Frank N. Easterbrook joined Balboa Brands, Inc. (“BBI:”) in
January 2001 as President and CEO. His responsibilities are to
establish and oversee business strategies and tactics, set goals,
monitor performance, approve contractors, suppliers and franchise
appointments. His responsibilities are also to ensure that proper,
effective and consistent management services are provided to meet
the needs of and commitments to our franchisees, and that customer
needs and expectations are achieved. From February 1997 to March
1998, he was Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Weck Closure
Systems, a Research Triangle Park, North Carolina medical device
company. Before that, from January 1990 to January 1997, he was the
Chief Executive Officer, Chairman, & owner of Horizon Surgical,
Inc., Evergreen, Colorado. Earlier, beginning in 1968, he held
increasingly senior executive positions, both domestically and
internationally, with the food companies - Nestle, S.A.,
M&M/Mars, Inc., and Ralston Purina, Inc.
Franchise Expo: Tell us about the Juice It
Up!
Frank Easterbrook: Juice It Up! evolved
from the Southern California beach and surfing lifestyle to become
a leading raw juice bar and handcrafted smoothie franchise that
specializes in delicious and functional fresh-squeezed juices. We
love new and exciting ingredients which we use in blended-to-order
real fruit smoothies, delicious raw vegetable juice blends,
nutrient-rich superfruit bowls made with Açaí and Pitaya, and
other beverages and healthy snacks that appeal to the on-the-go
consumers who prefer healthier food and beverage options that
support an active lifestyle. As a southern California-based
lifestyle brand, we’re focused on providing our guests with a full
spectrum of great-tasting, better-for-you food and drink choices
designed with personal wellness in mind.
FE: How and when did you become involved with
Juice It Up! and what was your background prior to joining the
company?
Frank Easterbrook: As former
senior executive with M&M/Mars, Inc. and Nestle, I had also
been CEO and owner of Horizon Surgical, Inc., a company that
manufactured and held three U.S. patents for an implant medical
device. After the company was acquired in 1997, I remained to
oversee the transition and relocated to Raleigh/Durham, N.C., where
I met a Juice It Up! licensee and became intrigued with the
concept. What began as a small investment eventually led to
acquiring the reins of Juice It Up! in 2001. I saw it as a ‘better
for you’ product and having been in the health and medical industry
and working closely with surgeons and cardiologists, I saw
first-hand the results from poor eating habits. People wouldn’t get
themselves into those situations if they were drinking
fresh-squeezed raw vegetable and fruit juice instead of eating fast
food.
FE: What are some of the advantages in being a
Juice It Up! franchisee?
Frank Easterbrook: Support.
We are a franchisee-focused Company. As a Juice It Up!
franchisee, you surround yourself with fresh wholesome natural
ingredients and products, fresh ideas and a fresh emerging category
of customers - people passionate about treating their taste buds
and their bodies equally well. It’s our ambition to infuse a
healthy energy into all we do…in life, in community and in
business, as we support our franchisees.
Our management and support team offers insight and assistance
into every facet of the business
from start up to ongoing support; from evaluation of real estate,
to sourcing and purchasing raw materials and equipment;
architectural design to buildout, grand opening to local store
marketing and everything in between, we’re here to help you achieve
success through our years of experience and expertise to ensure you
get the most out of your investment.
FE: Who is your ideal franchisee?
Frank Easterbrook: The
continued growth of Juice It Up! depends on potential partners who
are willing to follow a time-tested system of business applications
which we provide and who meet the same high standards which we hold
for ourselves: Passion. Energy. Commitment.
Persistence.
Our ideal franchisees seek an established brand committed to
health and nutrition, and are committed to living and promoting an
active healthy lifestyle themselves. Potential partners should have
a strong business background, possess an enthusiastic and
entrepreneurial spirit, exhibit a willingness to cooperative and
active listening, along with strong community ties and an eagerness
to grow the brand locally through creative local store
marketing.
FE: Tell us a little about the Juice Bar Market
or Juice Industry?
Frank Easterbrook: According
to the CDC, a third of our nation is experiencing obesity, disease,
fatigue and unhealthy eating habits, and consumers are looking for
solutions. Proper juicing is a great way to combat those issues.
Today, while juicing is becoming more mainstream and part of a
“lifestyle”, especially for those who want to be active and healthy
because they see the multitudes of benefits it provides, juicing
correctly is critical to achieving the health benefits.
As busy Americans seek quick, better-for-you options at all
day- parts, juice has become a more critical part of their regular
diet. The global juice and smoothie bar market is experiencing
increasing demand from consumers and the concept of healthy
lifestyles is gaining prominence. With the trend of health and
wellness not going away, many independent juice bars are starting
to flood into the market. These “start ups” have been open two
years or less and tend to serve a local niche market; they are very
targeted to one specific customer and limit themselves to a broader
range of consumers who are seeking healthy options. They are not
yet a fully branded concept and as with most start ups or "mom and
pop" juice bars are still trying to reinvent the wheel, they have a
lot of “figuring out” to do. And whether they could sustain 20 year
history is doubtful.
At Juice
It Up! we offer a variety of products to a broad range
of customers. Whether you're an entry level, first time juicer, an
avid habitual juice enthusiast, a devoted smoothie fan, or an acai
bowl customer we have products that appeal at different levels of
health, taste and nutritional needs in a variety of markets. We
don't limit our market to the elite but make the juicing lifestyle
available to everyone. We are a true lifestyle brand offering what
are customer want and are asking for not just what is
trendy.
FE: What are some of the greatest lessons you’ve
learned in growing this franchise?
Frank Easterbrook: We want the selection
of the Juice It Up! concept to work for every Franchisee who joins
our system. Selecting the “right franchisee” is critical for
them and for the Company, it results in alignment of expectations.
When this fit isn’t right then expectations are misaligned.
FE: Do you have a mentor and is their someone you
use for inspiration?
Frank Easterbrook: I believe
in principles to guide my decisions, and three simple values to
share with our team. Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality,
Efficiency, Freedom are my guiding principles, while Honesty,
Integrity, and Loyalty are the cornerstone of my values. I
thank the many fine people at both Mars, Inc. and Nestle who
constantly identified “what right looks like” and my experience
while working and owning Horizon Surgical to truly value and
understand the super critical nature of standards and
repeatability. Both Mars and Nestle have high standards,
however, when I owned the medical device company I gained an even
higher respect for the efficacy and safety of products that we
produced. Today, I’m proud to say that we at Juice It Up!
have a full time food scientist on our staff at Juice It Up! who is
as dedicated to the quality and efficacy of our products as am
I.
FE: What advice do you have for someone looking
to acquire a Franchise?
Frank Easterbrook: Get to
know the franchisor, the product, and the quality of the products;
these are your long term partners in business and should align with
your values and goals for the future. Ensure they have adequate
staff, resources, trained and dedicated personnel to meet their
commitment to you. Make sure you have a passion and a strong belief
in the concept you franchise, and a willingness to work hard to
grow your company.
FE: .In your opinion, why do you think that Juice
It Up! would be a great opportunity for someone?
Frank Easterbrook: While we’ve
been around for over 20 years, we’re still passionate and hungry
for growth and focused on dominating the markets we serve with our
brand. We stay close to our customer, close to our franchisees; and
understand their combined needs and wants, while staying ahead of
the trends. Product is number one (#1) for us. The
quality of your product describes who you are, and we have great
products!
There is a cultural shift across the nation toward healthy
products and long-term wellness, making Juice It Up! the ideal
opportunity for entrepreneurs looking to establish a growing
and rewarding business.
