Spicy Pickle(TM) Acquires 4 Locations From Franchisees

By: Spicy Pickle | 0 Shares 128 Reads

Accelerates Growth of Company Owned Restaurant Program

DENVER, CO--(Marketwire - February 27, 2008) - Spicy Pickle™ fast casual restaurants (OTCBB: SPKL) announced today it has recently acquired four locations from former franchisees. Three of the restaurants are in the Denver area at the following locations:

10320 Federal Boulevard, Federal Heights Plaza #200, Federal Heights, CO, 80260

8923 E. Union Avenue, Greenwood Village, CO, 80111

2043 S. University Boulevard, Denver, CO, 80210

The fourth is located in Fort Collins, Colorado at 123 College Avenue, 1F, Ft. Collins, CO, 80524.

The acquisition of these 4 restaurants brings the current company owned restaurant total to 5. Two others are under construction, one in Ft. Collins and the other in the Denver area, with opening target dates in late spring or early summer, bringing the current total of company owned restaurants to 7.

Marc Geman, CEO of Spicy Pickle Franchising, Inc., commented: "We raised capital in mid December primarily earmarked for the expansion of our company owned restaurant program. The acquisition of these existing restaurants allows us to ramp up this program at a more rapid pace."

Furthermore, Mr. Geman stated: "As is the case with many new franchise companies we began with less experienced franchisees in our local market where the first restaurants were located. As our concept gained recognition we attracted franchisees that have the capability to develop multiple restaurants in a given territory. There are tremendous efficiencies of multiple unit ownership in a market, such as availability of trained personnel, coordinated marketing efforts, efficiences of product procurement and communications. We believe that these same efficiencies apply to corporate operations of restaurants, especially in Colorado where we have the infrastructure in place. Our goal in the corporate restaurant program is both economic and operational. Ownership of corporate restaurants will give us an opportunity to fine tune and test our menu, operations and procedures before using them system wide with all of our franchisees.

By acquiring these four restaurants from our early franchisees, we fast track the growth of performing assets and deliver very significant top line growth. As owner we reflect revenue from restaurant operations, which is a 20 fold increase over the royalty we show when the restaurant is franchised. We have the infrastructure in place to manage multiple restaurants. These new locations insure 2nd quarter revenues that will be substantially higher than the same reporting period in 2007."

Mr. Geman said, "In order to be successful we need to grow both our corporate and franchise businesses side by side, gaining recognition and developing a following. The recent lease signings and corporate restaurant developments continue that momentum. There is nothing complicated about what we need to do. We serve great food and stress customer service. As long as we continue to do that and find the right locations our growth will be steady and continuous."

About Spicy Pickle™:

Founded in 1999, Spicy Pickle Franchising, Inc. (OTCBB: SPKL) serves high quality meats and fine artisan breads, baked fresh daily, along with a wide choice of eight different cheeses, twenty-two different toppings, and fourteen proprietary spreads to create healthy and delicious panini and sub sandwiches with flavors from around the world. As a leading "fast-casual" concept, Spicy Pickle™ offers menu items that are far beyond traditional fast food -- but without the price point of casual dining. The hallmark of a Spicy Pickle™ restaurant is quality, service and an enjoyable atmosphere. The company is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, with restaurants open or under construction across 16 states and many more in development nationwide. For more about Spicy Pickle™, including franchise information and inquiries, visit http://www.spicypickle.com.

Forward-Looking Statements:

Certain statements in this press release, including statements regarding the number of restaurants we intend to open, are forward-looking statements. We use words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "should," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "predict," "project," "target," and similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions, to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to us as of the date any such statements are made and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: factors that could affect our ability to achieve and manage our planned expansion, such as the availability of a sufficient number of suitable new restaurant sites and the availability of qualified franchisees and employees; risks relating to our expansion into new markets; the risk of food-borne illnesses and other health concerns about our food products; changes in the availability and costs of food; changes in consumer preferences, general economic conditions or consumer discretionary spending; the impact of federal, state or local government regulations relating to our franchisees and employees, and the sale of food or alcoholic beverages; the impact of litigation; our ability to protect our name and logo and other proprietary information; the potential effects of inclement weather; the effect of competition in the restaurant industry; and other risk factors described from time to time in our SEC reports.