Article

Entrepreneur bases expansion on restaurant/food trailer synergy

Expanding his New York-based restaurant operation to Georgia allowed Willie Degel the chance to launch a food trailer, which he hopes will let him leverage his assets and provide a template for further expansion to other states.

The Uncle Jack's Meathouse kitchen will prepare the food for the "Jack's Shack" food trailer..

January 27, 2020 by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

Editor's Note: This is part two in a two-part series on Jack's Shack.

For Willie Degel, a long-time New York City restaurant operator and TV personality, launching a food trailer has been a dream long in coming.

As described in part one of this two-part series, the passionate food entrepreneur couldn't resist getting into the dynamic mobile food space as he watched it evolve over the years to its current reputation for culinary excellence.

But being in the Big Apple, with its hefty food truck fees and onerous parking restrictions, Degel had to bide his time.

The food trailer will advertise its availability for catering events.

A fortuitous expansion

It wasn't until after he expanded his New York restaurant empire — which includes Uncle Jack's Steakhouses, Uncle Jack's Meat House and Jack's Shack Organic Eatery — to Georgia that circumstances fell into place for a mobile eatery. 

"You've got to do your homework, you've got to educate your people, you've got to research, you've got to contact your counties, and make sure when you build it you're doing it to spec and code and you build it right," he said.

Degel plans to introduce his first "Jack's Shack" food trailer at his soon-to-open Peachtree Corners restaurant, his second Georgia operation. His sous chef, and a helper from his existing Duluth Uncle Jack's Meat House, will operate the trailer on a part-time basis. He plans to support the trailer with social media and build an annual events calendar.

Degel believes Georgia is more welcoming of mobile kitchens than New York City.

"Every small town has food truck nights and they invite all the people to come experience the food trucks," he said. "It's a way of people gathering, getting out of the house, meeting and greeting and socializing."

The trailer takes shape

To bring his vision to fruition, he purchased a used, 12- by-7-foot  barbecue food trailer for about $22,000 from an owner who operated several food trailers. He replaced the appliances, which now includes fryers, a griddle, a grill, a freezer and a prep station, all of which cost nearly another $7,000.

The menu will have seven items, "fast grabbable that are easy to cook, prep and move out to the masses," which will vary according to event. These will include his signature cheeseburger, a bacon cheeseburger, a French dip shaved prime steak sandwich, a crispy chicken sandwich, pulled pork and French fries.

"You can't put out too many items because it's a small space and you've got to be prepped and organized," he said.

Leveraging synergies

Like other restaurant owners who have added mobile operations, Degel wants to leverage the synergies between the brick-and-mortar operation and the mobile kitchen: the restaurant will prepare the food for the trailer, allowing him to make greater use of his existing assets. 

The trailer will also allow him to leverage his marketing and IT departments, which include a full-time graphics person, a full-time IT person and two full-time marketing/social media people. 

The trailer will accept cash, but Degel predicts about 80% of the sales to be paid with credit cards. At the time of this report, he wasn't sure which POS he will use on the trailer. He wants to make sure the trailer POS integrates with his existing management software. He is looking at switching to a cloud-based POS for his restaurants.

The trailer will have its own social media platform separate from the restaurants. 

A template for future growth

The Peachtree Corners operation will serve as a template for Degel's future growth plans.

He also plans to have a trailer at his Duluth, Georgia restaurant location, and he eventually plans to expand to the Carolinas and Florida using the same business model.

The biggest challenge Degel faces is that of everyone in the foodservice business — finding the right people. He hopes to expand his present team of 225 to 350.

"You have to adapt. Sometimes you have winners, sometimes you have failures, but you cannot stop," he said.

Pictures courtesy of Willie Degel.

About Elliot Maras

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Elliot Maras is the editor of Kiosk Marketplace and Vending Times. He brings three decades covering unattended retail and commercial foodservice.