Matt Falcone and his brothers represent the next generation of franchisees in his family, following in his father’s footsteps as a multi-unit operator.
Falcone’s dad, Arthur owned and operated 10 McDonald’s locations and was later a multi-unit operator of Wendy’s with 45 units. While his dad went with more established brands, though, Falcone, through his company NDM Hospitality, is franchising with newer concepts.
Recently, NDM Hospitality signed a multi-unit development agreement with Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza & Wings, becoming the first franchisee with the brand. The agreement includes three Anthony’s locations in Florida over the next two and a half years.
While Anthony’s is new for NDM Hospitality, its parent company isn’t. BurgerFi International, which owns the brand BurgerFi, acquired Anthony’s in 2021 and just this year started the pizza concept’s franchise program.
NDM Hospitality owns and operates seven BurgerFi units with an eighth in development. The brand, founded in 2011, is a casual better burger concept with a major presence in Florida. Like it is with Anthony’s, NDM was the first franchisees of BurgerFi.
“My brothers and I were trying to look for different brands to get into from a quick service restaurant standpoint to follow our father,” Falcone said. “We came across BurgerFi and what was really interesting was we were able to get in on the ground level and make an impact with advice that our father gave us.”
Now, Falcone is getting the jump with Anthony’s as well. The company was founded 20 years ago and has a focus on fresh, quality products, including tomatoes and olive oil imported from Italy.
It was that focus on freshness that made it appealing for BurgerFi International, according to CEO Ian Baines. Becoming CEO of BurgerFi International in 2021, Baines previously held that position with Anthony’s and said there had been interest from entrepreneurs to franchise but it was only recently that the brand was in the position to launch a program.
BurgerFi International CEO Ian Baines
In the case of Falcone’s first Anthony’s, it will be built into one of his existing BurgerFi units for a dual-concept location.
“The store we’re retrofitting is our Orlando location and it’s one that’s been struggling a bit,” Falcone said. “We’ve been figuring out ways to turn the store around, and as soon as we found that we had the opportunity to franchise Anthony’s, we brought up the idea of doing the dual concept.”
“Burgers and pizza have been and continue to be two of the largest food categories,” Baines said. “So, to be able to offer those food categories under one roof, we believe that has appeal.”
Falcone said the dual concept can keep the overhead costs lower while keeping the rent structure of the building they use similar. Additionally, Falcone said it will allow for cross utilization of staff and management, while also generating more revenue.
“We can bring a BurgerFi that does $1.5 million and add on another concept in the same building where you have similar overhead and can pump out $2.5- to $3 million more, which can potentially make things more profitable,” Falcone said. “As someone who has skin in the game, you have to figure out ways to make an impact for the better and continue the business in a positive direction.”
For an Anthony’s to operate, Baines said about 25 employees are needed in total with eight to 10 for the kitchen. The brand today has 61 corporate-owned restaurants. BurgerFi, meanwhile, has 117 restaurants, 92 of them franchised and 25 company-owned.