Los Angeles, CA, Aug. 6, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Giggles N' Hugs, Inc. (OTCQB: GIGL), owner and operator of family-friendly restaurants that bring together high-end, organic food with active, cutting-edge play and entertainment for children, retained the services of Todd Star, a highly-regarded and successful senior executive with nearly three decades of real estate industry experience, to aid in its growth strategy development.
Star's experience as a senior executive for Westfield USA, overseeing its west coast leasing operations for 14 years, is a strong asset to the Company as he leads its expansion negotiations with several of the largest mall owners in the U.S., including General Growth Properties, Simon Property Group, and Westfield Group, who collectively own more than 500 properties worldwide.
"Todd brings a vast amount of Real estate experience and knowlege to the table and we are thrilled to have him on our team" commented Joey Parsi, founder and CEO of Giggles N' Hugs. "He knows the mall operators better than most and as a result, we believe he can help us negotiate terms that will be advantages to the company going forward."
Giggles N' Hugs is currently focused on expanding its footprint on the West Coast, initially targeting five properties in markets that include Seattle and San Francisco in the north and San Diego and Orange County in the south. Longer term, the Company intends to expand to key markets nationally and internationally. As part of its expansion strategy, the Company is seeking significant discounts from current market rents and attractive tenant allowances to reduce construction costs for each new Giggles N' Hugs location.
"We're very excited to enter our next phase of operations and to begin replicating the success we've experienced with our first three locations in the Los Angeles markets," commented Parsi. "While we're doing great in Southern California, where we're known for our warm weather and sunny climate, we anticipate our results will be even better in markets where the weather is often less than ideal."
Parsi continued, "When it rains, which has not happened a lot here in Los Angeles, people tend to come indoors to Giggles N' Hugs to play rather than go to the park or other outdoor spaces. Same is true with birthday parties, which are a very high-margin business for us. People can't do their parties in their backyard or a park when it rains, so we get massive bookings on rainy days and our sales go through the roof. This unique characteristic of our business should produce higher revenues and profit margins in markets like San Francisco and Seattle where it rains most of the year, driving strong shareholder value improvement as we move forward with our expansion."
About Giggles N' Hugs
Giggles N' Hugs is the first and only restaurant that brings together high-end, organic food with active, cutting-edge play and entertainment for children. Every Giggles N' Hugs location offers an upscale, family-friendly atmosphere with a dedicated play area that children 10 and younger absolutely love. We feature high-quality menus made from fresh and local foods, nightly entertainment such as magic shows, concerts, puppet shows and face painting, and hugely popular party packages for families that want to do something special.
Forward Looking Statements:
Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "continue," "predict," "forecast," "project," "plan," "intend" or similar expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current expectations, are forward-looking statements. While the Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date of this release. These forward looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including without limitation those set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). Thus, actual results could be materially different. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.