As What Now Media Group now reports on restaurant and hospitality news in 31 cities across the United States, CEO and Founder Caleb J. Spivak has a new addition to his growing business development arm of the online media outlet. In 2017, What Now Atlanta began hosting Accelerate events to bring together local restaurant owners and entrepreneurs with Preferred Partners to share tips and offer services related to opening, building, and growing a business.
These entrepreneurs and businesses typically met at local restaurants to share stories of starting a new endeavor in the restaurant industry and to address concerns. As What Now Media Group began covering restaurant and hospitality news in additional cities, the Accelerate event program also grew to include 124 events each year, primarily held online.
That is all changing now, as Spivak and the What Now Media Group events team — led by Mariah Medley and Chanel Guerrero-Lambie — launches in-person events in other cities, including Dallas.
More than three dozen local restaurant owners, franchisees, and Preferred Partners attended the first official in-person What Now Dallas Accelerate event at Postino Addison on May 1, 2024. “The mission is to bring together like-minded entrepreneurs to connect,” Spivak shared. He added that businesses in attendance can learn from each other, and Preferred Partners can help them navigate any aspect of opening and growing their business.
Postino Addison General Manager Robert Archer welcomed Accelerate event attendees to the restaurant that opened on Belt Line Rd. just seven months ago. Postino is described as an “industrial winecafé” that offers dishes of local ingredients, plus unique wines and a variety of beer, which were sampled during the What Now Dallas Accelerate event.
As Spivak outlined business tips during a presentation, restaurant owners and entrepreneurs shared a little about themselves and their businesses. Some important takeaways from their stories included finding a partner you can trust for specific business-related services and the importance of training employees and treating them well.
Due’ Cucina Italiana Co-founder Davide Macchi shared that he is bringing his Italian pasta concept from Seattle to Dallas with the first location expected to open this summer. He has plans to open two other locations in the Dallas area.
Yonutz, a donut and ice cream franchise out of Florida, now has its first location in Dallas. Owner Bilu Warrier Raval told the crowd she has plans to open another 20-25 locations in North Texas.
Connie Burks, franchisee for Cinnaholic, opened a location in Grand Prairie and has plans for two more. “We specialize in vegan cinnamon rolls.” Cinnaholic also offers gourmet vegan brownies, cookies, and soft-serve ice cream.
Tanner Spring with The Peach Cobbler Factory opened his first North Texas location two months ago in Richardson. Tanner plans to open three more in the Dallas area. “I chose the concept because it’s Southern classics,” Tanner shared with the crowd.
Dennis Johnson, franchise owner of Bohemian Bull Tavern & Beer Garden, opened the restaurant in Grapevine just 10 months ago after working for more than 30 years in the federal government. Although he continues to learn and grow as a restaurant owner, Dennis shared one concern with attendees. “I never had to market a thing and all of the sudden, that’s all I’m doing.” A What Now Dallas Preferred Partner might just have the answer he needs.
Owner of Sweet Pearl’s Ice Cream, Will Gibson, wants everyone in America to know his dog, Pearl. “I want my dog to be famous, and we’re going to do it through ice cream,” he shared at the Accelerate event. “It’s the best ice cream you’ve ever had.”
Bad Chicken, which offers wings that are first smoked then fried, is now open on Ross Avenue in Dallas. Founder Bobby Shuey and Owner Tim Woehr attended the Accelerate event and shared that they started the restaurant concept from a test kitchen. The new Dallas spot has a drive-thru, plus desserts made from scratch.
Other restaurant owners and entrepreneurs were in attendance including Civil Pour, Crimson Coward, Dessert Avenue, Feng Cha, Jamba Juice and Auntie Anne’s, Lolas Cuban Food, Red Phone Booth, and The Metropolitan Café.
Preferred Partners in attendance included ADT, A Head for Profits, Contreras Building Group, ECOLAB, JGX Group, Liquid Environmental Solutions, Martin Recruiting Partners, Matthews Real Estate Investment Services, Our Town America, Pepsi, RobotLAB, Spectrum, SpotOn, Sysco, and TriMark USA. These local industry experts in What Now Media Group’s network of Preferred Partners help new businesses open and existing businesses grow.
“These Accelerate events never cease to amaze me. Hearing the stories of these entrepreneurs, the struggles that they face in getting their businesses off the ground is really awe-inspiring. They make the cities they operate out of a better place,” Spivak shared after the event. “I’m so grateful to be able to pull them together and connect them with like-minded entrepreneurs and business experts that can help them strive and be successful.”
Stay tuned for future Accelerate events from What Now Media Group in the coming months. Check out the Accelerate page here for more details.
