Checkers To Open 14 Locations In Philadelphia By 2018

Checkers Drive-In Restaurants Inc. signed a development agreement with a local franchisee in order to expand its growth in the Philadelphia market, almost doubling its restaurant base from 23 to 40 by 2018.

In an effort to penetrate the Philadelphia market, Checkers sold three of its company-owned restaurants to Jay Pandya, a multi-unit Checkers franchise owner, and president and CEO of Rohan Group, through a development agreement. Pandya currently owns and operates more than 100 restaurants, including two Checkers locations in Allentown, Pa. and Bethlehem, Pa.

And this is big news, according to Jennifer Durham, vice president of franchise development of Checkers and Rally's Restaurants.

"We own and operate 330 company-owned restaurants. We have not historically sold company restaurants," Durham said. "But in this particular instance, we needed a strong base to grow and it made sense for us to do that."

The Tampa, Fla.-based company sought expansion in the Philadelphia market because of its strong return in investment, which is 10 percent to 15 percent better than the national average, Durham said.

Furthermore, Durham said Checkers sees an average of 52 percent return in investment in its Philadelphia locations (not including the site or real estate cost).

The three locations will be located in Philadelphia "" two on North Broad Street and one on Stenton Avenue "" and will be used as bases for training, and as a jumping point to develop more restaurants in the Philadelphia market.

Only three locations so far have been finalized, with more restaurant locations being sought out.

Each 900-square-foot location is expected to support 20 to 30 jobs, for a total of 400 jobs overall by 2018. And because each Checkers location does not require interior seating (it operates as a drive-in), the initial investment to open each location is approximately $500,000, as opposed to the standard investment of $1 million, Durham said.

Franchise Ranking History
Franchise 500: #257 (2014), #478 (2013), #198 (2012), #380 (2011), #76 (2010),
Fastest-Growing: #68 (2010),
America's Top Global: #156 (2012), #63 (2010)

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