October 24, 2025 • 28 mins
What happens when a chef treats a tortilla like a canvas and a restaurant like a community lab? Miguel Reyes, cofounder of Quesadilla Gorilla, shares how a tiny Fresno storefront grew into a franchise-ready brand rooted in scratch cooking, playful specials, and authentic connection. We unpack the systems behind consistent quality, the menu philosophy that balances tradition with experimentation, and the real estate strategy that favors grocery-anchored centers over drive-thrus. If you're curious about scaling with soul, Miguel’s transparent roadmap, from focused margaritas to franchisee-led marketing is packed with insights.
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Episode Transcript
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Miguel Reyes (00:03):
I mean, for us, we always say our employees are
our number one asset.
Again, if you have happyemployees, they're gonna serve
customers happy, and then thecustomer is gonna be happy.
And so really taking the timeto find people that have those
same values because yes, at theend of the day, employees are
numbers and you have to run yourbusiness with status, but
(00:25):
again, it's like taking the timeto know them.
We do like employeeappreciation where it's like,
hey, you get a chef knife onyour year anniversary or you get
an Amazon gift card.
We make sure that likebirthdays are put into our
communication platform.
So it's just like stuff likethat and finding people that
have the same values.
We created Quesadilla Gorillato build connections.
Brian Sheehan (00:47):
Welcome to Retail Intel, the podcast where we
spotlight the most innovativebrands reshaping the retail and
restaurant landscape.
I'm your host, Brian Chian, andtoday we're thrilled to have
Miguel Reyes, founder ofQuesadilla Gorilla, joining us.
Miguel launched thisCalifornia-based fast casual
concept with his wife, Michaela,in 2013, turning the humble
(01:11):
Quesadilla into a movement builton peace, love, and deity.
From a tiny storefront inVitalia to a growing franchise,
Miguel's journey is one of grit,creativity, and community.
Let's dive into the storybehind the brand, the lessons
learned along the way, andwhat's next for Quesadilla
(01:32):
Gorilla.
Well, Miguel, welcome to theshow.
How are you doing?
Doing good.
Yeah, happy to be here.
Great.
Thanks so much for joining uson the podcast.
Um I'd love to start with yourbackground.
What were you doing before andwhat led you and Michaela to
launch Quesadilla Gorilla?
Miguel Reyes (01:51):
Initially we met in a restaurant.
Um we uh I was pretty much thethe I was the head chef in the
back and then she was runningthe front.
We were at a a cafe.
Uh so they did some lunch, andthen our um boss also owned a
pizza shop.
So I'd work the days there andthen go over there at nights.
And so um we pretty much werelike, hey, we're we're doing
(02:12):
this already, let's just go,let's go, let's go do it for
ourselves instead.
So we did.
Brian Sheehan (02:18):
That's awesome.
And I think I read somewherebefore that you said the
tortilla is a blank canvas.
How did that philosophy shapethe menu and brand identity?
Miguel Reyes (02:29):
So we originally bought a pizza by the slice spot
when the original location wasto like, hey, let's just do
this.
We'll do wings, we'll open latenight, we're downtown.
Our original location wasdowntown.
And uh, you know, one night Iwas kind of going to bed.
I was like, oh, we should doquesadillas.
You know, we we could do youryour grandma's chili verde, your
grandma's salsa, my family'ssalsa, and so we um really just
(02:54):
kind of went all in on on thatidea.
We do different cheeses.
I I'm a sauce guy, like everybite has to have sauce on it.
Like I have like 10 differentsalsas in my fridge and
different levels, you know, thisone's specifically for eggs,
this one's for you know salads,and so when we started this, it
was like, all right, we need tohave like a base menu of like,
hey, here's what you can kind ofget every single day.
(03:16):
But then again, kind of takingthat pizza approach, like you
know, we looked everywhere onMain Street and there's a pizza
shop everywhere, you know.
So it's like, oh, let's let'stake that idea and and do
quesadillas and do different,you know, build your own menu,
and then let's get crazy.
So, like the the core of ourmenu is definitely like
authentic Mexican food that justgetting the the recipes from my
(03:39):
from my wife's family, we're wehad just started dating, and it
was very much, hey, can we getthe chilibre recipes?
Like, well, you're not part ofthe family yet, but uh, you
know, it's like, hey, we'rewe're dating, but we're planning
to get married.
And even that, it's like therewas no recipe.
Uh, it's like a little bit ofonions, a little bit of
tomatillos, a little bit ofthis, and it's like, wait, wait,
wait, let me weigh that beforeyou put it in.
(04:00):
And then from there we had tolike simplify it and make it
more approachable becauseeverything's just super spicy.
And so we kind of toned it downa little bit.
And then with that, it was justlike, all right, here's our
base, uh, and then let's docrazy stuff.
I mean, we've done anywherefrom uh spaghetti and meatball
quesadilla to this month we'redoing a whiskey-infused barbecue
(04:21):
burger, bacon, quesadilla withonion rings in it.
So that we kind of have alittle bit of fun with our
monthly specials.
Uh, but again, sauce, it'slike, all right, it has a sauce
in it, you know, it has aprotein.
Who everyone loves bacon?
And so, but yeah, it's kind ofkind of what we went with.
Brian Sheehan (04:38):
Those sound delicious.
Yeah, thinking about the growthof the brand and like your
journey getting to this point,what do you think were some real
key pivotal moments that helpedQuesadilla Gorilla break
through?
Miguel Reyes (04:55):
What comes to mind is the mistakes we've made.
I mean, you're a real estateguy, and so it's like we we
opened a location in a reallybad spot, and um, it definitely
hurt us and kind of stunted someof our growth.
Um, but because of that, it'slike we've been a little a a way
more selective in where weopen, but definitely making that
mistake on the flip side ofthat uh is catering.
(05:17):
We do a lot of catering, so wehave a uh we we had a food truck
up until uh just a couple yearsago because the engine blew
out.
And so we're able to test thethe different markets with the
food truck.
So we had our original locationin Viselia, and then from there
we're able to open in Fresno,which is 45 minutes away,
because they were very foodtruck friendly, and then from
(05:39):
there we opened two locations.
One of them was a big flop, theother one's still open today.
So, yeah, seeing how muchcatering adds to your business.
I mean, we're doing weddings,we're doing you know, private
employee appreciations where youknow we go out and make three
thousand dollars in an hour ortwo, and so that as well as two
years ago, we added a barprogram to our concept.
(06:02):
So we kind of took the sameapproach with quesadillas and we
applied it to margaritas, um,and they just go hand in hand.
Most people eat one quesadilla,but they'll have three
margaritas, and so now ouraverage tickets are going up.
The bars, again, we're not wewe take the same approach with
food where it's like we doeverything from scratch, so
there's no mixers, it's qualitystuff, like we've you know,
(06:23):
fresh fruits, um, all that kindof stuff, and we just do it well
and simplify it.
So I think those weredefinitely some some big
breakthroughs.
Brian Sheehan (06:30):
Quesadilla Gorilla is known for its made
from scratch menu, verylaid-back vibe, got
community-driven culture.
How'd you think about buildingthe brand identity?
You know, call that kind offrom the ground up.
Miguel Reyes (06:46):
When we started, uh it was very much like
restaurant, like we'rerestaurant focused.
And over the years, that hasshifted to like, no, we're a
brand, and how do we build abrand, an identity where people
like want to uh wear our merch?
Uh where it's cool to like,hey, like, you know, it's cool
(07:08):
to go to KCD at Gorilla, like,oh, I go to Gorilla all the
time, or I go to Dillo, or youknow, there's a bunch of you
know different ways people sayit, but really it was just kind
of like how do we how do we makeit approachable for most
people?
Again, these are authenticrecipes, but how do we make it
approachable where it doesn'tfeel like a hole in the wall?
It feels unsafe to go there,and so we kind of just made it
(07:30):
look cool.
And we did that with our socialmedia and some of the videos
that we recently started doing,um, and just again like building
up the hype with like, hey, Iwant to be here, you know, where
um I have uh four kids myself,and so it's like all right, like
yes, we have a bar, but westill want to be family
friendly, and so how do weaccomplish that?
It's like, no, we're not asports bar.
(07:52):
You're still gonna be able tohave a conversation when you
come in, but again, there'ssomething there's I mean, we got
high schoolers, old people, um,we got you know, um anything,
everything in between.
Brian Sheehan (08:03):
So I read that there was an article in the
Fresno B that gave you guys aboost kind of early on, and it's
I don't know, fun thinkingabout legacy media and how that
can help propel a brand forward.
I'm curious kind of how youthink about that and how
important community has been andthat local media in your
(08:25):
growth.
Miguel Reyes (08:26):
Yeah, uh, I mean, that article is was definitely a
game changer.
I mean, uh, back in the daywhen we first started, like 30
quesadillas was a good day.
It's like, cool, we made 300bucks, you know?
And that article came out andwe went from like 300 to like
1200 overnight, and and it waslike we we we were just not
prepared for that.
(08:46):
We were running out of foodleft and right.
Uh, we had a couch upstairs atthe time, so I was like sleeping
in the restaurant cooking foodthroughout the night.
Uh, and people are like comingin with their newspaper, like,
oh, I saw you in the newspaper,you know.
So definitely like media hasbeen a huge hit for us, and so
now we're doubling down on that,and so we're kind of stepping
(09:06):
into more macro influencers.
And just recently we we'relaunching a a brand ambassadors
where we reach out to localinfluencers uh who already love
us, we're calling them dilladillers, and so like with that,
they are going to you know beposting about us, and and again,
it's like like be authentic,like tell us what why you come
in all the time, you know, andand some of their reach, it's
(09:28):
like you know, there's somevideos to get you know a hundred
thousand likes.
It's like, how do you likeyou're a stay-home mom?
How are you getting this muchtraction on your on your stuff?
And so seeing that as likeanother um added benefit to like
reach more people.
Brian Sheehan (09:42):
You've been really candid about the toll
that entrepreneurship can take.
And I find it fascinating onthis podcast.
And I'm fortunate I get tospeak with founders, people like
yourself who have built, youknow, a really interesting and
innovative brand.
But I wonder if you could talkabout kind of the personal side
of building a business whileraising a family.
(10:03):
How do you balance that?
Miguel Reyes (10:05):
Um, well, I didn't for a long time.
Um, it was definitelyeverything that I had went to
the business.
It was just very much like, youknow, early mornings, late
nights.
And my wife was very supportivethe whole time.
I mean, she she works just ashard as I do.
Um, and I think that's why wefell in love.
But now it's been more of like,okay, this isn't sustainable.
(10:26):
We need to really shuffle thedeck of cards and how do we how
do we build this uh to where uhthis isn't built around me.
Um, this is a built around likethe people that work here.
And so I'm sure we'll talkabout it in a little bit, but we
have some big plans forexpansion, but um with that,
it's like getting the peoplewho've been with us for five,
(10:47):
six years.
It's like, hey, like you'regonna be stepping into this new
position because we need you to,um, so that we have that
balance, you know, um, and evenpersonally making moves to where
it's like my phone is gettingput on the charger when I get
home at five o'clock.
Yes, I go over there and checkit still from you know, when my
wife's not looking, but it'slike the intention of like, hey,
(11:08):
like I'm going to try to putthis down, shut work off, so I
can I can be here for family,and then when I need to be here
for work, then I'm here forwork.
So there's definitely been alittle bit more balance uh
recently in that regard.
Brian Sheehan (11:20):
Well, and you've brought up kind of the future
and expansion.
You guys have recently leanedinto franchising, correct?
Miguel Reyes (11:26):
Yeah, we we started franchising um probably
about 18 months ago is when weactually like officially
launched franchising.
Uh we've probably been workingon it for about three years or
so, just getting all the SOPs,training videos.
You know, it's like, hey, likewe know how to do this like the
(11:47):
back of our hand.
Um it's really easy.
So how do we get uh how are wegoing to support and build that?
I would say like last year wasdefinitely like the first year
where it's like, all right, likewe're we're going all in on
that.
Brian Sheehan (12:00):
So you talked about wanting to find more uh
Miguel's and Michaela's.
What's that mean in terms offranchise culture and kind of
the values, you know, andthinking about the type of
partners you're looking for?
Miguel Reyes (12:15):
Yeah, I mean, for us, you know, we always say our
employees are our number oneasset.
Again, if you have happyemployees, they're gonna serve
customers happy, and then thecustomer is gonna be happy.
And so really taking the timeto find people that have those
same values because yes, at theend of the day, employees are
numbers and you have to run yourbusiness with the status, but
(12:37):
again, it's like taking the timeto know them.
We do like employeeappreciation where it's like,
hey, you get a chef knife on aon your year anniversary, or you
get you know, an Amazon giftcard.
We make sure that likebirthdays are put into the our
communication platform, youknow.
So it's just like stuff likethat, um, and finding people
that have those same values, uh,and then past that again, it's
(13:00):
the customer service, you know.
Like we created K C Dia Grillto build connections, you know,
like we're not a fast foodjoint, it takes a little bit
longer to get food.
I mean, not in comparison tofast food, you know, but we're
really built on creating andcrafting connection through K C
Diaz, and that's just kind ofwhat we're about.
You know, if people are in thatsame vein, then it's like,
(13:21):
okay, we can talk, you know, thefinancials, the, you know, the
experience.
Like, yes, you do need to havesome experience, but it's it's
those values and visions that iflike if we can't line up, I
don't I don't care how muchmoney you have or how many
locations you want to buy, it'sjust it's gonna be more of a
headache down the road.
Brian Sheehan (13:37):
It's just so fascinating.
You know, a quesadilla is oneof those shareable food items.
I love them.
I'm thinking about how manytimes in my life I've probably
shared a quesadilla withsomeone, you know, like and but
it never occurred to me thatit's a food item built in a way
that allows for people to makeconnections.
Miguel Reyes (13:58):
Yeah, I mean, it's been cool to see like first
dates down to uh now we'recatering their wedding, now
we're catering their one-year uhtheir baby's birthday, and it's
like, hey, you got a KCDAcaterer for your one-year
birthday, like this is for you,not for your baby.
Let's just be honest, you know.
But yeah, it's uh it's justbeen yeah, it's cool to see the
relationships built externallyand internally, you know.
Brian Sheehan (14:21):
One thing I find pretty fascinating about
franchising is you know how youbalance brand consistency with
allowing franchisees someflexibility, and you see it play
out in different ways acrossdifferent brands.
And and sounds like it's stillsort of early on in the journey
for you in terms of franchising,but how do you think about
(14:44):
that?
Miguel Reyes (14:45):
Yeah, I mean, I I definitely what comes to mind is
the whole McDonald's approach.
You know, it's like the all allthe good ideas have come from
franchisees.
You know, we've done one thingand that's it from the very
beginning.
Yes, we have a secret menu.
It's like you can get, youknow, a quesarito with with no
cheese in it, and it's it'spretty much a burrito, but we
don't call it that.
You can do a quesadilla with nouh tortilla and it's a bowl.
(15:07):
We have small corn tortillasfor gluten-free people, and
they're again we don't say theythey're pretty much tacos, uh,
but they're like these grilled,you know, mini quesadillas, what
we call them.
And so some of the stuff whenit comes to like menus, like,
hey guys, like we've been doingthis for 12 years now.
Oh, we're we're celebrating 12years next month, and it's like
this is what's worked for us.
(15:28):
Like, we're open to hear ideasas far as like menu, but like
just try this first and sellthis first, you know.
Like, this is like get peoplein the door, have them try the
food, and I guarantee they'llthey'll be back.
And so, um, but when it comesto like marketing stuff, it's
like you know, like we have uhwe have a a franchise in a
(15:50):
college town in in San LuisObispo and our franchisees
there, it's like, hey, can wetry this?
Can we try that?
It's like, yeah, let's try it,you know.
Um, so we're open to to tryingnew things.
Um again, we're I think that'swhat I'm looking forward to the
most with franchising is likecoming into connections with
these other franchisees who havea different experience, who
(16:10):
probably have, you know, a adifferent perspective on
operations or uh or marketing orfinancing or whatever it might
be.
And so taking that and addingthat to the value of Casey Dia
Gorilla for our own stores andfor other franchisees.
Brian Sheehan (16:27):
Your menus I would say kind of simple and
creative, um, and you have a lotof you know fun names for the
different items on the menu.
How do you think about kind ofbalancing consistency with some
of the innovation?
The so you mentioned a coupleof the different um ones, like a
(16:49):
meatball and spaghettiquesadilla.
How do you think aboutbalancing consistency and
innovation?
Miguel Reyes (16:55):
Yeah, I mean I like I feel the biggest jump for
us was from one location to twolocations.
It's like, oh yeah, we can dothis.
And we just had nothing ready.
Like we had no SOPs, we had notraining videos.
It was an eye-opener that it'slike, oh, we did everything
here.
And so um since then, we'veagain we've put a lot of like
focus, spent a lot of money ontraining videos to have that
(17:18):
consistency where it's like tohave the same quesadilla two and
a half hours away and us not bethere is like okay, great.
We nail in on that side ofthings, but again, just like the
the innovation piece that's Ihave tattoos on my arms and it
says cook to live, live to cook.
Uh and so, like again, I lovecooking, like it's just like a
(17:39):
passion of mine.
When I was five, I was the kidthat was like, Hey, like, I want
to open my own restaurant, andso and and here I am.
And so um I was always stirringstuff in the in the kitchen,
you know.
I wasn't playing video gameswith my brother.
It was just like, hey, I'mtrying this, trying this, hey,
add this, you know, to it.
And so uh like right now we'regetting we're getting ready to
(18:01):
launch uh some some churros uhadding to the menu.
We're looking at some new sidesto the menu, and so that's like
this is what I get reallyexcited about of like okay,
here's a product that uh isgoing to be new, and so it's
really exciting, and I can dothis and cook this all day long,
but how do I simplify this towhere we do have that
(18:23):
consistency across all thelocations?
And then from there, how do wescale this?
How do we like I made a smallbatch now?
How do I make this times 50?
How do I make this moreefficient?
And so that part is isdefinitely the the part that I
like for sure.
Brian Sheehan (18:39):
We could probably do a whole episode on you know
how do you scale things, and Ican't wait to try the churros.
I'm sure those are gonna beamazing.
And congratulations on 12years, by the way.
That's that's really awesome,especially for somebody who had
a vision, you know, as a kid tohave his own restaurant.
That's that's really exciting.
(18:59):
How many locations are therenow?
And what's the ideal size forQuesadilla Gorilla Restaurant
now and going forward?
Miguel Reyes (19:07):
Yeah, so currently we have uh five locations.
Uh two of those are franchised.
Uh, and then we're opening upour third franchised unit uh at
the end of this year, prettyclose to us.
And then we're actually will beopening our first out-of-state
store in spring of next year inIdaho.
So that one I'm sure we'll kindof get into uh a little bit,
(19:30):
but uh that one will technicallyuh be a franchise location, but
it'll it'll also act as our newheadquarters as we're actually
looking to relocate um to Idahopersonally.
Brian Sheehan (19:41):
So what market in Idaho have you guys already
landed on a location?
Miguel Reyes (19:45):
Yeah, uh we have a lot of family in Moscow, Idaho.
So uh University of Idahothere, New St.
Andrews, uh, and then itborders Washington University.
So the the plan is to kind ofopen three locations there in
the next couple years, uh prettyclose to each other and start
building the market there.
Brian Sheehan (20:05):
And what's the uh the right size uh square
footage wise for yourrestaurant?
Miguel Reyes (20:11):
Uh so we have two different options.
You know, with the full bar,you know, some states, some
locations, you're not gonna beable to get a full liquor
license, which again, part of itof why we're expanding out of
state, um, it's a little biteasier in some areas.
Um so with a location with afull bar, we're looking at like
2,000 square feet.
(20:31):
And again, it's not a full-ontons of drinks, but it's more of
an express uh full bar type ofoption, but it has full liquor
that focuses on tequila.
Where if you don't have alcoholand you do just have beer,
because again, you have to haveyou have to have at least beer
on on the menu, you're lookingat like a 1400 uh to 1600 square
(20:51):
foot spot.
Brian Sheehan (20:52):
You had talked uh before.
I mean, it sounds like you'vehad a lot of uh experience in
terms of finding you know realestate, good real estate.
I was thinking about I'mcurious about what you know, if
there were some common threadsthat the locations that flopped
or didn't do as well had incommon.
What have you learned aboutkind of real estate, what works
well for Quesadilla Gorilla?
Miguel Reyes (21:12):
Yeah, we actually had um some colleagues of ours
come down to kind of talk aboutdoing something with them.
And uh so we did a site walk ofall our locations and it was
just like, hey, you have a greatbrand, you have great food, uh,
you have terrible real estate.
And it was just like, ouch.
And so uh he was like, all ofyour locations are very
destination-based where you knowyou have to be coming to
(21:35):
downtown to try our food.
Most of our locations arelocated in downtowns, uh,
because again, community aspect,you know, all you know, all
everyone's coming in here.
But seeing it for what it is,it's like, hey, sometimes
parking's terrible, you know,you have to drive around the
block a couple times, versus uhwhat we're shifting to now is
(21:56):
the Target shopping centers.
I mean, you you've all peopleknow it's like you have to have
good anchor tenants uh to bringpeople, and so uh rather than
trying to get people to comedowntown, it's like let's go
where people are ready going.
They're going to the grocerystore, they're going to Walmart,
they're going to Costco,they're going to Target.
And so those are going to bethe the locations that we're
(22:17):
that we're targeting movingforward.
Brian Sheehan (22:19):
Are you going to be targeting inline spaces?
Are you looking for end caps?
Do you think you need adrive-through?
Miguel Reyes (22:26):
Uh definitely inline again for our concept.
Like, you know, I thinkdrive-throughs is again, you
can't accomplish that connectionpiece.
And again, it's like we'rewe're just not fast food.
And so um, you know, I thinkdefinitely the inline spaces, so
like being next to like a DutchBros, being next to you know,
Jersey Mike's, like these brandsthat people kind of already
(22:47):
know.
And so that's kind of what whatwe're looking for.
And again, it's like the priceper square foot, you know, is
gonna be much cheaper, you know.
A drive-thru you're looking anyeasily, you know, north of a
million dollars to build outversus you know, on our end,
anywhere from like 450 to 850.
So that's definitely gonna godown as we continue to grow too.
Brian Sheehan (23:08):
So and what are the right demographics for you?
Who's your kind of corecustomer?
Miguel Reyes (23:13):
Um, core customer, I would I'd definitely say the
young working professional, youknow, looking to grab a quick
bite.
Couples who, you know, youngfamilies are definitely a big
ticket item.
But really, our customers iseverything, you know, it's like
everyone loves quesadillas, soit's like again, you get, you
know, my my daughter lovescheese and bacon in her
quesadillas.
(23:34):
Uh, and then the same old guyloves cheese and bacon in his
quesadillas.
So there really is forsomething for everything.
And then again, we havemargaritas for mom and beers for
dads.
Brian Sheehan (23:44):
So yeah, I like all those.
I like cheese and bacon in myquesadillas, I like margaritas.
Yeah.
Um, thinking about the future,I guess.
Last couple questions for you.
What's next for quesadillagorilla?
Where do you want to see thebrand go over the next three to
five years?
Miguel Reyes (24:02):
Yeah, for us, we are kind of again reshuffling
the cards.
Uh, last year we spent a ton ofmoney, a ton of time just like
spending on marketing, trying tofind leads.
And rather than spending allthat time and effort on like
leads, we're just like, hey,let's just go do this ourselves.
(24:22):
And so what we're doing now iswe're actually raising our own
private fund where um that fundis essentially going to acquire
our corporate stores uh andconvert them to franchises as
well as open uh more franchises.
And so we're we're looking tocontinue to expand in California
because I think it's still agreat market to expand into.
(24:42):
But we're looking to expandinto Idaho, uh, Nevada, as well
as Tennessee.
And so currently we have someconnections in each one of those
states.
And the plan is to open uh 14more stores over the next like
five years or so, and and kindof again all still be under this
franchise, this franchise arm.
So these will technically befranchises.
(25:03):
And so what we're trying toaccomplish is hey, I'm going to
build a portfolio of what yourportfolio could look like.
It's like I'm gonna pay mymyself royalty fees, I'm gonna
pay my like the same franchisefees and royalties fees and
marketing, like like I'm goingto essentially show you that
like, hey, this can be done, andwe are gonna take it out of
(25:24):
state ourselves because we'rewe're confident that this is
gonna work in these differentmarkets.
Uh, and then from there,strategy-wise, now we have
support in these areas to whereit's like, hey, like we're ready
to open East Coast, like guesswho's supporting the East Coast
is gonna be the Tennesseebranch, you know, and so as far
as like travel-wise, you haveyou know support there where
(25:44):
it's like franchisee needs uh,you know, some help.
We're sending someone fromTennessee versus California
versus Idaho, but then we'llcontinue to franchise in those
areas.
So like right now we're uhtargeting uh kind of the
Franklin area, and it's like youknow, we're hoping to find the
right franchisee to take overthe whole Nashville, to take
over Knoxville, to take overChattanooga, because again,
(26:07):
these are all very prime marketsthat uh like ACD Agrill is
going to work.
And again, a liquor license is500 bucks in Tennessee.
And so we will kind of be thefootprint and kind of do what we
did here in California, but inthese other markets, and then
continue to franchise um toother franchisees.
Brian Sheehan (26:27):
That's awesome.
Miguel, one last question foryou, I guess.
In thinking about you, there'sa lot of entrepreneurs I think
that listen to this podcast whoare interested in opening maybe
their first restaurant locationor store location.
And for those folks, you know,what's a piece of advice you
would give to them?
Miguel Reyes (26:46):
The first thing that always comes to mind is
like, don't do it.
Um no, but when it comes downto the restaurant space, like if
people, if they don't one, ifthey don't have the experience
or they don't have the capital,um, I always tell them start
small.
Like we started our originallocation was 400 square feet.
I mean, our rent was $400 amonth.
(27:08):
Uh, and so it kind of was likea pop-up.
And so I typically tell people,hey, test a market, do a pop-up
at the farmer's market.
Do people even want what youwhat you're offering?
And then from there, you know,now you now you have some
traction, now you have some datathat can I do this and pay for
this much rent.
Now I have an overhead, now Ihave employees, and so versus
(27:30):
like just jumping in andspending anywhere from 300,000
and up on a new concept that youhaven't even tested.
So that's that's definitely umI tell people to start there.
Brian Sheehan (27:41):
Well, Miguel, that's excellent advice, and it
was great speaking with youtoday.
Thanks for joining me on RetailIntel.
Yeah, be sure to check outQuesadilla Gorilla in person and
follow them on Instagram andTikTok at Quesadilla Gorilla.
Whether you're an aspiring realestate mogul, a seasoned pro,
or simply curious about theplaces where we shop, dine,
(28:04):
play, and work, this podcast isyour all access past in the
world of commercial real estate.
Connect with me on LinkedIn,and if you're interested in
being a part of the Retail Intelpodcast, send a message to
nationalaccounts atPhilipsEdison.com.
If you want to hear more aboutnew and expanding brands, keep
(28:25):
tuning in to Retail Intel.
And please subscribe, follow,like, and repost.
Talk to you next time.
I mean, for us, we always say our employees are
our number one asset.
Again, if you have happyemployees, they're gonna serve
customers happy, and then thecustomer is gonna be happy.
And so really taking the timeto find people that have those
same values because yes, at theend of the day, employees are
numbers and you have to run yourbusiness with status, but
(00:25):
again, it's like taking the timeto know them.
We do like employeeappreciation where it's like,
hey, you get a chef knife onyour year anniversary or you get
an Amazon gift card.
We make sure that likebirthdays are put into our
communication platform.
So it's just like stuff likethat and finding people that
have the same values.
We created Quesadilla Gorillato build connections.
Brian Sheehan (00:47):
Welcome to Retail Intel, the podcast where we
spotlight the most innovativebrands reshaping the retail and
restaurant landscape.
I'm your host, Brian Chian, andtoday we're thrilled to have
Miguel Reyes, founder ofQuesadilla Gorilla, joining us.
Miguel launched thisCalifornia-based fast casual
concept with his wife, Michaela,in 2013, turning the humble
(01:11):
Quesadilla into a movement builton peace, love, and deity.
From a tiny storefront inVitalia to a growing franchise,
Miguel's journey is one of grit,creativity, and community.
Let's dive into the storybehind the brand, the lessons
learned along the way, andwhat's next for Quesadilla
(01:32):
Gorilla.
Well, Miguel, welcome to theshow.
How are you doing?
Doing good.
Yeah, happy to be here.
Great.
Thanks so much for joining uson the podcast.
Um I'd love to start with yourbackground.
What were you doing before andwhat led you and Michaela to
launch Quesadilla Gorilla?
Miguel Reyes (01:51):
Initially we met in a restaurant.
Um we uh I was pretty much thethe I was the head chef in the
back and then she was runningthe front.
We were at a a cafe.
Uh so they did some lunch, andthen our um boss also owned a
pizza shop.
So I'd work the days there andthen go over there at nights.
And so um we pretty much werelike, hey, we're we're doing
(02:12):
this already, let's just go,let's go, let's go do it for
ourselves instead.
So we did.
Brian Sheehan (02:18):
That's awesome.
And I think I read somewherebefore that you said the
tortilla is a blank canvas.
How did that philosophy shapethe menu and brand identity?
Miguel Reyes (02:29):
So we originally bought a pizza by the slice spot
when the original location wasto like, hey, let's just do
this.
We'll do wings, we'll open latenight, we're downtown.
Our original location wasdowntown.
And uh, you know, one night Iwas kind of going to bed.
I was like, oh, we should doquesadillas.
You know, we we could do youryour grandma's chili verde, your
grandma's salsa, my family'ssalsa, and so we um really just
(02:54):
kind of went all in on on thatidea.
We do different cheeses.
I I'm a sauce guy, like everybite has to have sauce on it.
Like I have like 10 differentsalsas in my fridge and
different levels, you know, thisone's specifically for eggs,
this one's for you know salads,and so when we started this, it
was like, all right, we need tohave like a base menu of like,
hey, here's what you can kind ofget every single day.
(03:16):
But then again, kind of takingthat pizza approach, like you
know, we looked everywhere onMain Street and there's a pizza
shop everywhere, you know.
So it's like, oh, let's let'stake that idea and and do
quesadillas and do different,you know, build your own menu,
and then let's get crazy.
So, like the the core of ourmenu is definitely like
authentic Mexican food that justgetting the the recipes from my
(03:39):
from my wife's family, we're wehad just started dating, and it
was very much, hey, can we getthe chilibre recipes?
Like, well, you're not part ofthe family yet, but uh, you
know, it's like, hey, we'rewe're dating, but we're planning
to get married.
And even that, it's like therewas no recipe.
Uh, it's like a little bit ofonions, a little bit of
tomatillos, a little bit ofthis, and it's like, wait, wait,
wait, let me weigh that beforeyou put it in.
(04:00):
And then from there we had tolike simplify it and make it
more approachable becauseeverything's just super spicy.
And so we kind of toned it downa little bit.
And then with that, it was justlike, all right, here's our
base, uh, and then let's docrazy stuff.
I mean, we've done anywherefrom uh spaghetti and meatball
quesadilla to this month we'redoing a whiskey-infused barbecue
(04:21):
burger, bacon, quesadilla withonion rings in it.
So that we kind of have alittle bit of fun with our
monthly specials.
Uh, but again, sauce, it'slike, all right, it has a sauce
in it, you know, it has aprotein.
Who everyone loves bacon?
And so, but yeah, it's kind ofkind of what we went with.
Brian Sheehan (04:38):
Those sound delicious.
Yeah, thinking about the growthof the brand and like your
journey getting to this point,what do you think were some real
key pivotal moments that helpedQuesadilla Gorilla break
through?
Miguel Reyes (04:55):
What comes to mind is the mistakes we've made.
I mean, you're a real estateguy, and so it's like we we
opened a location in a reallybad spot, and um, it definitely
hurt us and kind of stunted someof our growth.
Um, but because of that, it'slike we've been a little a a way
more selective in where weopen, but definitely making that
mistake on the flip side ofthat uh is catering.
(05:17):
We do a lot of catering, so wehave a uh we we had a food truck
up until uh just a couple yearsago because the engine blew
out.
And so we're able to test thethe different markets with the
food truck.
So we had our original locationin Viselia, and then from there
we're able to open in Fresno,which is 45 minutes away,
because they were very foodtruck friendly, and then from
(05:39):
there we opened two locations.
One of them was a big flop, theother one's still open today.
So, yeah, seeing how muchcatering adds to your business.
I mean, we're doing weddings,we're doing you know, private
employee appreciations where youknow we go out and make three
thousand dollars in an hour ortwo, and so that as well as two
years ago, we added a barprogram to our concept.
(06:02):
So we kind of took the sameapproach with quesadillas and we
applied it to margaritas, um,and they just go hand in hand.
Most people eat one quesadilla,but they'll have three
margaritas, and so now ouraverage tickets are going up.
The bars, again, we're not wewe take the same approach with
food where it's like we doeverything from scratch, so
there's no mixers, it's qualitystuff, like we've you know,
(06:23):
fresh fruits, um, all that kindof stuff, and we just do it well
and simplify it.
So I think those weredefinitely some some big
breakthroughs.
Brian Sheehan (06:30):
Quesadilla Gorilla is known for its made
from scratch menu, verylaid-back vibe, got
community-driven culture.
How'd you think about buildingthe brand identity?
You know, call that kind offrom the ground up.
Miguel Reyes (06:46):
When we started, uh it was very much like
restaurant, like we'rerestaurant focused.
And over the years, that hasshifted to like, no, we're a
brand, and how do we build abrand, an identity where people
like want to uh wear our merch?
Uh where it's cool to like,hey, like, you know, it's cool
(07:08):
to go to KCD at Gorilla, like,oh, I go to Gorilla all the
time, or I go to Dillo, or youknow, there's a bunch of you
know different ways people sayit, but really it was just kind
of like how do we how do we makeit approachable for most
people?
Again, these are authenticrecipes, but how do we make it
approachable where it doesn'tfeel like a hole in the wall?
It feels unsafe to go there,and so we kind of just made it
(07:30):
look cool.
And we did that with our socialmedia and some of the videos
that we recently started doing,um, and just again like building
up the hype with like, hey, Iwant to be here, you know, where
um I have uh four kids myself,and so it's like all right, like
yes, we have a bar, but westill want to be family
friendly, and so how do weaccomplish that?
It's like, no, we're not asports bar.
(07:52):
You're still gonna be able tohave a conversation when you
come in, but again, there'ssomething there's I mean, we got
high schoolers, old people, um,we got you know, um anything,
everything in between.
Brian Sheehan (08:03):
So I read that there was an article in the
Fresno B that gave you guys aboost kind of early on, and it's
I don't know, fun thinkingabout legacy media and how that
can help propel a brand forward.
I'm curious kind of how youthink about that and how
important community has been andthat local media in your
(08:25):
growth.
Miguel Reyes (08:26):
Yeah, uh, I mean, that article is was definitely a
game changer.
I mean, uh, back in the daywhen we first started, like 30
quesadillas was a good day.
It's like, cool, we made 300bucks, you know?
And that article came out andwe went from like 300 to like
1200 overnight, and and it waslike we we we were just not
prepared for that.
(08:46):
We were running out of foodleft and right.
Uh, we had a couch upstairs atthe time, so I was like sleeping
in the restaurant cooking foodthroughout the night.
Uh, and people are like comingin with their newspaper, like,
oh, I saw you in the newspaper,you know.
So definitely like media hasbeen a huge hit for us, and so
now we're doubling down on that,and so we're kind of stepping
(09:06):
into more macro influencers.
And just recently we we'relaunching a a brand ambassadors
where we reach out to localinfluencers uh who already love
us, we're calling them dilladillers, and so like with that,
they are going to you know beposting about us, and and again,
it's like like be authentic,like tell us what why you come
in all the time, you know, andand some of their reach, it's
(09:28):
like you know, there's somevideos to get you know a hundred
thousand likes.
It's like, how do you likeyou're a stay-home mom?
How are you getting this muchtraction on your on your stuff?
And so seeing that as likeanother um added benefit to like
reach more people.
Brian Sheehan (09:42):
You've been really candid about the toll
that entrepreneurship can take.
And I find it fascinating onthis podcast.
And I'm fortunate I get tospeak with founders, people like
yourself who have built, youknow, a really interesting and
innovative brand.
But I wonder if you could talkabout kind of the personal side
of building a business whileraising a family.
(10:03):
How do you balance that?
Miguel Reyes (10:05):
Um, well, I didn't for a long time.
Um, it was definitelyeverything that I had went to
the business.
It was just very much like, youknow, early mornings, late
nights.
And my wife was very supportivethe whole time.
I mean, she she works just ashard as I do.
Um, and I think that's why wefell in love.
But now it's been more of like,okay, this isn't sustainable.
(10:26):
We need to really shuffle thedeck of cards and how do we how
do we build this uh to where uhthis isn't built around me.
Um, this is a built around likethe people that work here.
And so I'm sure we'll talkabout it in a little bit, but we
have some big plans forexpansion, but um with that,
it's like getting the peoplewho've been with us for five,
(10:47):
six years.
It's like, hey, like you'regonna be stepping into this new
position because we need you to,um, so that we have that
balance, you know, um, and evenpersonally making moves to where
it's like my phone is gettingput on the charger when I get
home at five o'clock.
Yes, I go over there and checkit still from you know, when my
wife's not looking, but it'slike the intention of like, hey,
(11:08):
like I'm going to try to putthis down, shut work off, so I
can I can be here for family,and then when I need to be here
for work, then I'm here forwork.
So there's definitely been alittle bit more balance uh
recently in that regard.
Brian Sheehan (11:20):
Well, and you've brought up kind of the future
and expansion.
You guys have recently leanedinto franchising, correct?
Miguel Reyes (11:26):
Yeah, we we started franchising um probably
about 18 months ago is when weactually like officially
launched franchising.
Uh we've probably been workingon it for about three years or
so, just getting all the SOPs,training videos.
You know, it's like, hey, likewe know how to do this like the
(11:47):
back of our hand.
Um it's really easy.
So how do we get uh how are wegoing to support and build that?
I would say like last year wasdefinitely like the first year
where it's like, all right, likewe're we're going all in on
that.
Brian Sheehan (12:00):
So you talked about wanting to find more uh
Miguel's and Michaela's.
What's that mean in terms offranchise culture and kind of
the values, you know, andthinking about the type of
partners you're looking for?
Miguel Reyes (12:15):
Yeah, I mean, for us, you know, we always say our
employees are our number oneasset.
Again, if you have happyemployees, they're gonna serve
customers happy, and then thecustomer is gonna be happy.
And so really taking the timeto find people that have those
same values because yes, at theend of the day, employees are
numbers and you have to run yourbusiness with the status, but
(12:37):
again, it's like taking the timeto know them.
We do like employeeappreciation where it's like,
hey, you get a chef knife on aon your year anniversary, or you
get you know, an Amazon giftcard.
We make sure that likebirthdays are put into the our
communication platform, youknow.
So it's just like stuff likethat, um, and finding people
that have those same values, uh,and then past that again, it's
(13:00):
the customer service, you know.
Like we created K C Dia Grillto build connections, you know,
like we're not a fast foodjoint, it takes a little bit
longer to get food.
I mean, not in comparison tofast food, you know, but we're
really built on creating andcrafting connection through K C
Diaz, and that's just kind ofwhat we're about.
You know, if people are in thatsame vein, then it's like,
(13:21):
okay, we can talk, you know, thefinancials, the, you know, the
experience.
Like, yes, you do need to havesome experience, but it's it's
those values and visions that iflike if we can't line up, I
don't I don't care how muchmoney you have or how many
locations you want to buy, it'sjust it's gonna be more of a
headache down the road.
Brian Sheehan (13:37):
It's just so fascinating.
You know, a quesadilla is oneof those shareable food items.
I love them.
I'm thinking about how manytimes in my life I've probably
shared a quesadilla withsomeone, you know, like and but
it never occurred to me thatit's a food item built in a way
that allows for people to makeconnections.
Miguel Reyes (13:58):
Yeah, I mean, it's been cool to see like first
dates down to uh now we'recatering their wedding, now
we're catering their one-year uhtheir baby's birthday, and it's
like, hey, you got a KCDAcaterer for your one-year
birthday, like this is for you,not for your baby.
Let's just be honest, you know.
But yeah, it's uh it's justbeen yeah, it's cool to see the
relationships built externallyand internally, you know.
Brian Sheehan (14:21):
One thing I find pretty fascinating about
franchising is you know how youbalance brand consistency with
allowing franchisees someflexibility, and you see it play
out in different ways acrossdifferent brands.
And and sounds like it's stillsort of early on in the journey
for you in terms of franchising,but how do you think about
(14:44):
that?
Miguel Reyes (14:45):
Yeah, I mean, I I definitely what comes to mind is
the whole McDonald's approach.
You know, it's like the all allthe good ideas have come from
franchisees.
You know, we've done one thingand that's it from the very
beginning.
Yes, we have a secret menu.
It's like you can get, youknow, a quesarito with with no
cheese in it, and it's it'spretty much a burrito, but we
don't call it that.
You can do a quesadilla with nouh tortilla and it's a bowl.
(15:07):
We have small corn tortillasfor gluten-free people, and
they're again we don't say theythey're pretty much tacos, uh,
but they're like these grilled,you know, mini quesadillas, what
we call them.
And so some of the stuff whenit comes to like menus, like,
hey guys, like we've been doingthis for 12 years now.
Oh, we're we're celebrating 12years next month, and it's like
this is what's worked for us.
(15:28):
Like, we're open to hear ideasas far as like menu, but like
just try this first and sellthis first, you know.
Like, this is like get peoplein the door, have them try the
food, and I guarantee they'llthey'll be back.
And so, um, but when it comesto like marketing stuff, it's
like you know, like we have uhwe have a a franchise in a
(15:50):
college town in in San LuisObispo and our franchisees
there, it's like, hey, can wetry this?
Can we try that?
It's like, yeah, let's try it,you know.
Um, so we're open to to tryingnew things.
Um again, we're I think that'swhat I'm looking forward to the
most with franchising is likecoming into connections with
these other franchisees who havea different experience, who
(16:10):
probably have, you know, a adifferent perspective on
operations or uh or marketing orfinancing or whatever it might
be.
And so taking that and addingthat to the value of Casey Dia
Gorilla for our own stores andfor other franchisees.
Brian Sheehan (16:27):
Your menus I would say kind of simple and
creative, um, and you have a lotof you know fun names for the
different items on the menu.
How do you think about kind ofbalancing consistency with some
of the innovation?
The so you mentioned a coupleof the different um ones, like a
(16:49):
meatball and spaghettiquesadilla.
How do you think aboutbalancing consistency and
innovation?
Miguel Reyes (16:55):
Yeah, I mean I like I feel the biggest jump for
us was from one location to twolocations.
It's like, oh yeah, we can dothis.
And we just had nothing ready.
Like we had no SOPs, we had notraining videos.
It was an eye-opener that it'slike, oh, we did everything
here.
And so um since then, we'veagain we've put a lot of like
focus, spent a lot of money ontraining videos to have that
(17:18):
consistency where it's like tohave the same quesadilla two and
a half hours away and us not bethere is like okay, great.
We nail in on that side ofthings, but again, just like the
the innovation piece that's Ihave tattoos on my arms and it
says cook to live, live to cook.
Uh and so, like again, I lovecooking, like it's just like a
(17:39):
passion of mine.
When I was five, I was the kidthat was like, Hey, like, I want
to open my own restaurant, andso and and here I am.
And so um I was always stirringstuff in the in the kitchen,
you know.
I wasn't playing video gameswith my brother.
It was just like, hey, I'mtrying this, trying this, hey,
add this, you know, to it.
And so uh like right now we'regetting we're getting ready to
(18:01):
launch uh some some churros uhadding to the menu.
We're looking at some new sidesto the menu, and so that's like
this is what I get reallyexcited about of like okay,
here's a product that uh isgoing to be new, and so it's
really exciting, and I can dothis and cook this all day long,
but how do I simplify this towhere we do have that
(18:23):
consistency across all thelocations?
And then from there, how do wescale this?
How do we like I made a smallbatch now?
How do I make this times 50?
How do I make this moreefficient?
And so that part is isdefinitely the the part that I
like for sure.
Brian Sheehan (18:39):
We could probably do a whole episode on you know
how do you scale things, and Ican't wait to try the churros.
I'm sure those are gonna beamazing.
And congratulations on 12years, by the way.
That's that's really awesome,especially for somebody who had
a vision, you know, as a kid tohave his own restaurant.
That's that's really exciting.
(18:59):
How many locations are therenow?
And what's the ideal size forQuesadilla Gorilla Restaurant
now and going forward?
Miguel Reyes (19:07):
Yeah, so currently we have uh five locations.
Uh two of those are franchised.
Uh, and then we're opening upour third franchised unit uh at
the end of this year, prettyclose to us.
And then we're actually will beopening our first out-of-state
store in spring of next year inIdaho.
So that one I'm sure we'll kindof get into uh a little bit,
(19:30):
but uh that one will technicallyuh be a franchise location, but
it'll it'll also act as our newheadquarters as we're actually
looking to relocate um to Idahopersonally.
Brian Sheehan (19:41):
So what market in Idaho have you guys already
landed on a location?
Miguel Reyes (19:45):
Yeah, uh we have a lot of family in Moscow, Idaho.
So uh University of Idahothere, New St.
Andrews, uh, and then itborders Washington University.
So the the plan is to kind ofopen three locations there in
the next couple years, uh prettyclose to each other and start
building the market there.
Brian Sheehan (20:05):
And what's the uh the right size uh square
footage wise for yourrestaurant?
Miguel Reyes (20:11):
Uh so we have two different options.
You know, with the full bar,you know, some states, some
locations, you're not gonna beable to get a full liquor
license, which again, part of itof why we're expanding out of
state, um, it's a little biteasier in some areas.
Um so with a location with afull bar, we're looking at like
2,000 square feet.
(20:31):
And again, it's not a full-ontons of drinks, but it's more of
an express uh full bar type ofoption, but it has full liquor
that focuses on tequila.
Where if you don't have alcoholand you do just have beer,
because again, you have to haveyou have to have at least beer
on on the menu, you're lookingat like a 1400 uh to 1600 square
(20:51):
foot spot.
Brian Sheehan (20:52):
You had talked uh before.
I mean, it sounds like you'vehad a lot of uh experience in
terms of finding you know realestate, good real estate.
I was thinking about I'mcurious about what you know, if
there were some common threadsthat the locations that flopped
or didn't do as well had incommon.
What have you learned aboutkind of real estate, what works
well for Quesadilla Gorilla?
Miguel Reyes (21:12):
Yeah, we actually had um some colleagues of ours
come down to kind of talk aboutdoing something with them.
And uh so we did a site walk ofall our locations and it was
just like, hey, you have a greatbrand, you have great food, uh,
you have terrible real estate.
And it was just like, ouch.
And so uh he was like, all ofyour locations are very
destination-based where you knowyou have to be coming to
(21:35):
downtown to try our food.
Most of our locations arelocated in downtowns, uh,
because again, community aspect,you know, all you know, all
everyone's coming in here.
But seeing it for what it is,it's like, hey, sometimes
parking's terrible, you know,you have to drive around the
block a couple times, versus uhwhat we're shifting to now is
(21:56):
the Target shopping centers.
I mean, you you've all peopleknow it's like you have to have
good anchor tenants uh to bringpeople, and so uh rather than
trying to get people to comedowntown, it's like let's go
where people are ready going.
They're going to the grocerystore, they're going to Walmart,
they're going to Costco,they're going to Target.
And so those are going to bethe the locations that we're
(22:17):
that we're targeting movingforward.
Brian Sheehan (22:19):
Are you going to be targeting inline spaces?
Are you looking for end caps?
Do you think you need adrive-through?
Miguel Reyes (22:26):
Uh definitely inline again for our concept.
Like, you know, I thinkdrive-throughs is again, you
can't accomplish that connectionpiece.
And again, it's like we'rewe're just not fast food.
And so um, you know, I thinkdefinitely the inline spaces, so
like being next to like a DutchBros, being next to you know,
Jersey Mike's, like these brandsthat people kind of already
(22:47):
know.
And so that's kind of what whatwe're looking for.
And again, it's like the priceper square foot, you know, is
gonna be much cheaper, you know.
A drive-thru you're looking anyeasily, you know, north of a
million dollars to build outversus you know, on our end,
anywhere from like 450 to 850.
So that's definitely gonna godown as we continue to grow too.
Brian Sheehan (23:08):
So and what are the right demographics for you?
Who's your kind of corecustomer?
Miguel Reyes (23:13):
Um, core customer, I would I'd definitely say the
young working professional, youknow, looking to grab a quick
bite.
Couples who, you know, youngfamilies are definitely a big
ticket item.
But really, our customers iseverything, you know, it's like
everyone loves quesadillas, soit's like again, you get, you
know, my my daughter lovescheese and bacon in her
quesadillas.
(23:34):
Uh, and then the same old guyloves cheese and bacon in his
quesadillas.
So there really is forsomething for everything.
And then again, we havemargaritas for mom and beers for
dads.
Brian Sheehan (23:44):
So yeah, I like all those.
I like cheese and bacon in myquesadillas, I like margaritas.
Yeah.
Um, thinking about the future,I guess.
Last couple questions for you.
What's next for quesadillagorilla?
Where do you want to see thebrand go over the next three to
five years?
Miguel Reyes (24:02):
Yeah, for us, we are kind of again reshuffling
the cards.
Uh, last year we spent a ton ofmoney, a ton of time just like
spending on marketing, trying tofind leads.
And rather than spending allthat time and effort on like
leads, we're just like, hey,let's just go do this ourselves.
(24:22):
And so what we're doing now iswe're actually raising our own
private fund where um that fundis essentially going to acquire
our corporate stores uh andconvert them to franchises as
well as open uh more franchises.
And so we're we're looking tocontinue to expand in California
because I think it's still agreat market to expand into.
(24:42):
But we're looking to expandinto Idaho, uh, Nevada, as well
as Tennessee.
And so currently we have someconnections in each one of those
states.
And the plan is to open uh 14more stores over the next like
five years or so, and and kindof again all still be under this
franchise, this franchise arm.
So these will technically befranchises.
(25:03):
And so what we're trying toaccomplish is hey, I'm going to
build a portfolio of what yourportfolio could look like.
It's like I'm gonna pay mymyself royalty fees, I'm gonna
pay my like the same franchisefees and royalties fees and
marketing, like like I'm goingto essentially show you that
like, hey, this can be done, andwe are gonna take it out of
(25:24):
state ourselves because we'rewe're confident that this is
gonna work in these differentmarkets.
Uh, and then from there,strategy-wise, now we have
support in these areas to whereit's like, hey, like we're ready
to open East Coast, like guesswho's supporting the East Coast
is gonna be the Tennesseebranch, you know, and so as far
as like travel-wise, you haveyou know support there where
(25:44):
it's like franchisee needs uh,you know, some help.
We're sending someone fromTennessee versus California
versus Idaho, but then we'llcontinue to franchise in those
areas.
So like right now we're uhtargeting uh kind of the
Franklin area, and it's like youknow, we're hoping to find the
right franchisee to take overthe whole Nashville, to take
over Knoxville, to take overChattanooga, because again,
(26:07):
these are all very prime marketsthat uh like ACD Agrill is
going to work.
And again, a liquor license is500 bucks in Tennessee.
And so we will kind of be thefootprint and kind of do what we
did here in California, but inthese other markets, and then
continue to franchise um toother franchisees.
Brian Sheehan (26:27):
That's awesome.
Miguel, one last question foryou, I guess.
In thinking about you, there'sa lot of entrepreneurs I think
that listen to this podcast whoare interested in opening maybe
their first restaurant locationor store location.
And for those folks, you know,what's a piece of advice you
would give to them?
Miguel Reyes (26:46):
The first thing that always comes to mind is
like, don't do it.
Um no, but when it comes downto the restaurant space, like if
people, if they don't one, ifthey don't have the experience
or they don't have the capital,um, I always tell them start
small.
Like we started our originallocation was 400 square feet.
I mean, our rent was $400 amonth.
(27:08):
Uh, and so it kind of was likea pop-up.
And so I typically tell people,hey, test a market, do a pop-up
at the farmer's market.
Do people even want what youwhat you're offering?
And then from there, you know,now you now you have some
traction, now you have some datathat can I do this and pay for
this much rent.
Now I have an overhead, now Ihave employees, and so versus
(27:30):
like just jumping in andspending anywhere from 300,000
and up on a new concept that youhaven't even tested.
So that's that's definitely umI tell people to start there.
Brian Sheehan (27:41):
Well, Miguel, that's excellent advice, and it
was great speaking with youtoday.
Thanks for joining me on RetailIntel.
Yeah, be sure to check outQuesadilla Gorilla in person and
follow them on Instagram andTikTok at Quesadilla Gorilla.
Whether you're an aspiring realestate mogul, a seasoned pro,
or simply curious about theplaces where we shop, dine,
(28:04):
play, and work, this podcast isyour all access past in the
world of commercial real estate.
Connect with me on LinkedIn,and if you're interested in
being a part of the Retail Intelpodcast, send a message to
nationalaccounts atPhilipsEdison.com.
If you want to hear more aboutnew and expanding brands, keep
(28:25):
tuning in to Retail Intel.
And please subscribe, follow,like, and repost.
Talk to you next time.
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