Focus Brands is entering a new era, capping years of transformational work.
The company announced Tuesday it will rebrand to GoTo Foods, finalizing its transformation into an interconnected restaurant platform. The news was shared at the biennial conference in Las Vegas in front of operators hailing from Auntie Anne’s, Carvel, Cinnabon, Jamba, McAlister’s, Moe’s, and Schlotzsky’s.
“To unlock future opportunities with brand franchisees, and ultimately consumers, it has become more important than ever to have a name that conveys and powers the strength, affection, and craveability of the seven iconic brands in our portfolio today,” CEO Jim Holthouser said in a statement. “GoTo Foods represents a no-limits vision that is firmly rooted in reality as we embrace the power of our platform company and look to a future with endless possibilities.”
The new name was chosen among 200-plus choices. It will be more consumer-facing than “Focus Brands” was and will be used to show that all seven brands are a family. For example, the group will start releasing “GoTo Foods” gift cards that can be used at any of the chains, an improvement upon the “Mix It Up” cards the company is currently selling. Holthouser also suggested the “GoTo Foods” name could be used to market catering services for all seven brands at once.
Additionally, the CEO hinted in the future, the restaurant group may merge all the loyalty programs into one entity, under the “GoTo Foods” banner. In another instance, similar to how Marriott names its concepts as “Fairfield Inn by Marriott,” the company could do the same by repositioning as “McAlister’s by GoTo Foods,” or “Auntie Anne’s by GoTo Foods.” To be clear, the company isn’t ready for these changes, but they are a possibility.
“I can see a world down the road where you can be a lot more portfolio-led than individual [brands] in terms of marketing,” Holthouser said.
This is all possible because of multi-year changes into a united restaurant platform. After Holthouser entered his role in 2020, GoTo Foods has switched from becoming a holding company with seven siloed brands to one that shares enhanced, centralized systems across the portfolio, like common digital platforms that offer suggestive selling to increase orders and average order size and targeted marketing to bring back lapsed users or appeal to frequent customers.
“I remember when I came to Focus, and I started getting to know the brands really well, you could see pockets of excellence in every one of the brands,” Holthouser said. “For example, I could go to Auntie Anne’s, and they were really strong users of social media. McAlister’s was the digital expert in the portfolio. Jamba accounted for 50 percent of the gift cards we sold. So they were all doing things really well. But I’m not interested in seeing McAlister’s thrive as a digital brand—I want everybody to thrive as a digital brand now. That’s really what we’re able to do now with the series of changes.”
The CEO described the previous format as expensive and unwieldy, as the company was handling the same functions and systems individually for each of its business units. As this was happening, the group wasn’t increasing traffic, AUV was lifting mostly through price jumps, and fewer customers were paying more per visit.
“That wasn’t a sustainable business model,” Holthouser told franchisees at the conference. “Bottom line, there was a lot of untapped potential in our brands and your restaurants, bakeries and shoppes. In addition, we saw other areas with growth potential. Opportunities to build our brands and win with consumers in the U.S. and all around the world.”
The company wanted one solution for the entire portfolio instead of seven different ones. GoTo Foods hired experts and data scientists to execute strategies that would drive more business to all the chains—something the company couldn’t afford to replicate for each separate brand. This central, behind-the-scenes knowledge covers culinary, catering, paid media, creative, communications, social media, loyalty, research and analytics, pricing, customer insights, and more.
As GoTo Foods saved money with these synergies, it was able to spend more on marketing and advertising. Since 2019, the company has increased paid media by more than 150 percent. Additionally, the group is preparing to invest $60 million in digital, technology, and loyalty capabilities for its 20-plus million rewards members. Year-over-year loyalty sales are up 18 percent, and the company is adding about 1.1 million guests per quarter. In a few years, GoTo Foods expects half of its revenue to come from loyalty and digital.
Supply chain—which was brought in house—will receive $16 million in enhancements.
“We’re not growing to get bigger. We’re growing to get better,” Holthouser said. “Gaining scope and scale. Adding strength to strength. Becoming smarter, more skilled and more efficient. Enhancing the support and value we provide to you. Yes, with greater scale, we’ll gain purchasing power. But that’s really just the tip of the iceberg. We’ll also gain know-how. Capabilities. Insights. Intelligence. Talent. And, with every added brand, every added new location, as we become a bigger and better platform system, you and your locations will gain new marketplace momentum.”
Since 2020, GoTo Foods has earned systemwide sales of more than $4.2 billion and garnered $1.5 billion from licensing partners.
In 2023 specifically, the company experienced double-digit year-over-year growth in adjusted EBITDA and loyalty acquisition. Additionally, streamlined in-house supply chain resulted in the rationalization of hundreds of SKUs across brands, dollars spent on paid media more than doubled compared to 2022, and the CPG licensing business drove revenue and awareness with 10 new launches.
Development continues to build as well, with a focus on multi-unit growth, co-branding, and nontraditional development. GoTo Foods signed more than 1,150 franchise agreements and opened 398 restaurants while adding 4.6 million new loyalty members worldwide. The company has over 2,000 nontraditional units in the U.S. and more than 2,000 international locations in 60-plus countries. Altogether, there is a pipeline of more than 3,000 restaurants.
“We’re a company comprised of powerful, well-loved brands,” Holthouser said. “We’ve made strategic investments and set the foundation for a bright future ahead. Timing was right to unveil a new name that communicates a dynamic, innovative organization with positive momentum while bringing together our company and our brands and inspiring those we serve.”
