Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers hits the publicity trifecta

Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers hit a publicity trifecta in the last week with a major ranking in Forbes and flattering articles on MSN.com and Thrillist.

In a bit of an understatement, partner Scott Redler calls it "a pretty good week for PR."

The Forbes news was perhaps the most significant. The publication ranked the best and worst franchises to buy nationally, and Freddy's was No. 1 for franchises that cost more than $500,000.

The magazine says Freddy's has a midpoint investment of almost $1.3 million with a five-year growth rate of 31.3 percent.

Forbes examined 3,300 brands and considered data from 2012 to 2016. It looked at five factors: sustainability, demand, investment value, franchisor support and franchisor stability.

Redler says much like franchisees put customers first, Freddy's corporate puts its franchisees first.

"We work for our franchisees, and that's critical."

Also making the top five of best franchises to buy are a couple of businesses Freddy's has a lot in common with: Culver's, a butter burgers and frozen custard chain, at No. 2, and Steak 'n Shake at No. 5.

There are now 302 Freddy's restaurants in 31 states.

Redler says he and his partners "planned on opening one Freddy's for fun" when they started the restaurant in 2002.

He says they never would or could have envisioned making the top of a Forbes franchisee ranking.

"Oh, how could you ever imagine that?" Redler says. "It's not fathomable."

He says there was "an extra-large number of requests for franchise information" over the weekend.

Redler won't say how many except "it was a lot."

The icing on the last week's publicity cake came from writer Lee Breslouer who wrote articles for MSN and Thrillist about his first foray into becoming a FredHead.

"This Is America's Best Burger Chain You've Never Heard About," was the headline for both stories.

Like Forbes, Breslouer examined the chain's skyrocketing growth.

"Credit the persistence and targeted growth to a Witchita state of mind," he wrote.

Yes, Breslouer may have misspelled Wichita, but thanks to Redler, he does know the city's history with other big chains that started here, such as Pizza Hut, White Castle and Rent-A-Center.

"While you’re reading this sentence, someone in Wichita, Kansas has probably just opened a business," he wrote.

Freddy's actually had a fourth bit of national attention last week thanks to former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

When Blagojevich went to prison in 2012, his last meal on his way to incarceration was at a Freddy's in Littleton, Colo., that had just opened that week. A photo of him eating there for a final taste of freedom, as the Wall Street Journal put it, made the publication's front page — above the fold, Redler likes to point out.

The Journal reran the photo last week with news that President Donald Trump may commute Blagojevich's sentence.

Perhaps seeking even a little more attention for Freddy's, a friend asked Redler: "Do we need to send him a gift card to go back in?"

Redler wishes the Freddy's logo had been a little more visible in the photo, though he says he's "OK with it either way."

"It's just been a very, very exciting week for us."

This story was originally published June 4, 2018 at 12:21 PM with the headline "Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers hits the publicity trifecta."