When Susan West and her husband, Tim, came across a MOOYAH Burgers, Fries and Shakes restaurant that was up for acquisition in their area, the pair was excited to find an opportunity that gave them the chance to be a community staple. The nearly 100-unit “best burger” concept is a go-to for connection in many communities nationwide thanks to its versatile, high-quality offerings. While the duo’s original intent was for West’s husband to take the lead on running the restaurant, the business quickly grew, drawing West and her daughter, Sierra, in as well.
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“The main driving factor behind our decision was that the restaurant was in our community,” said West. “We are both born and raised here, and we have been here all our lives. We liked the idea of owning a business in our hometown.”
West added that, before they invested in MOOYAH, the pair recognized that it was a strong restaurant. “We would go in and eat, and we thought it was really great food,” she said.
Though West had worked in customer service for nearly three decades prior to the pair’s investment with MOOYAH, she had never been in the restaurant business. Regardless, this has not stopped her from growing with the brand and as a Franchise Owner.
“The experience has been great. The people at the main office are great about answering questions and helping me,” said West. “Since I didn’t have any restaurant or business ownership experience, I was starting from the ground up and had no clue what I was doing.”
She added that the first year was especially challenging as she was learning how to manage both guest-facing and “behind the scenes” work including cooking, cleaning, interfacing with guests, managing payroll, conducting inventory and planning labor.
“That was difficult for me, and it took a lot of trial and error,” she said. “If I weren’t in a franchise situation, I would have failed because I wouldn’t have had any support.”
It seems West acquired her MOOYAH skills just in time. The COVID-19 pandemic came hot on the heels of the conclusion of her first year, and the Monrovia MOOYAH location saw a remarkable spike in business.
“We made more money during the pandemic than ever, and a lot of fast-casual restaurants had the same experience,” said West. “We had a lot of delivery and take-out sales, which drove our sales numbers up in 2021 and again in 2022. As soon as everything opened back up and there were no restrictions, people were ready to be served. We are starting to pick up again right now.”
Though the Wests are working diligently to ensure the Monrovia location continues to succeed, they have big plans for the future with hopes of multi-unit ownership. While working in their MOOYAH location, the Wests have also grown to become more connected to their community.
“I see a lot of people that I’ve known come through the restaurant, and they say, ‘Where have you been?’” said West. “It is nice to see familiar faces, and I really enjoy the ownership aspect of it, too. I am there five days a week, cooking the food and making people happy. It’s nice because people come back because they’re happy with both the service and food quality.”
