HeyJaredEmpires
The stories behind the best brick & mortar businesses, and operators:Empires is a show that interviews founders, operators, and investors in the top brick & mortar businesses, many of which are franchises.
- Indexed episodes, last 90 days
- 6
- Latest publication
- Sep 10, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest in this view
- Jul 10, 2026
Latest episodes
How Slick City Puts up 7 Figure EBITDA (opens the original)
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Bron Launsby shares how he went from an initially skeptical franchise prospect to building a nine-location Sky Zone portfolio in under a decade. He explains why trampoline parks offered unusually attractive economics, how he kept locations relevant through constant reinvestment and new attractions, and why he ultimately sold the entire portfolio in 2024. Bron then tells the origin story of Slick City, an indoor entertainment concept built around dry slides. After installing an early slide protot
From Borders to Wahlburgers - Lessons in Brick & Mortar (opens the original)
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Rick Vanzura draws on a career spanning Borders, Panera, Wahlburgers, GameStop, and GrowthFactor to explain why certain brick-and-mortar brands thrive while others lose their way. He breaks down Cava’s advantage over Sweetgreen and Chipotle, how Panera “optimized itself to death,” and why the majority of value in restaurants accrues to the category winner. Rick also shares remarkable stories from his career, including Borders turning down an agreement that would have included 5% of Amazon and wo
The Franchise Being Built by Sean Thomas (Grandson of Wendy’s Founder, Dave Thomas) (opens the original)
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Sean Thomas is the grandson of legendary Wendy's founder Dave Thomas. Today, Sean not only owns multiple Wendy's locations, but he is also the co-founder of his own chicken and dirty soda chain, Minnie Bird. OPEN NEW LOCATIONS IN WEEKS WITH CLOUDKITCHENS: https://l.cloudkitchens.com/empires--CONSIDERING SELLING YOUR BUSINESS?https://www.empirespod.com/for-multi-unit-owners This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit em
Building Tint World: The Makings of an Auto Empire (opens the original)
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Charles Bonfiglio, founder and CEO of Tint World, shares how he went from growing up in his father’s Brooklyn clothing factory to becoming one of Meineke’s top franchisees and eventually building Tint World into a national franchise system. He explains how he learned franchising from the operator side, why he bought Tint World, and how he spent years refining the model before accelerating growth. Charles also breaks down his approach to leadership, unit economics, marketing, and why he ultimatel
From Raising Cane's to The Coop: The Economics of Chicken Tenders (opens the original)
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Eliot McDonald went from Raising Cane's shift manager to founding his own chicken tender concept. We discuss everything about chicken tenders & QSR, and how his restaurant chain is doing thus farOPEN NEW LOCATIONS IN WEEKS WITH CLOUDKITCHENS: https://l.cloudkitchens.com/empires--BUY OR SELL FRANCHISES WITH OUR TEAM: https://www.empirespod.com/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit empirespod.substack.com
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