Commercial Construction & Renovation

JUL-AUG 2016

Commercial Construction & Renovation helps our subscribers design, build and maintain better commercial facilities by delivering content to meet the information needs of today's high-level executives.

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BRINGING THE CASUAL COMMERCIAL KITCHENS Give us a snapshot of Pollo Tropical brand? Pollo Tropical is a Caribbean-inspired fast casual restaurant that has gained a cult-like following for its fresh, flame-grilled chicken mari- nated in a proprietary blend of tropical fruit juices and spices. Other craveable island favorites include Mojo Roast Pork, Create Your Own TropiChops ® , and made-from-scratch sides, including rice, beans, yuca with garlic sauce, sweet plantains, and more. All Pollo Tropical meals are customizable with 10 zesty tropical signature sauces on its famous Saucing Island ® . Founded in 1988, the company currently owns and operates more than 160 locations in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas, plus six domestic licensed locations and 35 franchised locations throughout the Caribbean, Central America, South America and Puerto Rico. What type of consumer are you targeting? Our target customer wants to have an affordable, craveable, custom- izable meal they can feel good about eating every day, and that isn't the same old, same old. We serve everyone – families who want an affordable meal out together, workers on their lunch breaks or people grabbing dinner on their way home from the office. How does the design of the restaurant cater to today's consumers' taste? The Pollo Tropical building design was created from a tropical atmosphere reflecting an airy, bright, sunny experience. Today's consumer is seeking new, comfortable dining. Pollo Tropical is different than other national brands and our new exteriors really highlight that fact. It is a fast casual experience in a casual dining design. Walk us through how and why it designed the way it is? Pollo Tropical was designed to reflect the whole island experience, from the cooking method on our open grills to the tropical taste in décor. Our slogan is "Life's better under the palm." So we offer a relaxing, tropical feeling under the palm tree experience. From an exterior perspective, when we were expanding into Texas for the first time in 2014, we wanted the exterior to commu- nicate to new audiences what we offer – and the new restaurants feature Caribbean-style design that incorporates bright island colors and details that tell them that is isn't just another chicken place. It's something special and different. Walk us through your construction and design strategy. As in most brands, designs are an evolution. Designers bring the vision to paper. It is our job as construction and brand design people to bring the vision within the business model. This is always the chal- lenge. The question is always where to put on the brakes regarding costs. At Pollo Tropical, we are no different than any other company when bringing our brand to new markets. You adapt to the market needs and build to the business model. Always looking for savings and new technology that fits budgets. Give us a rundown of your kitchen operation. How is it organized? The kitchen is centered on the food production area. In our kitchens we have several cooking and food preparation areas, so each station works toward the center production line for assembly and out the door. The operations teams have put together our central assembly make line to fit the menu items. This is a complex piece of equip- ment. There's particular attention given to the labor associated with each menu item and the final time to get to the customer from point of ordering. What's the biggest issue today related to the construction side of the business? There's never one singular item that is the biggest issue in construc- tion. There's so many factors that can affect projects. Costs are the main challenge. But there are other things, depending on regions, that affect the projects as well. Labor, for example, in some areas can be a problem for controlling costs. Some areas where there is a lot of commercial development taking place, labor costs tend to be higher and workers are in demand. This shortage of labor causes increase costs. The shortage of skilled labor can also result in loss of production and meeting timelines. Permitting, municipal requirements and building codes are also issues that can greatly affect projects. These items can affect costs and 90 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — JULY : AUGUST 2016

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