How Mr Potato’s founders built a $12m business tackling the fast food industry’s unhealthy stigma

Faced with a lack of choices when it came to healthy, affordable and nutritional takeaway, Mr Potato founders and in-real-life partners Jess Davis and Tyson Hoffmann came up with a tasty and simple solution — a modern spin on your traditional baked potato.

And it took only a matter of months from the entrepreneurs cooking up the idea to the doors of their first outlet opening. 

Ever since they got together in September 2018, Davis, a former model, and her partner Hoffmann, a 36er’s basketball player, have been hard at work on a mission to change the face of fast food in Australia and remove the negative health stigma of the good old fashioned, humble potato at the same time.

The idea for Mr Potato was born one month into Hoffmann and Davis’s relationship when Hoffmann mentioned to Davis in a passing comment that he would love to open a loaded potato store and wondered, “Why doesn’t anyone do this as an easy takeaway option?”. A few days later, Davis sent Hoffmann the Mr Potato logo, a mock menu and the start of a business plan. A few weeks later, the pair had secured their first location.

By December 2018, mere months after that first fateful conversation, Davis and Hoffman had opened the first Mr Potato location in Glenelg, South Australia. The duo had decided to design and build the entire store fit-out themselves, making for a full-on couple of weeks of learning new skills and watching Youtube tutorials. Against all the odds, they did it.

Mr Potato customers are given the ability to construct their loaded potato in whichever way they please or choose from the pre-loaded menu.

According to the Mr Potato website, the IQ spuds on offer have 25% less carbs than your average white potato and contain nearly half your daily requirements of vitamin C, while the sweet potatoes on the menu are high in antioxidants, Beta Carotene and vitamins E and C.

Today, the franchised business has a valuation of approximately $12 million, eight stores operating, with more stores to open in due course, and around 250 team members across its locations and HQ.

Davis sat down with SmartCompany to chat about how she and Hoffmann manage a business partnership as a couple, the importance of finding the right franchise partners, and plans to bring Mr Potato to the international stage in 2024.

It takes two

The Mr Potato journey started at the same time as Davis’ and Hoffman’s personal relationship and according to Davis, it’s been one of the secrets of their success. 

“Having the support from each other throughout this entire process has been vital,” she says. “We don’t think we could have achieved half of what we’ve done if it wasn’t for having each other.”

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Like other entrepreneurs who work with their significant other or a close family member, Davis says she and Hoffman make it work by playing to their strengths.

“We learned very early on in the startup phase that we each come with our own set of skills and talents and it’s best for us to stay in our own lanes — as hard as that can be sometimes,” she says. 

Davis describes Hoffman as “the integrator” who “harmoniously integrates the major functions of the business ensuring direction from the leadership team down”. She, on the other hand, sets the vision for the company, focusing on “creativity and understanding the future needs of the company”. 

“The best part of doing business together as a couple is facing roadblocks and challenges as a team. We both have the same vision and are able to work together in order to get things done.” 

Know thy customer

The Mr Potato team have their sights set on ambitious growth this year, with plans in the works to have between 40-50 locations open for business in 2023. That would be a more than five-fold increase in store numbers. 

“We have over 600 franchise applications in the pipeline, but have been very specific about the type of franchisees we’re looking for,” explains Davis. 

“Most of the locations listed on our website are set to open within the next couple months and we are working with a list of confirmed franchisees to find suitable locations for their stores which will be announced later in the year.”

When it comes to finding the right franchisees to represent your brand, Davis says the key is to “look for quality over quantity”. 

“The best advice we can give is to be vigilant with the recruitment of franchisees,” she says. 

“The right franchisees will elevate your brand and assist you with accelerated growth in a short period of time, however, the wrong franchisees can be detrimental to the brand’s reputation and stunt expansion plans.

“You’ll also want to make sure you have clear systems and operations, plus the legal infrastructure to back them up, before you set out, to ensure that consistency across the brand is guaranteed.”

The Mr Potato brand is all about putting customer wants and needs first, explains Davis. 

“When it comes to marketing, knowing your customers’ wants and needs will be vital to the success of any brand. Also remaining authentic with your brand’s messaging by having a clear vision of where the business is heading and then relaying that to your customers,” she says.

“It can be really difficult to not get distracted by what everyone else around you is doing, so remember to stay in your lane and stay true to your brand’s core mission, vision and values. 

From Glenelg to the world

For Davis and Hoffman, this vision includes an international presence “when the time is right” in 2024. Already, Mr Potato has received interest in franchising from potential partners in New Zealand, the US, Indonesia, the UK and India. 

Consumers have been attracted to Mr Potato’s overall focus on “providing a fresh, nutritious, quality product that appeals to a range of different target markets”, says Davis. 

“And because we’ve created a safe space for people with food allergies and special dietary requirements, our customers know that they can feel at home when they walk through the doors of a Mr Potato store,” she adds. 

“We believe because we have been clear with our message from the beginning that our customers have grown to love not only our food but our brand as a whole.”