What it takes to grow a restaurant brand with Troy Hooper, CEO of Hot Palette America

Meet Troy Hooper, CEO of Hot Palette America.

If you haven’t heard of Hot Palette America, you might know it by its more sizzling alias: Pepper Lunch. It’s the North American arm of the fast-growing Japanese fast-casual brand that’s gone global. And with 540 locations across 17 countries (and counting), Troy’s the one steering the ship across the U.S. and Canada.

On this episode of The Pre-Shift podcast, D.J. sat down with Troy to talk all about what it takes to grow a restaurant brand on a global scale. And while a big chunk of the episode dives into franchising, we’ve pulled out key insights that can help anyone in hospitality, from those building a franchise empire to those grinding it out running a single-unit restaurant. No matter the size, there’s something here for you.

Listen to the episode

On letting go to allow for growth

As a CEO, Troy can’t do it all—and the same goes for any manager or operator in the restaurant business. To grow, you need to rely on others to do their part. And oftentimes, they’ll do it even better than you.

Troy puts it this way: “I’m a resource supplier, right? My job is to put them in a position to excel and give them what they need—and the empowerment to do the job they know they can do. That’s the big leap.” But he also admits that letting go can be the hardest part, so ask yourself one question: What do you really love to do in this business? 

And ultimately, those should be the only things that remain your responsibility: “It could be menu development, marketing, hiring—anything inside the business. Pick the one to three things you have ultimate passion for. Everything else has to be outsourced. Find the people who love the other parts, and let them own those pieces of the business.”

He adds that too many people force themselves to do things they hate. “And by the way, if you hate doing it, you’re probably not very good at it—or at least not as good as someone who loves it.”

✨In other words: if it doesn’t spark joy, take it off your plate and delegate it.

On what makes a restaurant brand attractive

When Troy first looked at bringing Pepper Lunch to North America, he didn’t just see a franchise opportunity—he saw a winning formula. And not just because it was big in Asia. That formula for success came down to a few key ingredients:

• ????Authentic cuisine in a growing market: “This was founded 30 years ago in Japan, and the recipe today is the same as it was… I love that Asain cuisine, at the time, had been on the rise for at least three years already. Not only had we gone from sushi to ramen—and now, ramen to Korean barbecue—but now, the ancillary other foods of Asia were being appreciated.” 
• ????‍????Simple preparation for low labor costs: “When we dug into the business, we realized there was, at the time, very little to virtually no prep. We’re at no prep now… No culinary skill was required because all that primary prep was done outside the building. We’re just assembling food on a hot plate. The stores were being run with four or five people total—so, a much lower labor model.”  
• ????Experiential dining to stand out: “The customer actually cooks the food themselves. To that point, I put a lot of emphasis on the experiential side… Not since Chipotle have we had something that was interactive, right? Chipotle invented the down-the-line… Nothing’s really happened in that space since that innovation in the industry, and this is really experiential. You’re talking sizzling hot plates. You can see them. You can hear them. You can smell them… It’s a phenomenal experience.”

On how to understand exactly who you’re serving

Like any business, growth starts with understanding who your customers really are. And it’s not as simple as assuming you’re serving Gen Z, Millennials, or Boomers—it’s about digging into the specifics so you can make smarter decisions to attract (and serve) them better. 

While Troy dives into geofencing as one strategy, there’s also a simpler solution: “Ask your customer. And by the way, ask your employees. You need to do market research. And the market research is inside the four walls.” 

????Some questions he suggests include: 

• What do they love about you? 
• What’s unique about you? 
• If only one item could remain on the menu, what’s that item they would want? 
• If an item could go away on the menu, what item would they get rid of?

He adds that you can get input from friends, family, and even the stranger behind you in the grocery store line. And simply observing the foot traffic in your restaurant is another strategy: “ I tell people this all the time—sit in your restaurant with a yellow pad… and just start recording what you see.” Looking at the ages, genders, and ethnicities of people—along with what they’re buying—can help you make informed decisions about your restaurant.

Resources

• Visit Pepper Lunch
• Connect with Troy on LinkedIn