New Umami Restaurant Group CEO Paul Clayton is positioning the company’s better burger brand Umami Burger for steady growth.
Founder Adam Fleischman recently stepped down as chief executive of the Los Angeles-based operator, which also holds a stake in the 800 Degrees fast-casual pizza concept, and Umami Burger is going stronger then ever. The five-year-old casual-dining chain, known for its creative twists on traditional burgers and its craft beer selection, recently opened its 24th restaurant in Chicago.
Clayton, who has held chief executive positions at Burger King and Jamba Juice, recently discussed joining the emerging brand, building a mainstream audience and preserving the soul of the concept with Nation’s Restaurant News.
How has the transition been coming from big brands like Burger King and Jamba Juice to the up-and-coming Umami?
It’s always exhilarating to come to smaller companies that have much of their growth still ahead. There is a level of creativity, excitement and energy that exists in these smaller companies. There is still a very palpable sense of the founder’s spirit and his vision. I am a big believer in concepts like Umami that are founder-inspired. It is important that I preserve and protect the soul of the brand and the thing that inspired him to create something special.
It’s been 14 years since I left Burger King. In the interim I was at Jamba Juice, and Jamba had that same feeling when I first started.
What is your biggest contribution to the brand?
What I bring to the party is experience, more than anything. Experience in how to execute and how to build organizations. A lot of these companies, like Umami, don’t have a lot of experience and haven’t done what I’ve done.
Umami Burger just opened in Chicago. It seems like the brand is growing very fast.
When you think of Umami only being five years old, and we have 24 restaurants, that’s significant growth. I think we will continue to grow at a reasonably good clip. I think it is always important to understand what it takes to grow and to grow successfully, which means we need to be able to find the right sites, we have to be able to operate and we have to grow as fast as our customers give us permission to grow. The goal is to focus on our existing markets as priority markets, and when we think we have those pretty much under control, we will start looking at new markets. There is a lot of opportunity out there that if we execute properly it is ours for the taking.
How big do you see Umami Burger getting?
As I sit here today, I think we could probably have 150 to 200 restaurants. I think it is all about execution. If we do a really good job with our early adopter guests, then that translates to interests from a more mainstream target audience.
It seems like you’re focused on hipper locations for your restaurants. Is that accurate?
I think an important element to the Umami brand is the notion of urban cool. That was how it was born here in Los Angeles, and I think that hipster, urban cool feel is how the brand begins to grow. As we continue to be more successful, the audience will become more mainstream, but I think for now there is plenty of opportunity with that urban cool crowd.
What will your involvement be with 800 Degrees?
My mandate from the board of directors is to grow Umami. We own about a third of 800 Degrees and we have an interest in what they do and an interest in helping them in any way that we can, but my focus right now is on Umami Burger.
When and where will the next location be?
The next one is Williamsburg, Brooklyn, [New York,] and it can’t come soon enough. If everything goes perfectly, it will be December, but in all likelihood it will be January.
