Page 119 - Entrepreneur - USA (January - February 2020)

The funds will let Reef Technologies enter the ghost kitchen busi- IN JUNE, Koontz officially moved into Eats on Sedgewick, on the
ness by housing kitchens in its parking lots. In 2019, Zuul Kitchens second floor of a squat block of redbrick and baker’s glass located
(named after the refrigerator ghost from Ghostbusters) became the strategically close to boutiques, business, and tech, and just half
first to open a space in New York City. Meanwhile, Kitchen United a mile from Groupon’s headquarters. It’s close enough to fill
launched in 2017 and quickly closed a $10 million Series A round lunchtime orders quickly but far enough away to avoid the high
backed by Google Ventures. It brought in an additional $40 mil- rents paid by its tonier neighbors. With no build-out or liquor
lion and has plans to open 400 locations over license to secure, the deal came together fast.
the next few years, with the capacity to serve And Koontz was able to escape many of the
5,000 restaurants. typical franchise costs: He skipped the
If the plan succeeds,
Right now, however, Kitchen United has $12,000 needed for street-front signage,
Dog Haus will soon be
only three locations—and one of them is in $75,000 for kitchen equipment, and $125,000
leveraging each low-
Chicago, operating under the name Eats on for lease and construction fees. Instead, he
cost ghost kitchen to
Sedgwick. It contains a handful of brands, just has to pay rent on a 350-square-foot
sell a big, multi-unit
including B.Good, Moonbowls, Chick-fil-A, kitchen, which exactly mirrors the one in his
franchise territory.
and Naf Naf Middle Eastern Grill. And it isn’t full-size Dog Haus.
totally hidden from consumers; there’s a store- “They build it to suit your needs,” Koontz says.
front where people can pick up their food to “You just tell them what you want, and they give
go, and a website to explain what the place is all about. (The site’s you a list of equipment to choose from.”
FAQs include “Is there sit-down dining?” The answer is, of course, On a recent weekday, the ghost version of Dog Haus bustles like
no.) One day, Dog Haus franchisee Jesse Koontz showed up at Eats any back-of-house kitchen, but it carries the edge of a Silicon Valley
on Sedgwick to check the place out. He thought it might make a thought experiment. A few people scroll on their phones in the com-
perfect second Dog Haus location—and after touring around, he mon area—it’s available to all restaurants—while two staffers in ball
decided to give it a shot. caps and Dog Haus T-shirts man the grill, dice veggies, and check a

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