IONIC & WENDY'S....this is why we are so busy.

Restaurant remodel programs are all the rage these days, particularly in a fast food business that is busy trying to play keep-up with McDonald's. Just about every major fast food chain is in the midst of a reimage program, but perhaps the most interesting of these is coming from Columbus, Ohio-based Wendy's.

The world's third-largest QSR burger chain is instituting a costly remodel program—its top option has a price tag as much as $700,000, which is high for a chain that has average sales of about $1.4 million. That cost appears to be scaring off at least some operators. Brokers have told us that some Wendy's franchisees have been putting their stores on the market to avoid that remodel.

Still, the remodels could well be worth the price.

According to Wendy's, the $700,000 remodel option produces a sales lift of at least 25 percent, considerably higher than the 15 percent sales lift Burger King's remodeled units get, though at a much higher cost. Still, for the typical Wendy's, that equates into $350,000 in additional revenue every year, which makes for a relatively quick return on investment for restaurants that remodel their stores.

It also could provide a significant boost for Wendy's overall, particularly if the company is able to meet its remodel timeline.

The company plans to have 75 company-owned units remodeled by the end of the year. And it wants half of its corporate restaurant stock remodeled by 2015.

It's also hanging $10 million in incentives in front of franchisees to entice them to remodel their stores next year. In so doing, Wendy's joins rivals McDonald's and Burger King in employing a carrot approach to increase the number of restaurants that get remodeled. As McDonald's has proven with its remodeling program, and then Burger King, carrots work far better than the far more common "stick" approach at getting franchisees to remodel. And given the apparent sales lift these remodels can generate, those incentives produce good returns for the franchisors.

A Very Busy Week

This was just one of those weeks. It started out in North Carolina. Last Saturday I needed to drive down to Asheboro to do some field measurements for another on of the Wendy's. new franchise client for us. We (or should I say.....me) came to the rescue. Got there late Saturday night and then got up early for church and field measurements after. 

From there I headed over to Raleigh for the following Monday morning meeting. Raleigh has now become one of my favorite places. Especially downtown area. There is just something about it that has grasped my attention these days. I love all the places to hang out and eat. My favorite is the Flying Saucer. Look it up......I am now a member.

There is a little store front shop down there that I go past every time I am there. Vacant building, perfect for an IONIC South office......hmmmm. Maybe one of these days.

So Monday was an expedited review for the City if Raleigh on a Wendy's in Wake Forest. Successful approval.....and then ran over to the city of Cary to ask about some design review requirements. 

And then the long drive home. Man it was hot! 

The rest of the week was almost a huge blur. Two more Wendy's from another franchise on Tuesday. A proposal for a fourth Wendy's franchise in Roanoke. I didn't mention we received 3 more Wendy's from corporate on Sunday afternoon. The glory of email! A contractor asking to join forces in a design/build retail in North Carolina. Putting together a proposal for a forty room residence hall, another for 35,000 square foot of retail in Richmond. Kicked off Pre-bid meetings for two Navy Federal Credit Union projects. Had another meeting with conceptual ideas for another credit union........and pulled the permit for our own office expansion.

Turned in our competition entries for AIAHR on Monday, had meeting for urban design and expansion project on Tuesday. Completed revisions to that presentation and sent out on Thursday. Had a wonderful evening at Yardhouse to let off some IONIC steam......we all need a break from time to time. Wednesday was meetings all morning in the field and then back to the office for some design concepts. Thursday morning started off with a conference call with Wendy's corporate on a secret project we are involved in.....I love secrets! More late night work on a design proposal. Friday, present design concept which went real well.

I am sure I missed something in there.

Oh yeah, to help out with all the admin paperwork side of the business, we added another new team member for Contract Administor and Accounting. With all this work come great paperwork (said in the same vein as Peter Parker aka Spider-Man). Stay tuned for more on this announcement in August.

Work is good. And I just want to make sure that everyone knows how fantastic our team is that does all this work. There is no way possible that I could keep up if it was myself alone. Our whole office tackles all this head on and conquers it. They are the best. If you haven't had the chance to work with us, you need to give us a try. I think we would amaze you.

Our team includes a great group of consultants too. Civil engineers, structural engineers, mechanical engineers.....all of them putting up with the craziness that has been coming with this flood of new work.

We certainly have been blessed.

Where Art and Architecture come together.

Ionic DeZign Studios

New Project in Whiteville NC

IONIC was just awarded a new contract for a small project down in Whiteville NC.