FULL DISCLOSURE: Weekly Conversations with a WCFE Exhibitor

Is healthy fast food the future of fast food?

A July 21, 2010 study published by Mintel consumer research suggests the answer may be yes. The findings revealed that between 2Q 2009 and 2Q 2010, menu items labeled as “healthy” in American fast food chains grew by 65 percent. And with individual menus expanding, entire restaurants dedicated to healthy dining may soon be commonplace.

That’s the philosophy Steve Wojnarowski has embraced in his role as manager of franchise development and sales for Yoshinoya, a “meal in a bowl” restaurant concept that dishes Japanese cuisine in an American fast food ambiance. 

For the past two years, Wojnarowski has attended the West Coast Franchise Expo (WCFE) with hopes of expanding the business beyond its core market area of Los Angeles and southern California—and this year is no exception. He took a moment to share his insights with Daily Franchise News. 

You are a two-time returning exhibitor to the WCFE. What keeps you coming back?

Right now, we are looking at growing the number of locations in the U.S. while focusing the majority of our growth throughout the western states. This includes California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, Hawaii and Texas. The WCFE is a great venue for meeting a lot of potential franchisees from those areas.

Has the location of the expo been a selling point when it comes to attending?

Yes, I think so. For us, the majority of our growth has been in California, so we get a lot of prospective franchisees coming to our booth at the event. L.A. is our largest American market by far—we have about 85 to 90 restaurants there. Our company has almost 1,500 worldwide, and it would be great if we could increase our presence in the U.S. The convention center is a good place to attract that attention.

What advice would you give to someone who is considering exhibiting at any of the franchise expos?

Expos are a great opportunity to meet other franchisors and see other concepts that are expanding. There are also a lot of suppliers and vendors on hand so it’s an easy way to make new connections and perhaps even work out a better business deal in the long run. Meeting potential franchisees face-to-face is also a lot more personal and can establish better business relationships for the future.

Does that mean exhibiting at the WCFE has sealed a lot of deals for you?

Certainly it has generated a significant amount of qualified leads for us. We get a lot of experienced franchisees who visit our booth looking to buy a business opportunity that is still available in L.A. County. These may be previous operators of another concept, which may be maxed out in terms of new store locations. The franchisees that attend the expos are serious business people on the hunt for serious opportunities.

Yoshinoya is exhibiting at the WCFE at booth 113, L.A. Convention Center, Nov. 5 to 7. Click HERE for more information.