Sabin Lomac and Jim Tselikis sold 15% of every category of Cousins Maine Lobster — trucks, restaurants, media, distribution — for $55,000 they say they never needed. They had grossed $285,000 in their first three months off one truck, and the cash sat unused for years. What they were buying was the platform.
Fifteen years on: 100 locations across 38 states, an average unit volume of $1.3 million per food truck, and 1 to 2% of gross revenue spent on marketing.
The co-founders tell Ian Schwartzman why they turned Shark Tank down first, what the deal cost them, and why neither regrets it. Their book, Life and Lobster, is out now.
Timestamps
0:00 Two cousins, a food truck, and 70 people in line
1:45 $7,000 in cash and a call from Shark Tank the same night
2:50 The 50 Twitter followers that started it
5:42 What a call from a TV producer actually sounds like
6:56 Why they said no
8:11 The producer who told them they were making a mistake
9:39 $285,000 in three months, and Barbara’s $55,000 for 15%
11:15 Why the money was never the point
12:48 38 states, 100 locations, and 1% on advertising
13:45 Eating the lobster price instead of passing it on
15:53 From a $12 lobster roll to $27, and why the franchisee buys the truck
17:57 A quarter-million-dollar truck doing $1.3 million
19:49 Four days under the covers, and the 5% they asked for
22:59 From $1,300 rent to $1,600, and who gets paid last
25:20 The book, the international plan, and grocery stores
27:58 Franchise or not: what they tell other founders
30:46 What the 15% actually bought
32:01 The collectible card
#CousinsMaineLobster #SharkTank #Franchising #BuiltDifferent #YahooFinance
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