grown

People everywhere want to eat better & live more active, healthier lives. There are massive obstacles to obtain this often elusive goal- accessibility, affordability and convenience. The life threatening effects of not eating healthy are life altering, if not fatal. Diabetes, heart disease & cancer are just a few of the potentially deadly conditions directly responsible for the majority of health related fatalities in the US- all have a direct relationship to the food we eat. The American diet is associated with cheap, “food like substances” in shiny packages, highly processed ingredients; starches, fats & sugars. grown™️ is a first of its kind concept that provides delicious, nutrient dense breakfast, lunch and dinner made with 100% USDA organic certified ingredients and delivered affordably, accessibly and with the optimal conveniences that every family relies on (especially during the global pandemic) like drive thru, takeout, catering and contactless at-home delivery. 

We are reinventing fast food. It’s not business, it’s personal. In 2008 my middle child Walker, just 17 months old at the time, was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in a very dramatic fashion during the NBA Finals. Almost losing Walker to a very serious auto immune condition was like the rug was pulled out from underneath me- in an instant I became his advocate, his warrior, his voice and his pancreas. Shortly after diagnosis, “our new normal” I was driving to the grocery store and noticed Walker was experiencing an extremely low blood sugar in his car seat- I realized very quickly that I no longer had time to buy groceries but needed food NOW. I searched up & down the highway in desperation for real food with the convenience of fast food- surely in 2008 I could purchase a whole rotisserie chicken with sweet mash & broccoli at a drive thru window? Boy, was I wrong. It was in that moment, I realized that no one was coming to save me and that if this was a problem for me; it was a problem, period. I created the thing I wished existed, grown™️, the reinvention of fast food. 

grown™️  is “real food cooked slow for fast people”; delicious, nutrient dense breakfasts, lunches and dinners, made with 100% USDA organic certified ingredients and delivered with the optimal conveniences we’ve all grown accustomed to and rely on (now more than ever due to the unimaginable devastating effects of the global pandemic) like drive thru, pickup, takeout, catering & contactless at-home delivery. We opened the doors to our flagship location in Miami, FL in 2016- we now have several units, and are in negotiations to license the use of our brand in cloud kitchens and hope to franchise our concept throughout the US and the world to busy people everywhere that are desperate for better, more healthful options. The one silver lining in this entire God awful scenario is the overwhelming knowledge that our model stands up- even in the chaotic uncertainty of an untimely world changing event like covid-19. Because of our drive thru, at home delivery, catering and our commitment to our community- at a time when 16M restaurant and bar workers are suddenly out of work- we never shut down. We never shuttered our doors and didn’t have to let go of a single team member. 

We serve busy people desperate for better options than what is currently being provided by traditional fast food. We serve families, students, single professionals, active seniors- you name it. You walk into a grown location and it’s a microcosm of the world- the real world. We are meticulous about our preparation, we agonize over the details, we are obsessed with safety (food allergies, cross contamination), sustainability, we are inclusive of every dietary restriction and food preference- vegan, paleo, keto, nutritatian, pescatarian, vegetarian, whole30, gluten free, we address the needs of the individual in the moment, without exception. Can you imagine a fast food restaurant that only sells gluten free pancakes and has a because it’s so meticulous about keeping its guests with celiac safe? That’s grown. We use intense social media to engage broadly; but, our sweet spot is daily interaction with our customers and our community. Our grown locations are hubs for authentic, organic engagement like free yoga demos, potting & planting demos, self care Sundays, author let kid book clubs, candy free Halloween parties, voter registration and supper club Sunday family style dinners. grown™️ is real food at the speed of life. 

The challenge is inspiring busy people to eat better and love more active, healthier, more productive lives. The solution is shifting folks away from the traditional American diet by steering them away from highly processed, sugar ladened food that comes out of a freezer and goes into a frier and leading them toward delicious real food, made with organic, nutrient dense ingredients for a healthier, more active life. grown™️ solves the obstacles that prevent people from achieving their goal of eating healthier- accessibility, affordability, optimal convenience. Having a grown on every corner & in every community gives people a chance. 

When I first came up with the idea to reinvent fast food with grown, real food, cooked slow for fast people; everyone I met with suggested that I was not only batshit crazy but that I was the really wrong person to do it. A Black woman, married to an NBA player, with 5 children, one of whom has a serious auto-immune condition like T1D had no business taking on such a lofty goal- and that if fast food could in fact be reinvested; I was the really wrong person to do it. “If real food with organic ingredients could be served out of a drive thru window in under 4 minutes, someone a lot smarter than you would’ve already figured it out.” That’s what a V/C “friend” of mine said. Thank God I don’t believe in the words no or impossible and I don’t allow people’s limitations of their own mind or abilities effect my opinion of myself. Every fast food restaurant is our competitor. None of them do what we do. Even if you stripped away our organic certification; we still outperform and overwhelm the competition because there isn’t a single concept in the US that serves a family style grilled salmon with Brussels sprouts and sautéed broccoli out of a drive thru window. We have literally changed the game and we continue to pivot and reinvigorate constantly. 

We rely on technology for everything- besides the obvious kitchen equipment and drive thru technology; we have a complex POS system that tracks in the minute orders, guests food allergies and dietary preferences, stores contact information and personal data, tracks purchasing history and loyalty points, hourly sales data to inform purchasing and specials. We search, hire, review applications & train team members online, we use social media and ads to generate organic followers and align with influencers in our community and we partner with several online delivery platforms for contactless at-home delivery.  Technology is a huge part of our ethos and our grown culture- we even have an iPad bar programmed with educational and nutritional games for kids in place of the traditional mainstay in fast food restaurants, the playscape”.

We currently use TOAST for our POS in store and online for mobile ordering. We partner with @postmates, @grubhub & @doordash for contactless at-home delivery. We use ADP’s online HR essentials for searching, reviewing applications, training & hiring. We are negotiating with REEF Technologies for our pivot into cloud kitchens and are currently cultivating a relationship with 1Huddle for an online gaming experience for a fun way to train and promote from within for team members. Instagram, Facebook, etc  are tools we rely on daily. 

We directly affect our current team members and their families- 36 full time employees as well as the 100-250 loyal guests we see at each location depending on the day. We also affect thousands of lives each year for food donation, community engagement and philanthropy. Partnerships with the Miami Heat Family Foundation, Dolphin Cancer Challenge, Health in the Hood, Baptist Hospital Group, the Ronald McDonald House, HashtagLunchbag and countless others are just a few of the many organizations we pride ourselves on supporting. We have 23k organic followers on social media and engage with them daily.

Our goal is to reinvent fast food. Is it lofty? Yes. Is it possible? YES. Women are the decision makers for what their families will eat, drive, wear and watch and they have $1.3 Trillion dollars of spending capital at their disposal. Our most ardent customer is female, age 25-44; but, grown serves everyone- regardless of gender or gender non-specific, irrespective of race, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, zip code, or mean income. Our goal for the year is to SURVIVE coronavirus. Making sure that our team is healthy and can continue to provide for their families is tantamount. We are making strides to pivot to a licensing deal within the cloud kitchens space as contactless at-home delivery is already about 40% of our business and its growing, daily. We are opening a large company owned store on Miami Beach and we hope to continue discussions with experienced multi-unit franchisees. Our big dream is to have 9,400 grown locations globally and to change busy people’s lives for the better- our name is our mantra, is we aren’t accessible, affordable and convenient for everyone, we failed. grown must, grow.

Financial challenges are real and ever present danger. Fast food restaurants and anyone selling food right now post-coronavirus is going to have a fight on their hands. But, our mission is strong and our “why” is stronger. We have yet to secure a large VC investment and have only to date raised funds through a family & friends round. Human capital is always a challenge- even though the traditional fast food restaurant has a 300% turnover ratio and grown has a 66% retention rate (yes) we still occasionally find challenges with keeping team members happy & thriving. Legal, technical & cultural aren’t issues for us currently but we are definitely concerned with the impact of the global market and whatever else this pandemic throws at us. 

I think we can all agree that none of us could have predicted, nor could we have planned for the devastating effects that covid-19 has had on the world- let alone small businesses, whole industries and our global economy. The next 12-18 months will determine slot about our “new normal” and what the future looks like for restaurants, dining out and the hospitality industry. And honestly, given the challenges we’ve seen these past few months- even though our model stands up, we never had to close our door or let go of a single employee; I don’t know (in good faith) if I could recommend anyone to start a new restaurant brand or concept right now. It’s not changing who we are or our trajectory for scale &  growth; but we are RISK takers, we are PROBLEM SOLVERS, we don’t believe in NO or IMPOSSIBLE and we rely on our resourcefulness, ability to adapt & pivot and the strength of our team and our “why” in challenging times. Now more than ever people want access to delicious family style meals made with fresh, nutrient dense, locally sourced organic ingredients and delivered to their doorstep- well, that’s our sweet spot. So that’s where we focus our efforts. And that’s how we’ll continue to capitalize the mission. With 16M restaurant & bar workers out of work, we are actually hiring during a global pandemic and we have our pick of some truly extraordinary professionals. And, that’s exciting. 

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We currently have 36 full time tea members at grown, including but not limited to front of house staff, baristas, line cooks, bakers, Chefs, prep cooks and dishwashers- including our original dishwasher, Anton Jones, whose been with us since opening March 25, 2016. We also have several salaried team members like our corporate executive chef, Chef Jamarr Massey, our general manager, Enrique Martinez and our executive team including me (CEO, grownwoman) Jennifer Somo, HR  Glen Parrish, director of Ops and outsourced legal, accounting, etc.

We are uniquely positioned to accomplish the challenge of reinventing fast food because we are COMMITTED to our “why”. Every single person on our team is dedicated to our mission and we LIVE it everyday.  

Centerplate and the Miami Dolphins for our grown concession stand HardRock Stadium, Operating Participation Agreement 

Walmart, we had a 3 year partnership for a unit of grown at their LakeNona Walmart Supercenter