If Alex Blair has a motto, it's probably "Carpe diem."
The openly gay 27-year-old entrepreneur owns three Freshii restaurants in Chicago, with plans to open six more, locally and elsewhere. ( He already owns more franchises in the company of the 65 global partners than anyone else. )
The health-food entrepreneur managed to carve out a few minutes recently to talk with Windy City Times at the Freshii at 50 E. Washington St., which opened just several weeks ago.
Windy City Times: I've been to Freshii restaurants, and I'd like to have one in my area downtown.
Alex Blair: We just opened one in Lincoln Park. It's my favorite store that I've opened so far; it's so relaxing. Everything downtown is [snapping fingers] just "on," and you go there and you hear birds chirping. I feel so relaxed there. It's very chill, and it's the Lincoln Park vibe.
WCT: So where's the third one?
Alex Blair: In the Loop, at Monroe and Clinton. That was my first location, Armitage was my second and this is my third.
WCT: How is it going?
Alex Blair: Amazing. It takes a while for business to ramp up. We have issues with the city—always. [Laughs] We still don't have a sign yet, and it's been nine months. But we recently put up these awesome umbrellas, and business has gone up.
WCT: And you have six locations forthcoming?
Alex Blair: Well, I'm hoping to have six open next year. In real estate, you never know—but I really want them to open in the spring. July 4 is probably my limit.
WCT: Why six more? Why not, say, two?
Alex Blair: I went from one to three. Things have been challenging, but I have such a great team. It's not that I need six but I want to bring a few to Chicago and something to my home state, Wisconsin. ( I'm from West Bend, which is technically a suburb of Milwaukee. ) And then I want to go [elsewhere]. I'm always looking for more investors and capital.
WCT: You're pretty young—and the guy who started Freshii [Matthew Corrin] was pretty young.
Alex Blair: Yeah, he was 23; I signed on when I was 22. Matt and I text each other daily. We get along on so many different levels.
WCT: How does Freshii fit in with your personal philosophy about health?
Alex Blair: I come from a fitness background. I worked for Equinox for five years, and dealing with such high-level nutrition and fitness, I know what I want to eat every day—and I couldn't find any other brand that offered anything close to what I wanted. I wanted raw vegetables and I didn't want bread; name three restaurants in Chicago that don't offer bread.
I'm not a salad man, although I've become more of one. I wanted items that were more dense and manly and meaty. So we have these burritos and bowls that are filling. We have many vegan options, and our menu is totally customizable.
WCT: A complaint that people have about eating healthfully is that it's more expensive—but looking at the menu, these items seem pretty reasonable.
Alex Blair: Yes, they definitely are—although meat options can be added [for an extra charge]. However, a lot of people know they can also get their proteins through vegetables—although sometimes I'll get double chicken on something I order.
Also, our local sourcing is really great. The more you can buy, the cheaper the prices—and we can pass that on to the consumer. There are some really great salad places throughout the city, but they have only one location so their prices are 20- or 30-percent higher.
WCT: How often does your menu change?
Alex Blair: About once a year. We rotate in, rotate out about once a quarter, and we have limited-time offerings. Right now, it's our falafel bowl. Last year, our Pangoa bowl was our best-selling item ever—and now it's on the menu.
WCT: It sounds like you're aiming for world domination.
Alex Blair: One store at a time, right? I love what I'm doing—I live to work, I don't work to live. And it's an easy brand to love, and we're all within five to 10 years of my age so we share a similar philosophy. The kids here are so cool, and they run the business for me. They get all the credit.
WCT: With you working all day and all night, your husband must be really understanding.
Alex Blair: Chris is an environmental scientist and he's wonderful; he's a great support system. We met five and a half years ago at a New Year's Eve party. He could not take his eyes off me the whole time, although he was with his boyfriend at the time. ... Eventually, their relationship [ended] and he transferred out here.
I have a really strong ambition to be successful while I'm young, so I appreciate his support. I believe there's no time but now—just do it. I am an old soul, though.
WCT: What are the best and worst aspects of your job?
Alex Blair: The best aspect is just showing up every day. There are people enjoying something I've created with my team. And seeing my employees having fun and making money—and growing the economy—to support their families is the most rewarding thing. It's like, "It's still here! The lights are on. There are customers here." [Laughs] Sometimes, I don't believe it—we have almost 90 employees.
I feel a lot of pressure [that I put on myself] regarding the employees, in that they are working to support themselves and their families. I can't even imagine what it would do to myself if I had to close a restaurant. So I would say the worst part is the pressure to be successful, even though I'm pretty easygoing.
Visit www.freshii.com .
