Europe is a complex market, so the cookie-cutter approach to international expansion doesn’t work, Vaibhav Juneja, a principal at McWin Capital Partners, tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Juneja sits down with BI’s senior restaurant and foodservice analyst, Michael Halen, to discuss how McWin analyzes potential investments and the do’s and don’ts of expanding a restaurant brand into new markets. He also comments on Subway’s prospects outside the US, the M&A market in Europe, and why Spain, Poland and Central Europe are more attractive target markets than Germany and France.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TGI Friday’s is eliminating busy work from their general manager’s plates, allowing them to focus on the team members, Sugarloaf Holdings Founder and CEO Ray Blanchette tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Blanchette sits down with BI’s senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to discuss TGI Friday’s focus on four-wall execution, hospitality and food quality to boost US same-store sales. Blanchette also comments on value, international store development, Middle East sales and the impact of gasoline prices on restaurant spending.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Employers are increasingly paying for more and more food to boost recruitment, productivity, retention and “earn the commute” of their workers, Fooda Founder and CEO Orazio Buzza tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Buzza sits down with BI’s senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to discuss the foodservice company’s unique, asset-light business model. He also comments on workplace attendance trends, catering growth and the benefits of owning their own tech stack.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you do something well with consistency and discipline in the food business, guests will come back, according to Handel’s Ice Cream CEO Jennifer Schuler. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Schuler and Chief Marketing Officer Hillary Frei sit down with Bloomberg Intelligence’s senior restaurant and foodservice analyst, Michael Halen, to discuss the chain’s strong top-line growth. They also comment on product sourcing, innovation and training, as well as their three corporate values: craftsmanship, generosity and community.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our comparable sales over the last six years are a reflection of the brand, menu and execution of the concept by our team, Piada Italian Street Food’s founder and CEO Chris Doody tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Doody sits down with BI senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to discuss the chain’s sales-growth outperformance versus fast casual peers. He also comments on the health of the fast-casual industry and the company’s disciplined approach to new restaurant development.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The return on investment for drone delivery is attractive today and is going to get way more attractive over the next few years as the industry scales, Matternet founder and CEO Andreas Raptopoulos says on this episode of Bloomberg Intelligence’s Choppin’ It Up podcast. Raptopoulos joins BI senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to explore the cost and environmental benefits of autonomous drone networks. Raptopoulos also discusses an investment by SoftBank Robotics in Matternet and the US regulatory climate.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fast-casual chains are most exposed to the gas-price spike as their menu prices have crept up to rival full-service, SignalFlare.ai’s founder and CEO Michael Lukianoff tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Lukianoff sits down with BI’s senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to chat about the impact that higher gasoline prices and inflation will have on the restaurant industry. He also discusses menu management, population growth and, of course, AI.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“We have taught restaurant employees to focus on prime costs, but there are so many other ways to lose money,” Craftable’s CEO David Cantu tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, he sits down with BI’s Senior Restaurant and Foodservice Analyst Michael Halen to discuss why it’s so important to build financial acumen at the manager level. He also comments on food waste and why the back office is the next big thing in restaurant tech.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you aren’t playing the value game, you’re turning a blind eye to a big trend in the marketplace that isn’t going away soon, Smashburger’s co-founder Tom Ryan tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Ryan and CEO Jim Sullivan sit down with BI senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to discuss how Smashburger’s $4.99 menu has contributed to its same-store sales turnaround. They discuss efforts to improve branding, operations and innovation and comment on the new marketing campaign slated for April 7.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At a high level, there are two questions I ask our teams to consider: Is what we’re doing making things better or easier for our team members, or better or easier for our guests? BJ’s Restaurants’ Chief Executive Officer Lyle Tick tells Bloomberg Intelligence. In this episode of the Choppin’ It Up podcast, Tick sits down with BI’s senior restaurant and foodservice analyst Michael Halen to discuss the company’s simplification efforts. They also explore BJ’s culture and new restaurant development as well as alcohol consumption trends.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.