For decades, Good Times has served as a go-to late-night spot across Colorado. Now the drive-thru chain has decided to change its look.
Founded in 1987, the company has grown to 31 locations across the Denver metropolitan area. At its first location in Boulder, Colorado, the general manager was the original hire and has held the position for 37 years.
With some locations open until midnight, SVP of operations Don Stack says, “We want to be that late-night stop where people come in and have a burger, some hot fries, a custard treat, and go home and sleep off whatever you’ve done.”
The burger chain has not opened a new location since 2012 and not much exterior remodeling has occurred. In the past year, however, Stack and his team have begun to revamp locations, with 10 more restaurants to change in the next year.
“We’ve got five restaurants that we invested back in with a new look and a new image to take a great product, great people, and our concept into the next 10 years,” Stack says. “Those five restaurants are doing much better than the company average. It’s not an accident.”
Admitting that its current awnings are “dated,” Stack says the remodel has completely changed the Good Times aesthetic. Its visibly 90s-tinged logo and signage have been swapped for a gray and red color palette with a bubbly block-letter typeface. Even its drive-thru signage has received a distinct sign, with the abbreviation “GT.”
“I want our buildings to pop,” Stack says.
Further, the sides of its storefronts feature hand-painted murals from local artists. As of publication, there are four completed murals. “It gives a local tie to what we do. We’re all Colorado,” Stack says. “We could have wrapped the building [with art], but they were literally out there with spray paint cans.”
The murals are not burger-themed, as one would assume. Rather, they represent each artist’s individual ties with the state and their visions for the future. Good Times’ location on Federal Boulevard in Denver features a bear with headphones and a boombox sitting beside mountainous outcroppings in the hues of the Colorado state flag.
“At our store in Crestline, we’ve got a moon guy in a moon suit on a rocket ship riding a rainbow towards a planet. It’s about shooting for the stars in Colorado,” Stack says.
The brand’s community involvement helps give local artists a chance to show their style, in addition to attracting attention and leaving an impression on the customer.
Good Times’ initial location will not be left behind, Stack states, although its exterior may suggest differently.
“This one is special, it’s the number one store,” he says. In 2022, the interior and appliances were completely redone, having not been updated fully since its opening day.
Stack has been engrossed in the restaurant world since he was a teenager in 1978. While his resume is longer than the milkshake add-on menu, he says the food industry is “not really about concepts, it’s about people.” Having worked with Good Times CEO Ryan Zink and director of IT Brock Davis at a previous restaurant startup, Stack saw no choice but to join the brands after leaving his previous role in 2022.
“When you find a company like this, that’s been sitting here for a while, not developed—that’s the reason I came here,” Stack says. “There hadn’t been a lot of investment in capital as far as the buildings go, so when I came here I saw the opportunity and it’s starting to pay off.”
Working with Zink, Stack was given the freedom of creative control to bring new ideas to the established concept.
“Part of our culture is to stay in touch with the employees,” Stack continues, noting that he writes an individual card for each Good Times worker celebrating a work anniversary, along with a gift card. Last month, he wrote 46. The longevity of its service staff is uncommon in most drive-thru establishments. The key, he says, is nurturing the Good Times environment.
With all-natural, hormone-free, antibiotic-free beef and chicken, its organic-based products are almost fully sourced from Colorado farmers and companies. In this state, Stack says, “Everybody takes their dog everywhere.” Therefore, Good Times offers a treat with three milk bones for its canine customers. On the Good Times website, customers can even add their dog’s birthday to their rewards account.
Same-store sales for company-owned Good Times restaurants increased 5.8 percent during the company’s fiscal third quarter. The chain earned $10.4 million restaurant sales during the quarter, up from $9.29 million in Q3 2023.
