We knew we wanted to be somewhere along Hixson Pike or [Highway] 153.
Two years ago, Rob Renner opened Chattanooga's first Einstein Bros. Bagels franchise on East Brainerd Road.
Business is good, so Renner went and knocked on doors in Hixson to find a location for his second outlet of the national coffee, bagel and sandwich shop chain, which opens at 5 a.m., serves breakfast and lunch, and caters to those heading to work.
Alejandro Narcia works to landscape the drive-through entrance area with rock at the Einstein Bros. Bagels shop in Hixson at 5229 Hixson Pike."We knew we wanted to be somewhere along Hixson Pike or [Highway] 153," Renner said. "Fifty percent of our business is either carry-out or drive-through. We have to be on the going-to-work-side [of the street]. It's very important for us to be right-turn-in, right-turn-out."
Renner hit pay dirt at the former Huddle House at 5229 Hixson Pike. The building's owner was willing to sell, and the Huddle House franchisee agreed to a lease buyout.
So on June 21, Renner started $500,000 worth of renovations and remodeling - including installing a drive-through window, which Huddle House lacked.
The Hixson Einstein Bros. Bagels is scheduled to open Tuesday.
"East Brainerd was a perfect location for us," Renner said. "We think this is going to be as good, if not better."
The Hixson restaurant will have a 1,000-square-foot patio with a "huge fireplace," he said, sun shade awnings and views of sunrises and surrounding ridge tops.
Hixson's demographics are good, Renner said, for Einstein Bros. Bagels which is "geared toward a health-conscious, 35-year-old professional." Other businesses, such as Panera Bread and Starbucks, also cater to that demographic, he said.
Another good sign, Renner said, was when local investors opened the Harvest Market supermarket in a revamped former Bi-Lo store on Hixson Pike near Adams Road.
"We knew at that point, we were on the right path," he said. "They have really been, I think, a huge factor in the redevelopment of the Hixson Pike area."
Renner also got help from Einstein Bros. Bagels corporate headquarters in Denver, which looked at the Hixson area's demographics, traffic patterns and other factors.
"There's about 150 items they look at," he said. "Corporate does a great job."
Renner, who's a Cleveland, Tenn. general contractor, owns the two Chattanooga-area Einstein Bros. franchises with his mother, Della Renner, and Michael Hoops, M.D., a Cleveland plastic surgeon.
The restaurants are run by managing partner Bob Cox, who owns Cox Hospitality Services and has 40 years' experience in the restaurant business, including 22 years as the owner of seven Taco Bell franchises in northern Georgia.
Rob Renner, owner of two Einstein Bros. Bagel shops in Chattanooga, talks about opening his new store at 5229 Hixson Pike.Cox said the morning hours at Einstein Bros. Bagels help attract employees from other restaurants.
"You're home for dinner," Cox said. "For a restaurant person, that's quite a perk."
Renner, who has the exclusive rights to open Einstein Bros. Bagels franchises in Hamilton, Bradley, Catoosa and Walker counties, would like to open a handful of them.
"The more stores we can open, the larger our advertising budget," Renner said. "As people learn the brand it will help us."
Contact staff writer Tim Omarzu at tomarzu@timesfreepress.com or www.facebook.com/MeetsForBusiness or twitter.com/meetforbusiness or 423-757-6651.