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They have a world view of barbecue

Fredericksburg-based restaurateurs planning to offer franchises worldwide

Date published: 8/29/2007

By PAMELA GOULD

In an era when mom-and-pop businesses are becoming relics for museums, a local couple are not only holding their own but planning for international expansion.

"My new goal is to have 5,000 locations around the world," Rick Ivey, founder of Fredericksburg-based Virginia Barbeque, said this week.

Ivey's goal is no pie-in-the-sky dream but a well-researched plan.

Over the past few years, he's been honing his franchise plans by educating himself, and making contacts at the International Franchise Expo and through the group's annual convention.

He's studied the models of successful franchises and talked to the people who made them work. Among them have been Fred DeLuca, founder of the Subway sandwich chain, and Tony Foley, president of World Franchisors--both of whom were generous with their advice.

Finding mentors has been key to expanding, Ivey said.

"I think it's a trait with all the successful people. They want to share," he said. "They're not afraid to help people get there. There's not this competition."

Rick Ivey, a trained chef, and his wife, Nina, were in the catering business when they realized they needed to shift to something that didn't demand they be on hand to handle every detail.

They started Virginia Barbeque with a small cooker, their catering kitchen, his recipes and research.

The research involved traveling around tasting the various forms of barbecue before deciding to set themselves apart by offering all three options--eastern North Carolina pork barbecue with its vinegar-based sauce, Virginia pork barbecue with its tomato-based sauce, and a beef barbecue.

The Iveys opened their first restaurant in Ashland in May 2000 and their second on U.S. 1 in Fredericksburg less than a year later. Today, as they celebrate the opening of the 10th Virginia Barbeque in the state, in Culpeper, all but the Fredericksburg site have been franchised.

Before year's end, they expect their first out-of-state franchise to open in Delaware, with another in Arizona in early 2008.

And this week, a businessman from England was in town to meet with Rick Ivey about becoming the first person to take Virginia Barbeque's traditional Southern food across the Atlantic.

Dan Maher thinks Virginia Barbeque's quality food and streamlined model are what will enable him to succeed in his switch from corporate executive to business owner.

He opens his first restaurant in Middletown, Del., in October and plans to expand by one restaurant a year over the next five years. He hopes to find investors to help him establish a total of 12.

Pamela Gould: 540/735-1972
Email: pgould@freelancestar.com

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Date published: 8/29/2007