The Halal Guys is expanding in the Midwest and on the West Coast thanks to a pair of multi-unit agreements. In San Diego, the brand signed a five-unit deal with entrepreneur Farhan Qadri, expanding the concept’s existing presence in the state outside of Los Angeles.
In Iowa, meanwhile, The Halal Guys inked a deal with franchisee Ahamed Ahamed for five locations in Cedar Rapids, Des Moines and Iowa City. Founded in 1990, The Halal Guys operates 100 locations.
Bonjangles is entering the Chicago market with a three-unit agreement. The deal is with Ron Harper, managing partner of RMS Family Restaurants, who brings previous industry experience from operating McDonald’s units throughout Memphis. Bojangles, founded in 1977, has 800 units in 15 states.
Food from the southern-inspired chicken brand Bojangles.
Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux, the Cajun-inspired restaurant brand, inked an agreement to open three locations in Idaho. The deal is with Johnson Restaurant Group, led by John Johnson, Kent Jeffries and Mike Malberg. The group operates 13 restaurants, including Old Chicago and several independent concepts. Launched in 2003, Walk-Ons has 75 open units in 13 states.
Big Chicken, the brand co-founded by Shaquille O’Neal, signed a 36-unit agreement to expand in Ohio with entrepreneurs Kurt and Ryan Webb, Trever Einerson and Steve Crandall. Kurt Webb and Einerson have a background in real estate, while Ryan Webb and Crandall already operate several franchise brands. The group will develop Big Chicken in the Columbus market. There are more than 20 Big Chicken locations open, six of them franchised.
Automotive maintenance brand Grease Monkey signed a deal for three locations in Oregon, marking the business’ first venture in the state. The agreement is with Ryan Jennings, a local businessman with 20 years of experience. Grease Monkeys is part of FullSpeed Automotive and has 490 locations in the U.S., China, Colombia, Mexico and Saudi Arabia.
Technicians work on a vehicle at the automotive brand Grease Monkey.
My Salon Suite, a brand providing stylists and beauticians a personal space to build their business, is developing 10 Midwest locations through a new agreement. The deal is with existing franchisee Alpesh Trivedi and his business partners. Trivedi has the rights to 11 locations in Michigan, with four of them open. The new deal will have Trivedi developing more stores in Michigan, as well as Chicago. My Salon Suite has 275 locations in 35 states and Canada.