| Rum Runners Is ComingTo A Town Near You! New Franchise Announced. Raleigh, NC: Rum Runners USA announced today a new franchise in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. “We are very excited to be adding this new franchise to our growing family of locations,” said James Auerbach, Vice President of Rum Runners USA. “With the high volume of year round residents and travelers to this city, we are confident that the new Rum Runners store will be extremely successful,” Auerbach said. Including the signing of the new store, Rum Runners USA will have seven nationwide locations in four states either open or in development. The new location in Ft. Wayne will further strengthen the Rum Runners brand name throughout the Carolinas and in the Michigan/Indiana region. Auerbach attributes the growth to the fact that interest in the company and concept has never been higher. This strong interest has allowed Rum Runners USA to be selective when choosing areas of expansion. For this exact reason Rum Runners takes considerably more time than other franchise concepts to move forward with new store locations. “In many cases we would rather move far slower than some other concepts out there. This gives us an opportunity to get to know the individuals and groups who are considering becoming Rum Runner’s franchisees. This also allows them to get to know us. We look at it as the start of a long term relationship, - on many levels,” Michael Scozzafave, Rum Runners founder said. The Rum Runners theme consists of a tropical Caribbean style with palm trees, thatched roof tiki huts, island style shacks, cobblestone floors, tropical colors, lush foliage and award winning lunch, dinner, and late night menus. The facilities are designed to take customers on a trip to a far away place where the sand is as white as the snow, the water is as blue as the sky and the sun is always shinning. The goal is to provide the customers with a "close to home" get away that proves to be a guaranteed good time. Basically - the ULTIMATE destination entertainment night spot! The great food, dueling pianos, and unmatched atmosphere are the main attractions at Rum Runners. The dueling piano concept consists of two entertainers playing baby grand pianos simultaneously. They play a variety of hit songs from the 50's though today and focus heavily on audience participation. It is very common to hear the crowd singing the chorus of a song while the entertainers lead them on. The staff (known as "The Staff That Rocks") performs with the entertainers live on stage once per hour in what is called SHOWTIME! This is audience interaction at its finest, in which the staff leads the guests in a song and dance routine. The wide variety of music, audience participation, high energy level, and sheer FUN make Rum Runners the place to be with family and friends! Typically open 6 days a week, Rum Runners regularly attracts between 300-600+ people per night and always promotes its motto of Great Food, Great Music, Great Fun! The company is based corporately in Raleigh, NC and all media inquiries should be directed to James Auerbach, Vice President at (919) 844-5959 or via email at jauerbach@rumrunnersusa.com. Information about the two new locations: In Ft Wayne the new franchisee is a long time veteran in the franchise and business world. Azar Incorporated was established in 1954 and was one of the founding companies of the Big Boy Restaurant Chain. At their peak, Azar Incorporated was managing over 70 Big Boy restaurants in Indiana and Colorado, making them one of the largest restaurant operators at the time in the Midwest. In addition to Big Boy restaurants, Azar was also one of the founders of the Roby’s Roast Beef Restaurant Chain, which later became Roy Rodgers Roast Beef Restaurants. Both chains were sold to J. Willard Marriott in the late 60’s. The company is headed by the experienced executive management team of: Mr. Alex Azar, Founder; Mr. George Azar, Chief Executive Officer; and Mr. Yogesh Parikh, President. Around the time that the restaurants were sold Azar Incorporated became involved in managing hotels. They were the first Marriott Hotel franchisee and currently own and manage four hotels in three states including; The Fort Wayne, Indiana Marriott, The Huntsville, Alabama Marriott, The Holiday Inn & Suites in Bolingbrook, Illinois, and The Hampton Inn in Elk Grove, Illinois. The new Rum Runners location will be located at the Ft. Wayne, Indiana Marriott, which recently added a new state-of-the-art 9,800 square foot ballroom/conference facility to the hotel. In addition to hotels, Azar also owns and/or operates four, full-service restaurants, a retail mall, Safeway Garage Door Manufacturing, and several other business entities in the service, real estate, and manufacturing industries. Rum Runners USA is looking forward to working with a company that boasts over 50 years of experience in the hospitality and food service industries. The Triad area of North Carolina, which includes the closely situated cities of Greensboro, High Point, and Winston Salem has been quickly growing into one of the busiest regions in the state. With a rapidly expanding and thriving downtown area, and the recent addition of one of the most modern minor league baseball stadiums in the country, Greensboro was the perfect city for the first Rum Runners location in The Triad. The franchise group consists of three individuals with strong ties in the community and over 20 years experience in the bar and restaurant industry, including owning and operating locations in Greensboro. They are looking forward to being part of the well publicized expansion of the region, and partnering with Rum Runners. Once the Greensboro store is open the group plans to look at future opportunities in the other cities of The Triad and Charlotte, NC. For more information about either of the new locations or Rum Runners, please contact James Auerbach at (919) 844 - 5959 or jauerbach@rumrunnersusa.com. |
