This year has witnessed the permanent shuttering of more than 72,000 restaurants as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The closures have spanned the full spectrum of the restaurant environment, including such prominent franchises as Pizza Hut and Le Pain Quotidien, and even grab-and-go staples like Dunkin’ and McDonald’s have announced plans to close locations.
But while many people might believe this is not the ideal time to open a restaurant, Aaron Anderson insists that time is his ally. Not only is he going full-throttle with plans to open the new Steakhouse 1635 in his hometown of Philadelphia, he is also formulating a strategy to make this eatery the next major restaurant franchise within the U.S. dining scene.
But this is not the only tide that Anderson is swimming against. As an African-American entrepreneur, Anderson is pushing forward at a time when too many of his peers have seen their operations shattered in the pandemic’s economic turmoil.
“Forty-one percent of black-owned businesses nationwide were forced to close during this horrific Covid-19 pandemic, compared to 17% of white-owned businesses,” Anderson observed. “According to a recent study by experts, most of those impacted are black-owned bars and restaurants – that’s about 440,000 companies.”
Anderson is no stranger to the restaurant franchise world. He is the franchise owner of four The Original Hot Dog Factory restaurants in Philadelphia, with two more – one in Philadelphia and one in Brooklyn – in the works.
Nor is this his first foray into entrepreneurship: He began in 2009 with the screen-printing company Union Printing, which he launched while working as an assistant to a top record company executive at Sony in New York City. In 2018, he created Axxeum LLC as a parent company for his business endeavors, which include investments in the pharmaceutical app QwikScript and the flight simulator app Flype.
The name for Steakhouse 1635 is based on the Philadelphia address of the first restaurant planned for the brand, at 1635 Market St., and Anderson has the culinary style planned for his new venture.
“This will be more of an upscale mid-century modern steakhouse,” he said. “We will definitely have a filet and a T-bone, and we’re going to offer a plant-based steak as a vegan option, like you have with the Beyond Burger and the Beyond Sausage.”
Anderson added that the D.I.Y. aspect of startups is fueling his desire to move forward with the project.
“There’s a lot of legwork and effort to start a business from the ground up,” he continued. “I would like to be a part of something that’s already moving and put my influence into it and make it grow.”
Anderson hatched the idea for Steakhouse 1635 in April, as the pandemic was shutting down the restaurant industry. When asked about the continuing tumult that the pandemic is having on this industry, Anderson expressed no agitation.
“No, I’m not concerned,” he stated, noting that his other restaurant franchises have been “doing the best that they can. We’re not seeing a great deal of profit, but we are able to keep the employees employed so they can feed their families, and we’re also able to give back to our community. So, they’re doing the best that they can.”
Anderson is planning to premiere the first Steakhouse 1635 to with a grand opening on New Year’s Eve, and he is planning to aim his initial franchises at major metro areas including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Miami for 2021 openings.
“I’m eager to move forward with the idea and the vision and just putting it out there,” he said.
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