Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit

March 11-13, 2025 | Myrtle Beach, SC — Price increases by $150 after December 13. Register Now

2021 AGENDA

Printable Agenda

TUESDAY / AUGUST 10, 2021

3:00 pm | Registration opens

4:00 pm | Welcome

Opening Remarks

• Cherryh Cansler | VP of Editorial | Networld Media Group
• Matt Pierce | CEO & Founder | Immediate

4:10 pm | Keynote Session

Restaurant Strategy and Execution in a Post-Covid World: The Evolution of Store Management, Footprint, and Technology to Meet the New Reality

Beto Guajardo, the president of Focus Brands International, will share his personal and professional lessons in business growth, innovation and leadership. He will provide concrete takeaways on how to partner with stakeholders, prioritize what matters and stay close to the customer. Beto will speak about ways to implement changes that positively impact the business in constrained operating environments and competitive marketplaces.

Speaker:
• Beto Guajardo | President | Focus Brands International

Sponsored by Immediate

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Beto Guajardo
President
Focus Brands International

5:00 pm | Group Activity

Community Give-Back Party

Join us for a Community Give-Back Party, where for one hour we will make care packs (such as hand wipes, toothbrushes, hand sanitizers, water, snacks, tissues and feminine products) for the homeless. In 2019, our efforts benefited 2,500 families! This year, our partner is Safe House, a non-profit that serves the Atlanta-area homeless community.

Thanks to our sponsors:
• Sysco
• TalentServed
• Hartman Public Relations
• Mallory Agency
• Scout Marketing
• Essity
• Coca-Cola
• Angus Barn
• Bombas

6:00 – 8:00 pm | Networking

Opening Reception

Join us at the start of the Summit for a chance to network with attendees, speakers and sponsors over cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.

Host:
• Brian Whitney | VP, Sales | Appetize

Sponsored by Appetize

WEDNESDAY / AUGUST 11, 2021

7:00 am | Registration & Breakfast

7:45 am | Breakfast Briefing

Transforming the Restaurant IT Network with SD-Branch

Presenter:
• Chase Mullican | Regional Director of Sales | Netsurion

Sponsored by Netsurion

PRESENTER

Chase Mullican
Regional Director of Sales
Netsurion

8:00 am | General Session

Executive Perspectives: Inspiration for Today’s Restaurant Leaders

In this session, you will hear four short, thought-provoking talks that will leave you challenged and inspired.

Presenters:

Linking Your Hidden Data to Drive More Guest Visits
• Stephen Farr-Jones | President | ADM Marketing

Advancing Food Safety Through Transparency and Collaboration
• Laurie Schalow | Chief Corporate Affairs & Food Safety Officer | Chipotle Mexican Grill
• Kerry Bridges | Vice President of Food Safety | Chipotle Mexican Grill

Changing Food Culture from the Inside Out
• Mindy Armstrong | Director of Menu Strategy & Product Innovation | Buffalo Wild Wings

Brand Evolution: The Intersection of Innovation and Legacy
• Cheikh Mboup | President & COO | Edible Brands

Sponsored by ADM Marketing

9:00 am | Refreshment Break

9:30 am | Breakout Session

Using Mobile Marketing to Defend Your Turf

Competition for customer dollars is steeper than ever as brands are not only going head to head with one another but also with grocery stores, gas stations and subscription meal services.

There’s no doubt that these nontraditional restaurant experiences are a threat, but luckily fast casuals have a weapon at their disposal, and it’s mobile marketing.

Whether it’s finding their nearest location in mobile search or seeing an offer shared by their friend, mobile influences 56% of all offline transactions.

Executives in this session will share how they’re using mobile marketing techniques to protect their piece of the fast casual turf.

Moderator:
• Stu Greer | Enterprise Account Executive | SOCi

Sponsored by SOCi

9:30 am | Breakout Session

Are you Preparing and Equipping Your Frontline for Success?

It’s a brand’s job to not only protect its employees but also make sure they have everything they need in order to perform their duties. And that has never been truer when so many restaurants are dealing with labor shortages. Workers now have the luxury of choosing only the companies that equip them with the proper technologies to handle an ever-increasing demanding industry. They expect convenience when it comes to managing their schedules, training and daily tasks. This session will feature executives who have found affordable ways to do just that.

Moderator:
• Cherryh Cansler | VP of Editorial | Networld Media Group

Sponsored by Rosnet

10:30 am | Refreshment Break

11:00 am | Breakout Session

Taming the Beast: How to Make Third-Party Delivery Your Ally

The pandemic has shown us that delivery is a must-have these days, but there are still so many questions surrounding how to do it successfully. Do you hire in-house drivers or work with third-party platforms? Which are the easiest in which to partner? Which take too much off the top? How can you integrate them into your existing systems? How can you ensure that your food arrives in good shape?

Those are just a few questions that our experts will answer.

Moderator:
• Mario Paysse | VP of Sales | Botrista Technology

Sponsored by Botrista Technology

11:00 am | Breakout Session

Using Technology to Acquire NEW Customers

We’ve all heard the stats about how it costs more to attract new customers than to keep old ones, but that doesn’t mean you should forget about introducing your brand to newcomers.

This session will offer tech-savvy tips and tricks to help you not only entice first-timers to give your brand a chance but also how to make the most out of that first impression.

Moderator:
• Matt Drewes | SVP, Group Head – Restaurant | Cardlytics

Sponsored by Cardlytics

12:00 pm | Lunch & Learn

Dispelling the Myths and Skepticism Surrounding Ventless Kitchens

Presenter:
• Scott Heim | President | Middleby Ventless Solutions & Evo America

Sponsored by Middleby Corporation

PRESENTER

Scott Heim
President
Middleby Ventless Solutions & Evo America

1:15 pm | Breakout Session

Appealing to Shifts in Consumer Behavior: Rethinking Your Physical Layout

Before the pandemic broke out, restaurant delivery was projected to grow at more than three times the rate of on-premise sales by 2023. Also, the online food delivery market was predicted to grow from $35 billion in 2020 to $365 billion by 2030. Those numbers are sure to be even larger now that restaurants have been forced to embrace contactless and digital orders to serve customers during COVID-19.

This aggressive shift in consumer behavior has already made several brands rethink their physical store layout. Others are still trying to catch their breath and are left wondering if the need for a large seating capacity will continue to shrink. We will take a look at how kitchen and seating layouts are drastically changing to accommodate off-premise.

Moderator:
• Ben Lawrence | Aziz Hashim Professor of Franchise Entrepreneurship | Georgia State University

Sponsored by Nextbite: Powered by Ordermark

1:15 pm | Breakout Session

Cannabis-Infused Cauliflower Crust With Vegan Cheese: Wait, Is That a Thing?

If you haven’t heard of Cannabis-Infused Cauliflower Crust with Vegan Cheese, don’t worry, it’s not a new menu trend. We made it up, but would you be surprised if it were all the rage? Customers’ obsession with trying the newest craze [think CBD] before everyone else is forcing chefs to add dramatic flares to the menu, but how can you test your cost margins, recipe costs and manage inventory of these newly-implemented items?

This session will explore the latest menu trends, when or if brands should implement them and proven techniques for discovering cost and profit margins along with inventory control.

Moderator:
• Brett Berger | Director of Sales | SynergySuite

Sponsored by SynergySuite

2:15 pm | Refreshment Break

2:30 pm | Breakout Session

Mastering Multi-Unit Expansion

It obviously makes sense to grow your brand via franchise partners you already have, but how do you know which of your franchisees are up for the challenge?

This session will help you evaluate the skills and knowledge of existing partners to see which ones have what it takes to help you expand the brand.

But that’s only half the equation; you must also do your part. Our experts will also help you discover what your company needs in order to support multi-unit ownership.

Moderator:
• Michael Manlapas | VP of Partnerships | Revel Systems

Sponsored by Revel Systems

2:30 pm | Breakout Session

How to Know When It’s Time for Your Franchise to Grow Up

Loyal customers love everything about their favorite brands from the food and atmosphere to the logo and tone of marketing materials, but how does that change as they enter different phases of their lives? And will they outgrow you if you don’t grow with them?

Branding and marketing experts will help you decide if your business is ready to move on to the next stage whether that means implementing a total rebrand, enhancing your social media presence or adding a bit of creativity to the menu.

Moderator:
• Bogdan Constantin | Founder & CEO | Voxie Inc.

Sponsored by Voxie

3:30 pm | Refreshment Break

4:00 pm | Breakout Session

Solving Labor Woes

Managing labor is time-consuming and expensive but takes frustration to a new level when you add in the ongoing changes regarding employment rulings and laws.

From minimum wage to health care issues, this session will provide an update on labor laws facing the restaurant industry as well as offer best practices on hiring and managing workers.

Moderator:
• Steve Holmes | Co-Founder | ShiftPixy

Sponsored by ShiftPixy

4:00 pm | Breakout Session

Keeping Your Franchisees Healthy, Happy and Organized

So you have several wonderful franchise partners, but how do you take care of them? After all, a franchisor’s revenue goals are dependent on the franchisee’s success, and the interconnection is vital to understand, especially in the current environment. From ensuring that they are properly insured and tracking changes in lease agreements to knowing when a specific market is ready for growth and successfully onboarding and training partners, franchisees and franchisors will weigh in on what they have learned about the franchisor-franchisee relationship.

Moderator:
• Stacey Kane | Restaurant Marketing Consultant

Sponsored by Leasecake

6:00 – 9:00 pm | Offsite Dinner Party

The Painted Pin

After a full day of informative and inspiring sessions, get ready for an evening of great food, conversation and fun at The Painted Pin!

The Painted Pin is an upscale boutique bar, bowling and entertainment venue with 20 full-service lanes in an industrial warehouse space in the heart of Buckhead’s Miami Circle. In addition to bowling, complimentary classic interactive games including indoor bocce ball, table shuffleboard, ping pong, skeeball, southern skittles, giant Jenga, bimini ring toss and oversized basketball pop-a-shots are available.

This private dinner party is included with your Summit registration at no additional cost. Transportation will be provided.

Sponsored by Immediate

THURSDAY / AUGUST 12, 2021

8:00 am | Breakfast

8:45 am | Breakfast Briefing

All the Right Restaurant Performance Metrics to Track

PRESENTER:
• Mandi Wooledge | President & COO | Decision Logic

Sponsored by Decision Logic

PRESENTER

Mandi Wooledge
President & COO
Decision Logic

9:00 am | General Session

Brain Exchange

The Brain Exchange breaks attendees into small groups to discuss some of the most pressing issues facing restaurant operators today. These informal group discussions allow attendees to learn from one another’s mistakes and successes.

Brain Exchange Topics:
• CONTROLLING COSTS | Sponsored by MarketMan
• DELIVERY | Sponsored by Restaurant365
• DRIVING VISITS & SALES | Sponsored by GroundTruth
• FRANCHISEE MARKETING ENGAGEMENT | Sponsored by Vya
• GUEST EXPERIENCE | Sponsored by DTiQ
• LABOR | Sponsored by Workstream
• LOYALTY | Sponsored by Chatmeter
• OMNICHANNEL ORDERING/CATERING | Sponsored by ItsaCheckmate

10:30 am | Refreshment Break

11:00 am | Breakout Session

Thinking Like a Retailer for Post-Pandemic Growth

As customer demand plummeted during the pandemic, restaurants weathered severe declines in growth and profitability. Now it’s time to build back better. Just as the retail industry quickly innovated to survive consumers’ widespread adoption of e-commerce, this expert panel will examine key strategies restaurants can use to thrive in an age of unprecedented industry disruption.

Moderator:
• Sharon Napier | Chair & Founder | Partners + Napier

Sponsored by Partners + Napier

11:00 am | Breakout Session

Is “Best of Breed” The Best Approach?

Synchronous Solutions vs. Conventional Wisdom ‘Layering’

We’ve all been indoctrinated to—and supportive of—adopting best of breed as it relates to technology. But in doing so, we sometimes fall into an unintended trap when facing the daunting task of managing multiple vendors and disparate layers of complexity. Whether working with smaller organizations that do not fully comprehend the requirements of larger enterprises or struggling with the inability to properly share data across multiple platforms, the best of breed approach can be fraught with issues–especially when it comes to the highly complex process of seamless API interactions and the attainment of added value.

In this session, you’ll learn the best approach to implementation, including pitfalls to avoid when rolling out new technologies, questions to ask your POS provider, and the measurable advantages and benefits of a synchronous approach to enterprise solutions. Still not sold? Think “Menu Mayhem” and the resultant task of menu management!

Moderator:
• Larry Fiel | VP of Marketing | PDQ Signature Systems

Sponsored by PDQ Signature Systems

12:00 pm | Lunch & Learn

How to Level up and Meet the Moment

Bob Vergidis is the founder and Chief Visionary at The Point of Sale Cloud. For the over 30 years his focus has been to identify future trends and help restaurants be one step ahead.

In this session he will discuss how in just one year, the COVID-19 experience has moved the restaurant business 15 years into the future and what that means for what is coming next. He will share future trends for store format, team member management, technology, and more with practical examples to help your business level up and be ready to take advantage of future trends.

Presenter:
• Bob Vergidis | Founder/Chief Visionary | The Point of Sale Cloud

Sponsored by The Point of Sale Cloud

PRESENTER

Bob Vergidis
Founder/Chief Visionary
The Point of Sale Cloud

12:45 pm | Breakout Session

Bringing Your Kitchen out of the Dark Ages

As retail space becomes more expensive, restaurants are trying to operate in smaller footprints. This means there is a constant need to reassess and evaluate new ideas surrounding cooking solutions. There are more open kitchen designs, for example, sparking the demands for flexible cooking equipment as well as more efficient equipment that can deliver against an ever-changing menu.

In this session, you’ll hear from restaurant operators who are on a mission to bring their kitchens into the future. They’ll discuss the equipment issues they’re facing, the benefits of scaling down prep areas by using commissaries and finding ways to automate back-of-the-house processes as well as what is happening with Sous Vide efforts.

Lastly, they’ll pull back the curtain on their own kitchens, giving attendees a look into what has worked best for them and what they wished they could do differently.

Moderator:
• Scott Heim | President | Middleby Ventless Solutions & Evo America

Sponsored by Middleby Corporation

12:45 pm | Breakout Session

Experiential Marketing: The Key to Making Your Restaurant the ‘Place to Be’

It’s no secret that getting involved in your local communities helps generate traffic and sales gains. What’s hard, however, is understanding the best way to connect with customers and if your investments are resonating with them. This panel of experts will discuss what’s worked for them as well as mistakes they’d avoid in the future.

Moderator:
• Stacey Kane | Restaurant Marketing Consultant