Wayback Burgers – the successful fast-casual franchise concept specializing in burgers and shakes – is expanding its international franchise operations
Wayback Burgers first opened in Newark, Delaware, in 1991. At the time, it wasn’t known as Wayback Burgers, however; it was called Jake’s Hamburgers. The burgers were delicious, and it wasn’t long before some more Jake’s Hamburgers opened up.
Eventually, to avoid confusion with another, smaller restaurant chain, the name ‘Jake’ was dropped. Today, two seasoned executives, John Eucalitto and Bill Chemero, run Wayback Burgers. Eucalitto is the company president; and Chemero is the executive vice president (EVP).
The Wayback Burgers franchise now has 155 domestic restaurants in 30 states with several additional restaurants around the world.
Wayback Burgers, in fact, is in four provinces in Canada (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario) and various other countries abroad, including Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Pakistan, Kuwait and Morocco and Western Malaysia. All in all, there are more than 500 development deals in place. So, Wayback Burgers may or may not be a household name (it depends whose house you live in) today, but it will be…and very soon!
In fact, within five years, Chemero says the company expects to have opened at least another 275 restaurants around the United States and more than 50 restaurants around the world.
Built on a legendary American staple
Wayback Burgers’ food specialty is no secret. They do have chicken sandwiches, fish, cheesesteaks and chicken tenders and other items, but, yes, they’re known for their deliciously juicy burgers, topped with cheese, bacon, onions, etc. The restaurant also makes some amazing hand-dipped milkshakes.
Customers have responded, which is why this franchise has been expanding quickly.
The restaurant aims to deliver burgers that taste like they were made the way customers would make them on the grill, if they had the time and energy. Whether guests grab the food and go, or stay for a while, the Wayback Burgers corporate team and franchise owners over the years have worked hard to offer a fun, nostalgic atmosphere, and one that demonstrates that the food is made with a lot of care – and is not something carelessly mass-produced without thought or skill.
This is, of course, based on trends being seen worldwide. People are increasingly unsatisfied with food that has been sitting under a heat lamp for two hours. They want their food cooked relatively quickly, yes, but they’re willing to wait a little while for food that is cooked to order.
In other words, customers are demanding quality.
Additionally, there are also some selections for the Wayback guests who are calorie conscious, such as a veggie burger and salads.
Fun with a side of fries
While most days, franchise owners will be serving the regular menu, Wayback Burgers likes to shake things up with fun promotions and limited-time offers, to grab the media’s attention and improve brand awareness.
For instance, in the last five years, the restaurant has served up:
The 9-patty burger. Yes, this was a burger with nine patties and was briefly on the menu. The corporate office said that it was 1,980 calories, while a Huffington Post article claimed it was 5,100. A Houston news anchor quipped, “You’ll get a heart attack just looking at that thing.”
A cricket-infused milkshake. Who wouldn’t want crickets in their milkshake? Nobody, you would think, but Wayback Burgers had fun promoting it for a few months, along with a Beef Jerky milkshake.
Cheez Whiz Milkshake. The press release in 2016 made it sound like an April Fool’s Day prank, but select restaurants did offer free Cheez Whiz Milkshakes that day to willing customers.
Multi-unit opportunities
While anyone is welcome to buy one franchise, Chemero says that becoming a master franchisee has been a successful strategy for a lot of people.
“It’s a growing brand, both domestically and internationally,” he says. “The master franchise investment value is increasing yearly, and the master franchisees see it as a long-term investment.”
In the meantime, Chemero says that the master franchisees are very happy with the initial sales of the restaurants they’ve opened and the support and training that they received from Wayback corporate staff. The feedback that master franchisees have provided to Chemero and other executives is that they are very excited about the lead generation plans that they’ve developed with the corporate executives. The lead generation plans are designed to help with the goal of them awarding sub franchise and single unit franchises to entrepreneurs throughout countries with established master franchisees.
The financials
If you’re looking for an opportunity to be a master franchisee with Wayback Burgers, the investment requirements vary from country to country. It’s also hard to pinpoint numbers in the general sense because everybody’s situation is different.
Some may be looking to be a master franchisee in one country, for instance; others, may be looking at a region of the world. But Chemero says that the investment costs are lower than comparable fast-casual restaurants, and if you contact him (see the ‘At a Glance’ box below), he can walk you through the information you’ll need to make an informed decision.
In any case, Chemero says that the company is committed to helping master franchisees around the globe succeed. “We have a dedicated team to support master franchisees in growing their territories. They make weekly calls and frequent visits to their countries to assist in trade shows and training.”
AT A GLANCE:
Name of franchise: Wayback Burgers
Established: 1991
Number of franchised outlets: 161
Location of units: USA and Internationally
Investment range: $300,000-$400,000US
Minimum required capital: depends on country
URL: https://waybackburgers.com/franchising/
Contact: bchemero@waybackburgers.com 011-203-649-3392
