Building on a strong performance in 2012 amid a renewed focus on expansion through franchising, Corner Bakery Café plans to continue its aggressive growth plan in 2013.
The bakery café chain signed 10 new area development agreements in 2012, more than doubling its best previous year. The new agreements added 125 cafés, raising the total to 288 cafés under development, as the company makes progress on its goal to double its U.S. footprint by the end of 2015.
In addition, Corner Bakery opened 20 new restaurants in 2012, including its first in Florida, Northern California and South Texas. With an increased focus on franchising, the company also made several key appointments. Jonathan Benjamin joined last year as vice president of franchise sales, charged with spearheading franchise development. In addition, franchise veterans Nick Booras and Gregg Koffler were also added as directors of franchise sales.
"Last year was the most significant in Corner Bakery Cafe's franchising history," Benjamin said in a statement. "For 2012, we set out to sign agreements representing 108 new cafes and we easily exceeded that goal. Capitalizing on this momentum, we've set our sights to surpass last year's results in 2013."
Some of the recent franchise partners signed in 2012 include Northwest Bakery Cafe LP, which plans to open 18 new Corner Bakery Cafes in and around Seattle over the next few years; and Four M Bakery LLC, which aims to open seven new Corner Bakery Cafes in Nassau County. Other 2012 Corner Bakery Cafe signings included 11 new cafes in Kansas City, Mo; 16 in Connecticut, six in Rhode Island, seven in Sacramento, Calif., 30 in New Jersey, 10 in Tampa, Fla., and 20 spread throughout New York.
Corner Bakery is looking to hit the ground running in 2013 with upcoming openings in Longview and Houston, Texas, and Miami over the next few weeks.