GEDA : News Releases

Teen Volunteers Experience Community service and Fundraising for a Good Cause at Barberitos

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 04:00:00 GMT

High Point Regional Health System’s Promoting the Advancement of Teens in Health Care (PATH) program introduces students to numerous health care opportunities and for the first-time, community service and fundraising.

On Wednesday, August 11 from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm, several PATH volunteers will be at the High Point Barberitos performing a number of duties. All tips, donations and 10 percent of sales from this one day event will be donated to High Point Regional. This event allow student volunteers to gain valuable experience, while servicing the community outside of the health system.

Located at 1231 Eastchester Drive in High Point,Barberitos is a Southwestern Grille and Cantina that offers fresh, healthy, made-to-order food.

Barberitos Names Bruce Holzman VP of Franchise Sales

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 04:00:00 GMT

A former franchise professional for some of the nation’s top emerging chains, Bruce Holzman has joined Barberitos Southwestern Grille & Cantina as vice president of franchise sales.

A 20-year veteran of the restaurant industry, Holzman is lending his expertise to drive the same kind of growth for Barberitos that he did for restaurant chains like Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina, Dairy Queen, and Huddle House.

Prior to joining Barberitos, Holzman sold close to 300 Salsarita’s franchises in less than 20 months, turning the start-up Fresh-Mex chain into a prominent regional brand.

He had similar success at Dairy Queen where he developed and sold more than 130 new DQ Grill & Chill, Orange Julius and Karmelkorn franchises in the Southeast generating an annual royalty stream of $2.7 million.

Holzman also served as a consultant for smaller franchise operations such as Desert Moon, Juiceblendz, Friendly’s Ice Cream, and Jittery Joe’s Coffee.

Holzman’s growth strategy for Barberitos involves targeting a certain breed of franchise owners and positioning the concept as a manageable, franchisee friendly operation. “Barberitos does things differently than other franchises”, says Holzman. “In an industry where site-only franchises are the norm, we offer protected areas. Most franchises do not provide numbers; we have a complete section in our disclosure documents dedicated to performance information. And most importantly, our founder and CEO is a franchisee so every decision we make corporately affects him personally,” said Holzman.

According to Downing Barber, the chain’s founder, “our ideal franchisee is a business person who wants to leave the corporate world to gain more control, independence and flexibility over his or her life. We want them to have business experience, yet be able to train them in the Barberitos way without having to break any pre-existing bad habits.”

Barberitos offers the full line of support and services one expects from a top tier franchise and does not have the same limitations some other brands have, such as encroachment and territory issues. “This is a big deal because many of the larger franchises are either running out of room to grow, or encroaching on existing units”, Holzman said.

Founded in Athens, Georgia in 2000, Barberitos is a distinctive fast casual southwestern style cantina serving freshly prepared food with farm fresh produce, meats, sauces, and marinades, which are made in house daily.

Milledgeville Barberitos

Tue, 11 May 2010 04:00:00 GMT

The Milledgeville Barberitos recently donated $1,187.38 to the DECA program at Baldwin High School in support of their work.

Over 185,000 high school students in 5,000 chapters, located in the U.S., Canada, Germany, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Guam benefit from the unparalleled network and curriculum–enhancing programs DECA provides for those with an interest in marketing, management and entrepreneurship.

DECA helps students to develop skills for successful business careers, build self–esteem, experience leadership and practice community service. DECA members create friendships with like–minded people from all over the world at career and leadership conferences and build resumes that move them to the top of the job and college application list.

Barberitos Franchising Opens 22nd Location in Savannah, Georgia

Mon, 26 Apr 2010 04:00:00 GMT

Barberitos Franchising, Inc. announced the opening of its 22nd restaurant location in Savannah, Georgia. The new store will open Thursday, May 6, 2010, operating 11:00 am to 10:00 pm Monday to Saturday, Sundays noon to 9:00 pm.

The 2300 square-foot space located in Habersham Village Shopping Center on the corner of Habersham and East 62nd Street includes seating for 72 plus seasonal outdoor seating.

Barberitos is a quick service restaurant offering fresh, Tex-Mex cuisine including a variety of burritos, tacos, salads, quesadillas and nachos made to order.

Committed to serving “farm fresh” food, Barberitos serves all natural vegetables delivered to stores and hand-cut daily. Whole breasts of chicken is grilled fresh, as is the high quality cuts of steak, and choice ground beef. Barberitos restaurants are not equipped with freezers or microwaves as all food is prepared fresh, with no fats or preservatives added at the time of preparation. Barberitos’ salsas, guacamole, hot sauces, meat marinades, and salad dressings are made from scratch each day.

Each menu offering is prepared at the time it is ordered right in front of the customer. Barberitos “7 Under 7” menu features seven items each under seven grams of fat including a mini grilled chicken burrito, jerk fish taco, and a variety of salads.

Barberitos provides full-service catering ranging from burrito boxed lunches to taco, salad, nacho, or fajita bar that can be customized to serve a few to several hundred people.

Barberitos has 22 restaurant franchise locations in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee. The Savannah restaurant is owned by Jeremy and Jenny Coulter who also own and operate the Statesboro, Georgia location which opened in 2007.

Barberitos Aims to Continue Growth in 2010

Tue, 13 Apr 2010 04:00:00 GMT

Despite the economic downturn, quick-casual Mexican chain Barberitos is intent on growing,
according to Nation’s Restaurant News.

Downing Barber launched Barberitos in Athens, Ga., in 2000. Currently operating 22 units, the chain specializes in made-to-order Mexican fare like burritos, tacos, quesadillas, nachos and more. In December, Barberitos opened its newest location in Roswell, Ga., and the company plans to open several more in 2010.

Two of Barberitos locations are corporately-owned, but the company finds that franchising is the best way to take advantage of the current real estate market and the abundance of people looking to own their own business.

“We’re looking to grow again,” Barber told Nation’s Restaurant News. “We had been, but the tough economic times came and hindered us. Now though, it seems as if institutions are lending again, but with tougher regulations.”

Barberitos currently has locations in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. The average check is about $7, and the menu appeals to a range of consumer groups including vegetarians, vegans, dieters and meat lovers.

Barberitos’ Director of Marketing Natalie Glenn provided DailyVista with further details on the company’s intentions for growth in a difficult economy.

Next week Barberitos will be opening its newest location in Savannah, Ga., and Glenn said that over the next few years the company aims to double in size, reaching 50 stores.

“We look for markets that contain high levels of our demographic – families, young professionals, health-conscious people, etc. – we typically look for areas with populations over 75,000,” she said.

Occasionally Barberitos will introduce new products, as it recently launched a California burrito, a spicy chicken burrito and jerk fish tacos on Fridays.

“We like to keep it fresh for our many loyal customers and give them new options to try,” Glenn said.

To foster brand awareness, Barberitos leverages a number of platforms, both traditional and new.

“We use a variety of mediums to build awareness for our brand – everything from traditional advertising avenues such as billboards, radio, print and television to social media to in-store promotion and we have a great emphasis on community,” Glenn said.

At the corporate level, Barberitos works to support the communities it operates in and encourages its franchisees to do so as well.

“In new markets, we do our best to get to know the nuances of the area, we strive to get involved and we support local causes,” Glenn said. “We also tend to get involved in events and causes where we can share our food, because we believe once you’ve tried our food, you will taste the freshness and you’ll be back.”

According to Glenn, Barberitos’ in-house marketing team creates much of the company’s marketing initiatives and works closely with Barber, who does a lot of the creative conceptualization.

“He’s very involved with the brand and the direction he wants to take it,” she said. “We are focused on promoting the freshness of our food and currently we are running our ‘Farm Fresh’ campaign, which emphasizes how we buy local, farm fresh produce that is delivered daily to our restaurants.”

One of the chain’s biggest challenges is educating the public on the healthful options Barberitos offers. According to Glenn, seven of the company’s menu items are under seven grams of fat, the company works to promote that information to consumers.

“We strive to get them to stray from their usual choices and try Barberitos because, once again, we believe that if they try our food, they will be back,” Glenn said.

Barberitos: Fast-casual Mexican chain's chief exec says opportunities for expansion are starting to heat up again

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 04:00:00 GMT

Despite continuing economic weakness, Downing Barber says it’s time to resume growing Barberitos, the fast-casual, fresh-Mex concept he founded 10 years ago.

The 22-unit chain, which Barber launched in Athens, Ga., in January 2000, specializes in cooked-to-order Mexican food. The newest unit opened in Roswell, Ga., in December 2009, and Barber anticipates opening more company locations this year. Only two units are currently corporately owned.

Barberitos’ food appeals to a variety of customers, including meat lovers and vegans, calorie counters, and fans of hearty Mexican fare. Menu items include a variety of salads, burritos, fajitas, tacos and quesadillas. The average check is about $7.

Although two units are licensed to sell alcoholic beverages, alcohol sales are not the chain’s primary objective, he said. The concept is geared toward family diners.

Barber discovered his passion for Mexican food while living in Colorado and decided to take the cuisine to Georgia.

“At the time, there wasn’t great demand for the burrito business on the East Coast, especially in Georgia,” he said. “This type of restaurant, with its healthy food, really attracted me.”

Ten years and 22 stores later, Barberitos has weathered many storms—including the current recession and, more recently, the tomato freeze in Florida that wiped out the region’s harvest and caused tomato prices to more than quadruple.

“It’s been tough,” Barber said. “But we’re surviving. We tried to buy as many [tomatoes] as we could from the last truck out of Florida. But right now we’re taking it on the chin waiting for a new harvest to come in.”

Barber said renegotiating his purchasing contracts has put the chain in a stronger place financially.

“We locked in contracts on beef, rice, beans, cheese and sour cream before the crisis happened, so our costs are lower,” he said. “If we keep operating in the same way, we’ll have a very positive future.”

Despite competition from such heavy hitters as Chipotle and Qdoba, the fast-casual Mexican segment is a good place to be, said Ron Paul, president and chief executive of Technomic, a Chicago-based market research firm.

“Americans, not just Latins, like the food and are looking for more options,” he said. “Fresh is definitely seen as healthy. It certainly is looked upon as a trade-up from quick serve, and people are willing to spend considerably more for it.”

Barberitos also faces competition from Moe’s Southwest Grill, a 400-unit chain based in Atlanta and owned by Focus Brands Inc.

Barberitos’ sales currently are flat, but franchisees are increasing their community involvement in a bid to boost sales.

“People are more receptive to those who give back during hard times,” Barber said. “We’re trying to gain the loyalty of our customers by helping out. We’re trying to turn a negative situation into a positive one as best we can.”

As lenders loosen their grip on financing, Barber said he is ready to resume franchising to take advantage of both real estate opportunities and the wealth of people interested in owning businesses.

“We’re looking to grow again,” he said. “We had been, but the tough economic times came and hindered us. Now, though, it seems as if institutions are lending again, but with tougher regulations.”

He added, “There are a lot of people who are out of work and interested in getting into Barberitos to supplement their careers. We’re going to choose from a lot of different people. We prefer to teach them our way anyway so there are no bad habits. We’re basically looking for people who have the capital to open and operate stores.”

Barber said stores cost between $250,000 and $300,000, depending on the build-out. The cost is considerably lower, he added, if the location is in an existing restaurant, which costs between $100,000 and $150,000. Franchise fees and royalty rates are $20,000 and 5 percent, respectively.

Barberitos & WoW! Boot Camp Announce Winner of the Rolling Lean Contest!

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Barberitos and WoW! Bootcamp teamed up to present the Rolling Lean contest to inspire Athens Area residents to lose weight and feel great. The contest came to a close on April 8, 2010 and we are pleased to announce that Chris Conley is our winner!

Chris was selected from dozens of entries for his excellent submission that detailed his desire to change his lifestyle and commit to developing healthy fitness and nutrition routines.

“I’m thrilled to have won the Rolling Lean contest,” Chris said. “For some time, I had been worried about my weight, but hadn’t done much more than worry about it until August 2008. Finally, I decided that – if God had decided to bless me with a fantastic wife and son – the least I could do was try and make sure that I get to enjoy those blessings as long as possible. Since then, I’ve lost 108 pounds (down from 307.5 to 199.5), and would still like to lose another 40 or so more pounds over the next year and a half.”

The Athens Area resident has won the following prizes:

3 (consecutive) months of WoW! Boot Camp
membership. This includes Pre & Post Camp Consultations, nutritional coaching & unlimited email support.
25 Gift certificates for Healthy 7 under 7 meals at Barberitos
WoW! Boot Camp Goodie Basket
Barberitos Gift Basket
Opportunity to lose weight, reduce stress, increase energy & focus, have fun & meet some new friends

April Williams, an Athens resident, began WoW! Boot Camp in order to encourage individuals to change their behavior patterns and choose a healthier lifestyle. WoW! Fitness programs provide an energetic team atmosphere that helps participants lose weight and gain strength, endurance, and self-confidence as they achieve their fitness goals.

Barberitos is committed to providing fresh, healthy food to its customers and will never compromise this philosophy. There are many healthy options available at Barberitos like fresh avocados; beans, which are packed with protein; char-grilled salads; and many other options which are well suited for vegetarian diets. Many customers choose to select items from the “7 Under 7 Menu”, which is comprised of seven meals under seven grams of fat. These menu items include the Mini Chicken Burrito, Bare Burrito, Regular Salad, Char-grilled Chicken Salad, Guacamole Salad, Soft Tacos, and Fish tacos which are available on Fridays. The “7 Under 7 Menu” is available at all Athens area locations which include Eastside, Five Points, Epps Bridge, Downtown and Watkinsville.

The Barberitos and WoW! Boot Camp Rolling Lean contest aimed to encourage Athens residents reach their health and fitness goals. We are thrilled Chris has been selected as our winner and we look forward to supporting him and helping him to achieve his personal fitness and nutrition goals.

Stay tuned for updates on Chris and his future success with the help and support of Barberitos and WoW! Bootcamp!

Barberitos Celebrates Ten Years of Success

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

In February 2000, Barberitos opened its doors at 259 East Clayton Street in Athens, Georgia. Ten years and 21 locations later, Barberitos is still serving the freshest Tex-Mex cuisine in the Southeast.

Behind every great restaurant is a great philosophy. Downing Barber discovered Southwestern cuisine when living in Colorado and traveling through the Southwest. Upon making this discovery, he decided to create his own special recipes and pursue his dream of becoming a business owner. Barber soon began proudly serving the freshest burritos in Athens, Georgia. Three years later, Barberitos began franchising.

“Before I was an employee at Barberitos I was a customer and I had friends who worked at there. I always thought it seemed but be a cool job and never realized what hard work it was until I was began working there. Now that I have been with the franchise since 2003, I realize that I have watched Barberitos grow up as I have grown up and it’s been a great experience. Restaurants don’t make it ten years unless the people behind it have a great work ethic and a heart for service”, said Phil Kohnen, General Manager of the Eastside location and Barberitos Training Director, as he reflected on the past ten years.

Barberitos offers not only a variety of burritos, tacos, salads, quesadillas and nachos, but also Jerk Fish Tacos on Fridays, tofu that is marinated in-house with a special recipe and the popular vegetarian-friendly California Burrito which is served with fresh sliced avocados. The food is made-to-order right in front of the customer, fulfilling any request that the customer may have.

The current advertising campaign promotes the “farm fresh” concept which Barberitos goes to great lengths to define. Fresh, all natural vegetables are ordered daily and cut processed in the restaurant. Salsa, guacamole, hot sauce, all meat marinades, the Southwestern Vinaigrette and Chipotle Ranch are all made from scratch. Barberitos restaurants do not have freezers or microwaves and no fats or preservatives are added in the preparation of the food. Barberitos grills fresh, whole breasts of chicken which are never frozen and orders high quality cuts of steak and choice ground beef. Barberitos will never compromise this farm fresh concept and does not tolerate anything less than the freshest tasting food. After all, the commitment to serving all natural, fresh food that is made in-house daily is what has established Barberitos.

To celebrate the anniversary, Barberitos will be hosting a 10 year Birthday Party at the Downtown Athens location. There will be live salsa music from 6:00 pm to 10: pm on Friday, February 26th 2010.

About Barberitos

Barberitos, headquartered in Athens, Georgia, is a quick service restaurant which offers fresh, Tex-Mex cuisine. There are 21 Barberitos locations in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee.

Athens chains reaching broader audience

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Downing Barber, founder and chief executive officer of Barberitos, noticed a theme as he worked the line this week of the burrito chain’s newest outlet in Roswell.

Many customers commented that they knew Barberitos from Athens. When he opened his first outlet 10 years ago near the University of Georgia campus, Barber said, he thought the location would pay off.

“That was my whole reason to start in Athens,” Barber said. “If we ever grew, this university puts out great students all across the Southeast and the United States…We would have brand recognition.”

Athens may be best known for sending NFL draft picks to major markets or launching successful bands. But several of its restaurant chains are proving they can travel too.

Barberitos joins fellow Athens-based chains Zaxby’s and Locos Grill & Pub as it moves beyond the college town to the big city. The founders of these restaurants say the college environment provided a strong base of hungry customers for their original restaurants. These students have stayed loyal to the brand even as they’ve graduated and moved away.

In fact, college towns have served as the launching pads for other national and regional restaurant chains. Domino’s Pizza, based in Ann Arbor, Mich., originally catered to students at the University of Michigan by delivering pizza to their dorm rooms and apartments. Ruby Tuesday was created by University of Tennessee grads in Knoxville, Tenn.

McAlister’s Deli was started in Oxford, Miss., home to the University of Mississippi. And Schlotzsky’s hails from Austin, Texas, where it sold hearty sandwiches to University of Texas students. McAlister’s and Schlotzsky’s, part of Focus Brands, are both owned by Roark Capital, an Atlanta-based investment firm.

Zaxby’s, a chain of chicken finger and wings restaurants started in 1990, has roots in two Georgia college towns. The chain, which now has 489 outlets, is headquartered in Athens but its first restaurant was in Statesboro, home to Georgia Southern University.

College towns are good for restaurant chains because they’re more recession-proof than other cities, said Zach McLeroy, co-founder and chief executive officer. Parents make sure their children have money for basic needs, such as food, transportation and books, he said.

It also helps to sell affordable food that appeals to college-age customers, McLeroy said. “I don’t think you could come into a college town with a steakhouse and get the same result as you would with a chicken finger concept,” he said.

As it has expanded, Zaxby’s has evolved its look and menu to appeal to a broader audience, McLeroy said. It has added sandwiches, salads and limited-time only products and developed a prototype that fits in newer developments.

Zaxby’s still attracts college students, but it’s also serving young professionals, families and middle-aged customers.

“Our core customer now is inclusive of more people,” McLeroy said.

Since opening in 2000, Barberitos has kept its core menu much the same, but it has added items for children to attract more families, a California-style burrito for vegetarians and a spicy chicken burrito to meet the growing demand for spicy options. The Roswell location that opened this week marks the first metro Atlanta location for Barberitos, which has 21 outlets.

A South Georgia native, Barber said he returned from Colorado to start Barberitos in Athens because he thought a quality, affordable burrito restaurant would appeal to college students.

The first summer, a dead period for a college town, was challenging, but Athens also provides a fall boost that most cities don’t get, Barber said.

Night games, in particular, drive traffic to its Athens location because fans spend more time in town, he said.

“We get a good lunch, a good dinner and then a huge crowd after the game,” Barber said. “You have 90,000 people coming out of a game hungry. That’s a huge positive.”

Athens and its college community have provided a great base for building and expanding Locos Grill & Pub, said Jamey Loftin, founder and chief operating officer. Loftin and Hughes Lowrance, founder and chief executive officer, started Locos in 1998 while attending UGA.

The Locos founders recently opened a second concept, KEBA Spitfire Grill, that they plan to start franchising next year.

Locos, which now has more than 20 outlets, has matured along with its clientele, Loftin said. The original Locos sold and delivered sandwiches and grocery items out of a small 400-square-foot store. Its new restaurants are about 5,000 square feet and feature sandwiches, burger, wings, chicken tenders, steak, salads and appetizers.

Former UGA students continue to provide a core base of customers even after they leave campus, Loftin said. Locos, though, is careful about promoting the chain’s roots in some locations.

“Certainly in Atlanta, it’s okay to have a UGA restaurant and bar,” Loftin said. “But in Auburn, Ala., we don’t want to advertise the fact that Locos is Athens-born.”

Barberitos to Open its First Store in Metro Atlanta on December 1st

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 05:00:00 GMT

For Immediate Release
11-24-2009
Media Contact:
Rachel Tate
Marketing Director
706-316-3344
rtate@barberitos.com

Athens, GA – Barberitos, an all natural and fresh, Tex-Mex restaurant, is introducing a new location in Roswell, Georgia. Barberitos will open on December 1st in the Mansell Shops on the corner of Mansell Road and Alpharetta Highway.

“We’re thankful to our customers for their continued support, allowing us to continually grow. We are also excited to introduce our farm fresh concept to the Roswell market. We hope to exceed our customers’ expectations.” remarked Downing Barber, Founder and CEO of Barberitos Franchising.

Barberitos opened its first location in Athens in 2000. Since then, the total number of Barberitos Franchise restaurants has grown to 21 in the Southeastern United States.
Barberitos will be the only quick serve, Southwestern Cantina in Roswell that offers not only a variety of burritos, tacos, salads, quesadillas and nachos, but also Jerk Fish Tacos on Fridays, tofu that is marinated in-house with a special recipe and the popular vegetarian-friendly California Burrito which is served with fresh sliced avocados.

At Barberitos, the food is made-to-order right in front of the customer, fulfilling any request that the customer may have. “We are truly excited about introducing the proven concept of Barberitos to the Roswell area” said Dennis Anderson, owner of the new Barberitos in Roswell.

Barberitos is emerging as a major player in fast, casual Tex-Mex cuisine and plans to continue growth in the coming years. Commitment to serving only fresh, natural foods that are made in-house daily has helped establish Barberitos. There are Barberitos locations in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee.