Randi Hill, 27, worked hard to become one of our top-performing franchise owners
Randi Hill (left), shown here at a recent Livingston Parish job fair with krewe member Meghan Opperman, is on track to open a second VooDoo location in Ascension Parish. (David Normand, The Livingston Parish News)
We want to tell you about one of our franchisees, Randi Hill, a remarkable young woman. In January, Randi and her stepfather, Greg Walters, a financial advisor in Thibodaux, took over our location just off Interstate 12 in Denham Springs. It had been open for a couple of years, and it was doing OK but just wasn’t meeting our (or the owner’s) expectations.
So Greg and Randi stepped in, with the idea that Greg would be the finance guy in the background, and Randi — a super-energetic, confident young lady of 27 — would run the restaurant.
Man, has it worked! In eight months, Randi has turned the Denham Springs location into one of our top performers. We’ll admit — we were a little wary at first about granting a franchise to someone that young. But her enthusiasm for our brand, her confidence and her inability to accept the idea of failure won us over real quick.
“I just got out in the community, doing everything from putting fliers on people’s doors, on windshields, going out in the parking lot at Wal-Mart and handing out coupons,” she says. “Just getting out there and saying, ‘Hey, come try us out,’ then serving great food in a fun atmosphere to keep them coming back.” We love Randi’s enthusiasm for our brand!
It was last year when Greg called her to ask if she might want to go in with him on opening a VooDoo BBQ franchise. The two had looked before at buying a franchise but always balked at the cost or time investment. Greg told her this seemed right: A Louisiana brand, a fresh take on Southern cuisine, an up-and-coming franchise system they could join on the ground floor.
We’d never transferred a location to another owner, but we did it in the first of the year, and Randi hit the ground running. Her passion is contagious, and she’s stood up at our franchisee meetings and told the group that there’s no secret to her success — she just works hard and follows the system.
The view from the front door in Denham Springs.
And here’s how successful she and Greg have been in Denham Springs: This month, they purchased another franchise license to open a new VooDoo location in Ascension Parish. They’re aiming to open by the third quarter of next year, probably in Gonzales. Long-term, Randi says, she’s thinking about going out to Las Vegas and maybe opening one or more VooDoo locations out there! We certainly wouldn’t bet against her.
“Anything I do, I try to do my best and be the best at it,” she says.
We’re very proud of Randi for the success she’s earned. We’re happy she’s part of our system, too, because she demonstrates that someone with business sense, passion and a willingness to work and follow our system can succeed spectacularly with our great food, fun atmosphere and New Orleans-style flavor.
If that sounds like your idea of a fulfilling business opportunity, fill out the form on this site and download your free franchise information report with tons of detail about our brand, where we’ve been, where we’re going and what you can do to join us.
