Jonnie's Hot Dog House - Food and Drink - Schofield Media Chicago

Fed up with corporate life, Todd Chusid traded in a six-figure salary as a business and technology consultant to sling fries at an old-fashioned hot dog joint. “My goal was to create a nationally recognized brand,” he says. In 2004, he founded Johnnie’s Dog House in Wayne, Pa.

Having to travel extensively for his former employer, Chusid would indulge in a hot dog in every country and state he visited, quickly became a connoisseur of sorts. Using the knowledge he gained on his voyages, he created a fictitious character named Johnnie – an ornery little boy from the 1940s whose sole purpose in life was to find the world’s best hot dog.

“It was hard to come back and report who had the best because every city, every country and every culture that he encountered had good hot dogs, but it was the discovery of toppings specific to that area that made it a good hot dog,” Chusid explains. “Rather than having who has the best, he created Johnnie’s Dog House, which brings his customers awareness and the tastes of different hot dog styles from around the world.”

If hot dog fans were to crave a “Boston Back Bay Beanie Weanie” – which is made with baked beans and chopped onions – they wouldn’t have to go to Boston; they could order one at Johnnie’s Dog House. The same goes for Texas-style dogs, made with chili, jalapenos and bacon; Seattle-style dogs, made with cream cheese and onions; or Chicago-style dogs, which are famous for their “nuclear green” sweet pickle relish as a ketchup substitute.

Fresh Look on Franchising
“I don’t think anybody has tackled that concept this way,” Chusid notes. “People have had a New York-style hot dog and tried to push it on a national level, but we’re providing our customers with tastes from their hometown or the experience of hot dogs from parts of the world that they may have never traveled. Then, it just continues as we start up a new restaurant or kiosk.”

Chusid plans to make Johnnie’s Dog House a national – and, someday, global – franchise.

To date, the company includes seven franchises with 24 more franchise agreements pending. In addition, it is in the midst of opening a fast-casual restaurant in Wilmington, Del.

“The way we’re approaching the expansion of our brand – which I believe is unique – is having a multi-faceted business model for a franchisee,” Chusid says. “They can get involved in a mobile kiosk solution, which are perfect for malls, airports, casinos, or home improvement centers, or they can go with bricks and mortar or a fast-casual restaurant, which is a natural fit for residential business districts and college campuses.” Of the 24 operations pending, he says approximately 16 will be kiosks and the rest will be restaurants.

Customer Appreciation
With each new location, Johnnie’s Dog House will have a base set of hot dogs that are popular to that area. “We’ll personalize that restaurant to that specific city or town,” Chusid says. “It’s important that the brand resonate with the city and that the people in the community connect with it, because it truly is a destination place. So, when we launch the Wilmington, Del., location, we’ll have people write in and say what they believe the Delaware dog to be and we’ll place that on the menu.”

During July – which happens to be National Hot Dog Month – Johnnie’s asks customers to suggest what they would like on the menu. The hot dog that gets the most votes will be featured on the menu for three months. “To say we have great food is a given, but it’s when your brand becomes one of the recognized destinations in a community, while providing franchisees with a multi-faceted business model – that’s our competitive advantage,” Chusid says.

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