Fat Shack

Fat Shack is an American fast-casual restaurant chain founded in Fort Collins, Colorado. As of December 2020, it has 22 corporate and franchise-owned restaurants in seven states.

Fat Shack Inc.
TypePrivately held company
GenreFast casual restaurant
Founded2010 (2010)
FounderTom Armenti
Headquarters
Denver, Colorado
Number of locations
22 (2020)
Area served
United States
Websitewww.fatshack.com

History

Origins

The Fat Shack concept was created in February 2010 by Tom Armenti in the college town of Ewing, New Jersey (home of the The College of New Jersey), operating from 6 pm to 4 am in a bagel shop (which operated at the location during the day time). Once the bagel shop's staff left for the day, Tom would re-open the store and operate his new late night restaurant from 6PM to 4AM.

In August 2011, Armenti moved to Fort Collins, Colorado where he opened the doors to the first full-size Fat Shack restaurant.[1]

Fat Shack Sandwich

Growth

Armenti's college classmate and close friend, Kevin Gabauer joined the company in Fort Collins and worked with the founder to re-organize the menu, freshing the company's brand and simplifying operations. Within six months, Fat Shack opened another location in Boulder.

In February 2015, Fat Shack celebrated the grand opening of its first franchise in Denver at DU. After opening several more locations in Colorado, interstate expansion began in Denton, Texas.[2] Fat Shack now has 21 locations throughout the United States, including delivery-only virtual kitchen concepts in Chicago and Philadelphia.

Interior of the Fat Shack location in Wheat Ridge, CO

Shark Tank appearance

In May 2019, Armenti and Gabauer appeared on the Season 10 Finale of ABC's Shark Tank. The sharks were impressed by Fat Shack's $22 Million in lifetime sales.[3] The duo struck a deal with investor Mark Cuban for $250,000 for 15% of the company. Overnight, the team received hundreds of franchise requests, and had accumulated over 3,000 within 48 hours of their pitch's airing on Shark Tank.[4]

From the beginning, the staples of Fat Shack's menu has been their 'Fat Sandwiches', which draw their origins from the Grease trucks at Rutgers University, burgers, deep-fried desserts, chicken wings, and philly cheesesteaks. Other offerings include milkshakes, mozzarella sticks, deep-fried mac and cheese, and other heart-stopping munchies. The restaurants often offer seasonal items such as deep-fried mint Oreos during the month of March. Many offerings surpass daily recommended intake of calories with some ranging upwards of 2,000 Calories.[3]

A Fat Shack employee working the grilltop.

References
  1. "Fat Shack Nabs 'Shark Tank' Investment - Franchise Times News - May 2019 - FranchiseTimes.com". Franchise Times News. Archived from the original on October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  2. "Denton's Fat Shack". August 18, 2016.
  3. Berger, Sarah (May 13, 2019). "'Shark Tank': Mark Cuban made a 6-figure deal with franchise that sells 2,000-calorie sandwiches". CNBC. Archived from the original on October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  4. "Fat Shack success story: Meet the Colorado guys brave enough to put mac and cheese on a sandwich". KMGH. February 27, 2020. Archived from the original on October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
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