The News & Observer has the story:
Sodexo is looking at North Carolina as a key component of its newest venture in the food business.
Already a big name in food for institutions such as colleges, senior care centers and hospitals, Sodexo is now taking its commercial restaurant division and kicking it into high gear.
Sodexo operates nine restaurant chains with more than 500 U.S. locations. But up until 2004, all of its restaurants were company owned.
Now it has chosen three of those nine chains to franchise to entrepreneurs nationwide.
Drawn by the familiar accolades of high education level, high income level and booming growth, Sodexo has picked North Carolina as one of its target markets for franchising.
Over the next five years, Sodexo and its restaurant subsidiary, Retail Brand Group, want to open as many as 75 restaurants in the state.
The first opened in November in a Concord shopping center: an Italian restaurant, Pandini’s.
Along with that chain, Sodexo wants to expand its Salsa Rico Fresh Mexican Grill and Jazzman’s Cafe coffeehouse here.
The three are what the restaurant industry refers to as “quick casual.” Think Panera Bread and Moe’s Southwest Grill, to name two already in this market. They are a step up from fast-food places but not as fancy or expensive as white-tablecloth restaurants.
Between the three, Sodexo could add as many as 24 restaurants in Raleigh-Durham and 19 in Charlotte.
It also wants to open restaurants in Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Wilmington, Asheville and Fayetteville.
But making such a big and aggressive entrance into the competitive North Carolina restaurant market is risky, especially with the economy slowing down.