Sean Feeney

I thought we were going to do $3.5 million in sales in the first year.

And I agreed to a percentage of sales.

And we doubled that in the first year of sales.

So the rent was even greater.

And I was able to use that case of this is a partnership.

And I feel like that is a true partnership, that deal versus here's the price per square foot.

This is what you owe me every single month for the remainder.

Good luck.

I've just felt like it was more aligned and both sides were incentivized.

And every time I've given, this is what I think we're going to do and do better, the landlord partner is more excited to make sure that the space looks amazing, that the sidewalk's clean.

And every time something happens, they're willing to help out.

I think it's a healthier relationship.

It certainly helped us during the pandemic where all of our restaurants were tied to a percentage of our sales and we had zero.

So I didn't have to have these awkward conversations with landlords that a lot of people in New York City did.

And since then, I think landlords in New York have become more comfortable with this model.

I hope that that will continue to be the case.

It is...

A huge challenge for our industry in New York City to pay fixed rent all the time, especially when January and February and March, those are really slow months.

A lot of businesses will try to not bleed as much in those months and try to make it back up in the next nine.

To me, it just aligns everybody nicely.