll cease to be family-owned, however. It just means that each new franchise owner and all of their customers become family, too. This is why our guiding philosophy has always been and always will be ‘Family Serving Family.’”
The first Miller’s restaurant was opened in East Providence, Rhode Island in 1972. Since that time, the brand has become a local icon on the foodservice scene, offering one of the best tasting, authentic roast beef sandwiches on the market. The roast beef is slow roasted every night, overnight – resulting in the most tender and tasty sandwiches. Other mouthwatering sandwich options include: Pastrami, French Dip, Reubens, Thanksgiving (Turkey), Chicken, Lobster, BBQ Pulled Pork, Ham, Corned Beef, and New England style Lobster Roll.
Remarkably, Miller’s cooks 12,000 pounds (that’s 6 tons) of its signature slow roasted roast beef each month and sells over 8,000 sandwiches each week.
Freshly-made sides include: crinkle cut fries, onion rings, baked beans, homemade slaw, clam strips, and more.
As for the restaurant design? Every Miller’s location is based off of the look and feel of the original restaurant that was opened nearly a half-century ago. Details such as community tables, swivel stools, and warm wood tones are just a few of the ways that Miller’s recreates this atmosphere. An open-kitchen concept allows customers the ability to watch their food being made, while giving them a better understanding of the craft, quality, freshness, and love that goes into Miller’s products.
“At Miller’s, we understand that in the quick-moving world that we are currently living in, today, sometimes it’s nice to just take a step back and get back to basics,” says Graham. “Our home-cooked menu options, our freshly prepared meals, and our comfortable dining atmosphere constantly bring customers coming back to feel that nostalgic feeling that comes with being ‘home.’”
She adds, “It’s a bit of the past continuing to the present – when quality meant something special.”
Today, armed with a refreshed brand identity, Miller’s is seeking franchise partners who understand family, understand quality, and understand what it takes to be successful no matter what the economic climate looks like.
Including a franchise fee of $40,000, the initial investment range for a Miller’s restaurant is between $396,000 and $818,000.
A typical franchise location sits approximately 1,500 to 2,200 square feet and is located in a strip center, is free standing, or is found on a pad site in a shopping center. Most Miller’s employ 20-25 full- and part-time employees.