Texas Real Estate Business magazine covers the multifamily, retail, office, healthcare, industrial and hospitality sectors in Texas.
Issue link: https://texasrealestatebusiness.epubxp.com/i/817755
50 • May 2017 • Texas Real Estate Business www.REBusinessOnline.com traits: small store sizes, niche product offerings and loyal customer bases. Menu Targets Millennials Americans' preferences for a quick service, laid-back atmosphere and low price points have enabled fast casual restaurants to proliferate over the past decade. The concept merges elements of the fast food setting with higher-quality, more expensive menu options. As the fast casual industry has evolved, the health factor has be- come a point of differentiation among competing chains. Founded in 2010, Snap Kitchen offers quick service and caters to a growing level of specific dietary needs by providing made-from-scratch food. The menu allows customers to filter their selections based on com- mon culinary preferences such as go- ing vegan or vegetarian, as well as by emerging dietary trends like going gluten-free or paleo — sticking exclu- sively to fruits, vegetables, meat and seafood. For breakfast, menu options include lighter offerings such as blueberry chia parfait, as well as protein-rich dishes like the dairy- and gluten- free beef and sweet potato scramble. Lunch and dinner patrons can pick from an array of kale-, spinach- and romaine-based salads, or enjoy some ethnic flavor via the veggie-laden pulled pork enchiladas or meatball and kimchi stir fry bowl. Snap also offers a variety of cold- pressed juices, bottled teas and waters infused with electrolytes. Desserts are frequently crafted with substitutive ingredients as well, such as almond milk and coconut sugar. Snap Kitchen made its name in Tex- as, where 33 of its 49 restaurants are located. The company's small store size — 1,000 to 1,500 square feet on average — helped it expand quickly from Austin's dense urban pockets to the more sprawling markets of Dallas and Houston, where it now operates 13 and 12 restaurants, respectively. "We have our greatest brand awareness in Texas," says Stephen Maul- den, Snap Kitchen's real estate manager. "Austin, which is a hugely health- minded city, as well as Dallas and Hous- ton, all have favor- able real estate and business conditions, which have made expansion possible." Snap Kitchen defines its target cus- tomer as the 25- to 34-year-old pro- fessional. Millennials comprise more than 20 percent of the populations of Dallas, Houston and Austin, accord- ing to Cushman & Wakefield, which defines this group as persons aged 20 to 34. Each metro ranks in the Top 5 for millennial population growth. With more millennials entering the Texas workforce, fast casual restau- rants coming on line are eyeing areas with high daytime traffic, says Ben- nett Ratliff, president of Texas-based construction firm The Ratliff Group. "New locations for fast casual res- taurants are concentrated around mixed-use developments with high daytime foot traffic," says Ratliff. "The demand is primarily driven by work- force lunch needs at sites designed to serve large employment centers and new corporate campuses." While many fast casual restaurants are trending toward smaller, inline lo- cations and placing greater emphasis on patio seating, according to Ratliff, Snap Kitchen's small footprint grants it flexibility between opening loca- tions in strip centers versus pad sites. As such, the company is able to pri- oritize other factors in site selection, mainly accessibility and brand image of its neighboring retailers. "Convenience is paramount in the selection process," says Maulden. "If you have to work to access the shop location, it won't be successful. Analy- sis of a center's other tenants plays a critical role as well. We tend to be at- tracted to brands that share our same demographic and core customer." Snap Kitchen recently expanded into Philadelphia and Chicago. But the growing population in Texas sug- gests that Snap's work in its home state is far from over. "The workforce in Texas today appears to be looking for healthy options at lunch," says Ratliff. "In locations with significant daytime employment popu- lations, I believe there will be con- tinued support for the expansion of fast casual restaurants with exceptionally healthy menu options." The Juice is Loose Nothing screams healthy lifestyle like a juice bar, where fresh fruits and vegetables comprise the inventory and hip, trendy individuals comprise the customer base. Austin-based JuiceLand, which adorns its walls with brightly painted murals and offers shots of wheatgrass and lemon ginger juice, represents success in the world of health-con- scious retail, mainly because it has achieved brand loyalty in a highly competitive market. In Texas, the juice bar craze has yet to subside, says Jason Faludi, Juice- Land's broker and partner at Aquila Commercial LLC. "There are approximately 15 to 20 competitors in the markets of Aus- tin, Dallas and Houston, with more coming every year," says Faludi. "JuiceLand started to expand rapidly because we had so many customers HEALTH-CONSCIOUS CONCEPTS RETAILERS from page 1 Snap Kitchen has opened more than 30 restaurants in Texas since its inception in 2010. The location pictured to the left is in the Clarksville Historic District of Austin. The restaurant above is located in Houston's Museum District. The juice bar craze is still going strong in Texas, with at least 15 to 20 companies vying for market share in Austin, Houston and Dallas. Stephen Maulden Snap Kitchen Bennett Ratliff The Ratliff Group