Focus Brands accelerating expansion with multi-branded restaurants

Focus Brands has big plans for streetside, multi-branded restaurants.

The restaurant giant, whose brands include, Auntie Anne’s, Carvel, Cinnabon, Jamba, McAlister’s Deli, Moe’s Southwest Grill and Schlotzky’s, has signed agreements to open more than 50 dual and tri-brand locations in the coming year. Many of the locations will include drive-thrus.

To date, Focus Brands has opened 175-plus dual-branded units and has at least 65 more in various stages of development across the country.  The company noted that it pioneered the concept of dual branding, predominately in malls and non-traditional locations, but it has found new opportunities for “immense franchise growth” with streetside dual-branded units.

Focus Brands said it has identified four dual-brand concepts that offer thoughtful brand pairings for consumers and new opportunities for franchisees, including a concept called Cinnabon Swirl, which pairs Cinnabon and Carvel. The first Cinnabon Swirl is set to open early this year.

The other three multi-branded concepts are: Auntie Anne's/Cinnabon; Auntie Anne's/Cinnabon/Carvel; and Auntie Anne's/Jamba.

"Dual branding is the future of our brands, especially on the specialty side of the business," said Brian Krause, chief development officer at Focus Brands. "There will always be a place in malls, but there is an immense amount of growth opportunity in streetside venues, and, by dual branding, there is more opportunity for enhanced revenue."

Focus Brands' strategy team conducted immense research, taking an in-depth look at co-brand/multi-brand opportunities, including financial models, operations, development, marketing, and competitor analysis to validate the opportunity to grow the right combination of dual brands, the company said. Additionally, it invested heavily in consumer research to identify how to create combinations of its iconic brands to resonate with consumers and meet them where they want to be met.

"More than ever, we are harmonizing the way that we do things across our brands which reduces the friction that sometimes can be created when establishing a co-brand or multi-brand,” said Krause. “Not only does dual branding present an attractive business opportunity, but with the Focus Brands portfolio, brand franchisees gain access to key benefits as a result of the power of our portfolio. This includes efficiency, shared resources, menu diversity, and more.”

While key consumer benefits vary by dual-brand combination, one consistent benefit has been convenience, according to Focus Brands.  The company said having the brands together in one location makes them far more accessible than they are individually and creates opportunity for franchisees, as co-branding leads to an expansive menu that drives enhanced unit-level volume.  

About Focus Brands
Atlanta-based Focus Brands, through its affiliate brands, is the franchisor and operator of more than 6,400 restaurants, cafes, ice cream shoppes, and bakeries in the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and over 55 foreign countries under the Auntie Anne's, Carvel, Cinnabon, Jamba, Moe's Southwest Grill, McAlister's Deli, and Schlotzsky's brand names, as well as the Seattle's Best Coffee brand on certain military bases and in certain international markets.