Two Baton Rouge natives are planning to expand their Texas-based, high-end outdoor kitchen company and add 10 new locations next year.
Brothers and co-owners Stephen and Chris Smith founded FLO Grills in Baton Rouge in 2007. They moved the company’s headquarters to Austin shortly after the company began franchising in 2013.
FLO Grills’ original store is located at 9586 S. Choctaw in Baton Rouge. The company has since added franchises in Texas, Florida and Missouri. Its two newest franchises are located in Kansas City and in Bradenton, Florida.
Stephen Smith says franchises also will open later this year in Cape Code, Massachusetts, and in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Smith attributes the company’s rapid growth to the popularity of outdoor kitchens. While he wouldn’t discuss sales figures for the company, an average kitchen project can range in cost from $14,000 to $25,000, he says.
“We saw the trend a long time ago,” Smith says, adding that the company started with traditional showrooms and later added FLO Grills Express franchises, featuring mobile showrooms that can be transported to customers’ homes.
Smith says the sale of a FLO Grills Express on the Northshore is expected to be completed this month. The concept has taken off, says Smith, who anticipates mobile showrooms will make up most of the new franchises the company will add next year.
—Alexandria Burris
