ROSSLYN, Va., Dec. 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Qu, the leading provider of cloud-based unified commerce solutions, today announced that Playa Bowls, the popular fast-casual brand known for acai bowls and smoothies, has selected Qu’s enterprise platform to modernize its point-of-sale (POS), improve kitchen systems and provide real-time reporting to support its ambitious growth. The Qu platform will enhance operations, improve menu management, and provide a consistent guest experience across Playa Bowls’ expanding network of locations.
With plans to open 90-100 new locations this year and more than 300 new franchise commitments to fuel future growth, Playa Bowls aims to scale from approximately 300 locations at the end of 2024 to 800-1,000 units over the next five years. To support this growth, the brand needed a robust enterprise solution capable of unifying operations, managing real-time data, and integrating third-party services across its franchise network.
“As we continue on our aggressive growth journey, we needed a technology partner that could help us simplify operations for our franchisees while empowering us to serve guests more consistently,” said Playa Bowls CEO Dan Harmon. “Qu’s platform stood out because it’s designed to scale with us, handling the growth of a 1,000-location brand, not just 50 or 100 units. The Qu team understood our needs and provided a scalable, reliable, and flexible platform.”
Founded in 2014, Playa Bowls has become the leader in the acai bowl category, with a loyal customer base and a reputation for high-quality ingredients. As the brand rapidly expanded its footprint, Playa Bowls faced challenges with its previous POS solution, which was not scalable and made integrations with third-party services difficult. Qu’s platform will centralize key operations, enabling real-time menu updates, pricing adjustments, and easier third-party integrations, all from a single, cloud-based system. This will result in significant time savings and easier menu modifications and updates. Many businesses already adopting Qu’s solutions have reported notable improvements, with some reducing time and resource use by more than 80%. Research from Adyen’s Retail Report further highlights the impact of unified platforms, showing that companies using unified omnichannel orders with effective integrations can boost restaurant performance by 9%.
Qu’s unified commerce solution will simplify Playa Bowls’ operations by integrating data across ordering channels, menus, and kitchen operations—while boosting kitchen efficiency and order accuracy with Qu’s KDS product. Additional solutions such as Notify provide franchisees with real-time data to improve decision-making, along with Flex Kiosk which enables flexible guest ordering options and labor optimization, without requiring new hardware investments. These solutions will help Playa Bowls maintain consistency and improve standardization across all locations while empowering franchise owners to drive growth and profitability.
“We’re excited to partner with Playa Bowls as they continue their rapid expansion,” said Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu. “The brand has created an exceptional experience for customers and franchisees, and we’re excited to unlock the next phases of their meteoric growth while delivering a consistent, high-quality experience to their customers across the country.”
About Playa Bowls
Known as New Jersey’s original acai bowl shop, Playa Bowls is the nation’s leading superfruit bowl shop, serving up an extensive and unique menu of over 40 items, including the bright flavors of acai, pitaya, mango, green, and coconut bowls alongside oatmeal bowls, juices, smoothies, and cold brew made with the freshest, high-quality ingredients. What began as a pair of blenders, a patio table, and a fridge in 2014 has flourished into 250 shops nationwide that operates in 23 states, thousands of employees, and a mission to lead communities in healthy, sustainable living. The rapidly growing franchise has received numerous accolades, including Forbes 30 Under 30, Fast Casual’s Top 100 Movers & Shakers, QSR Young Leaders to Watch, and finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Visit playabowls.com for additional information and stay connected on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok.
About Qu
Qu is evolving restaurant POS to create a truly connected restaurant experience for guests and operators at quick-service and fast-casual restaurants. Qu’s industry-leading, cloud-native Unified Commerce Platform fuses the ordering, operations, and guest engagement functions, delivering the real-time data needed to drive loyal, repeat guests. Based in Rosslyn, VA, Qu is backed by leading restaurant entrepreneurs and investors, including Cota Capital, Enlightened Hospitality Investments (EHI), Bobby Cox Companies, and NRD Capital. In 2024, Qu ranked #176 on Deloitte’s Fast 500 Technology List for North America. Visit www.qubeyond.com.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a899592a-a640-4cc4-a2a5-90fd2a2219fd
