Fast-casual seafood brand Captain D’s is expanding its presence in Memphis, Tennessee, in partnership with an experienced franchisee.
After opening its most recent restaurant, longtime operator Nufish signed on to develop 10 new units in the region. Joe Springer, an operating partner at Nufish, said the company has worked with Captain D’s for a decade and now operates 20 locations. It’s the second-largest franchisee in the system.
“We’ve had a lot of success over the last decade and we feel really good about being part of this franchise and what they bring to the table,” Springer said. “This new deal consists of us building the 10 stores in an eight-year timeframe, and we feel we’ll have them done in five. After we have the five of them running, we plan to go back and talk with Captain D’s again about future stores.”
According to Springer, the Memphis area is a good market for the brand because of its proximity to other states, notably Mississippi and Arkansas.
“Our stores are spread across the tri-state area and we felt that we can still grow within the city,” Springer said.
“Based on the success they’ve had up to this point, we decided on another 10 restaurants, including locations in Arkansas and Mississippi, because the Memphis DMA can support that,” said Brad Reed, the chief development officer for Captain D’s.
Captain D’s Chief Development Officer Brad Reed.
In fact, Reed said Memphis is well positioned to draw in residents from beyond the tri-state area.
“You’re pulling in people from Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri and even into Kentucky a little bit on the western most part,” Reed said. “It’s one of the things that’s given us a lot of success, being able to pull from such a broad area. The population density in the Memphis area and surrounding communities really sets us up well.”
The new Memphis locations will add to the brand’s already large footprint in the southeast. Captain D’s has more than 530 restaurants, with locations in states such as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina.
However, the brand is moving beyond its main areas of operation, as Reed said western development is happening in states such as Texas and Utah. Additionally, the company has reached north with a location in Wisconsin and up along the East Coast with units in Virginia.
This year, 14 new Captain D’s are set to open in total.