When CEO and co-founder Fen Reyes witnessed a young girl being gifted a plush toy shark by her uncle after meeting him for the first time, she was touched. That first meeting led to a deep bond later forged over snacks and boba milk tea. Ultimately it inspired Uncle Sharkii, a leading fast-casual poke and boba franchise based in Houston, Texas.
Reyes longed to create an environment where moments like that were always possible. As a result, she and her husband, Raymond Reyes, COO of Uncle Sharkii, banded together and conceptualized the restaurant, which draws on Raymond’s Hawaiian roots. In 2019, the business opened its first location in the San Francisco Bay Area before branching out to more than 20 locations in several states, including Utah, Texas, and Hawaii.
Opening more than 20 locations (and counting) in six years means tackling rapid growth, and the owners craved tools that kept pace without sacrificing quality or their core values of food, family, and simplicity. Uncle Sharkii ultimately switched to Square to help manage growth and usher the business into the future.
The challenge: Lack of centralization across locations
With 23 active locations, the team needed a technology partner that offered a unified system to centralize franchise management, enable robust data reporting, and gather in-depth data collection to better optimize operations and customer engagement efforts.
Because Uncle Sharkii plans to open 30 additional locations before the end of the year, the team also needed a system that simplified scaling. The manual process with their previous system slowed down growth, adding to an already tedious process.
Transparent fees, reliability, and ease of use were also qualities the business desired. Ease of use was especially important as the team wanted staff to have the flexibility to be more present with customers to strengthen loyalty and the overall experience.
With the customer experience top of mind, the team also needed a seamless way to handle both in-person and online payments across multiple locations, so they could meet customers however, whenever. Their previous provider offered limited payment options and little flexibility, ultimately stifling the customer journey.
The solution: Investing in a franchise-friendly platform
Uncle Sharkii found a simplified solution in Square. Leveraging Square for Franchises enables simpler franchise management by easily enabling PCI compliance. With Square being the merchant of record, franchises can eliminate the manual labor of updating compliance each year. Square for Franchises also offers Uncle Sharkii a centralized system that helps manage every component of each location. From menu management to customer engagement, the business is able to seamlessly manage operations from top to bottom.
“As our franchise network continues to grow and expand into new markets, investing in scalable, user-friendly technology has become a key part of our development strategy,” said Raymond. “Our prior solution had a lot of gaps that Square has seamlessly helped us fill, making operations easier and delivering stronger ROI for the business. This strategic shift reflects our ongoing commitment to enhancing the experience for both customers and franchisees, across all locations.”
With user-friendly technology, the experience for both staff and customers is smooth and painless, creating loyalty among both staff and customers. A centralized, cloud-based system enables staff—both in the front and back-of-house—to easily prepare kitchen orders and handle checkout, minimizing friction and unlocking speed on both ends.
Square gives us the power to meet our customers everywhere—from mobile apps to mall kiosks. Our tech is no longer just in the kitchen—it’s in the cloud, it’s in your phone, and it’s creating frictionless, conversion-ready experiences for both franchisees and guests.”
Raymond Reyes → COO and co-founder of Uncle Sharkii
The impact: A turnkey franchise ready for the next generation
Being able to create a frictionless journey for franchisees, staff, and customers reinforces Uncle Sharkii’s core values of food, family, and simplicity. Empowering the business to focus on the core elements that drive it forward strengthens the overall foundation, ultimately setting the business up for near-term and long-term success at every turn.
“We’re building a next-gen quick-service franchise model, and Square helps us stay ahead,” said Fen. “Together, we’re delivering a tech-savvy, culture-rich brand that’s ready for scale.”
