Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
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66 S C T / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 6 C an something as basic and all- American as a grilled-cheese sandwich and a bowl of tomato soup really be turned into a burgeoning business? It can. It has. Tom & Chee restaurants are popping up all over the country, and they are serving up grilled- cheese sandwiches with all sorts of fixings, ingredients and condiments, as well as several varieties of tomato soup. (The name is a play on the words "tomato" and "cheese.") "It's an American comfort food, and everybody has a connection to it," said Corey Ward, one of four founders of Tom & Chee Worldwide, which is based in Cincinatti. "It's what mom made and we loved." In the winter of 2009, Ward and his wife, Jenny Rachford, and their friends Trew and Jennifer Quackenbush began selling grilled-cheese sandwiches and tomato soup from a tent at Cincinnati's Fountain Square to chilled skaters at the ice rink. The enterprise was successful enough that the partners could open two restaurants in the area. Then things started getting really good: The quirky concept made an impression on the entrepreneurial ABC TV reality show Shark Tank. "Shark" investors Barbara Corcoran (founder of the Corcoran Group real estate firm) and Mark Cuban (owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks) wanted in, and they invested early; before long, Tom & Chee was selling franchises. (Cuban later dropped out over a dispute about franchising, but Corcoran remains a touchstone, says Ward.) Tom & Chee drew attention also from food-oriented TV shows — to wit, Travel Channel's Man v. Food and ABC's The Chew (which rhapsodized about the chain's glazed cheese donut). "The exposure generated a flood of inquiries," said Ward. Indeed, as of October, the chain boasts 31 units, with three or four more expected soon. Mostly, the restaurants are located in the middle part of the country, with some outliers in Texas, Utah, New Jersey and a few other areas. Tom & Chee is looking toward shopping centers and neighborhood districts — urban and suburban — with entertainment and/or lifestyle components. "Developers want alternatives to the typical burger and other fast-casual concepts that are hard to differentiate and are saturating the market," said Jesse Grant, a Cleveland- based senior vice president of advisory and transaction services at CBRE, who is advising Tom & Chee in this regard. It happens that the "worldwide" in the company's name is more hope than reality just now, though Ward does say he has received some inquiries from as far away as China. Nevertheless, for the time being, the company is busy fielding requests from right here at home, so world domination will have to wait awhile, he quips. The restaurants typically measure about 1,800 to 2,200 square-feet, and the neighborhood demographic is generally households with annual income of roughly $90,000 and living within a three-mile radius. The franchises cost $35,000 plus a 6 percent royalty fee. Greg Sippel, a Texas franchisee who co-owns two branches in Dallas and one in Fort Worth, says the operations can bring in upwards of $1 million a year. Sippel and his co- owner wife have plans for seven more franchises. "They are fun," Sippel said. "There's a lot of bright red and bright yellow decoration. It makes you smile." Tom & Chee, meanwhile, is looking also at food courts, airport stands and — in keeping with its quirky culture — amusement parks. n Tom & Chee builds a restaurant chain on grilled cheese and tomato soup By Beth Karlin Shark Tank's Barbara Corcoran with Tom & Chee team members. Corcoran invested in the chain after an on-air sales pitch Simple recipe S T O R E F R O N T S