In 2018, when Rick Hetzel and his wife, Cheryl Mothes, visited a plant-based restaurant in Carbondale, Illinois, they were enamored with the concept and sought to bring such a business to Cape Girardeau.
Hetzel said he wasn’t sure a health-focused food service would take in Southeast Missouri.
Six years later, they have just opened their third FRESH Healthy Café location, FRESH Express, inside the Cape Girardeau SportsPlex facility. Though it is a Canada-based chain with multiple locations there and in the United States, there are now more FRESH establishments in Cape Girardeau than anywhere else.
“You have restaurants that have smoothies. You have restaurants that do paninis. But you don’t have anyone that does all that we do right now under one roof,” Hetzel said.
Hetzel has also entered a strategic partnership with FRESH Healthy Café as head of FRESH USA LLC. In this role, he will identify locations for future FRESH Healthy Café restaurants and recruit interested franchisers. The group has targeted eight states for expansion and has hosted meetings with interested parties in Cape Girardeau.
“That’s where our business model is going to go. We’re going to help other people set up similar models in their communities so they can do the same thing we’re doing, that is bringing the opportunity for others to eat healthy to their community,” Hetzel said.
FRESH Express’ opening follows previous Cape Girardeau locations opened in 2019 and 2022, respectively, at Saint Francis Medical Center and 1707 N. Mount Auburn Road. The original, hospital-based location was impacted by the coronavirus pandemic starting a few months after it opened, but the business persevered.
“Even though the hospital was closed, people came to work. They still had to eat, so we never closed. None of our employees lost their jobs. We continued to have food every day for the employees,” Hetzel said.
For the second location, this one a full restaurant, Hetzel and Mothes developed it in a way to handle potential future shutdowns, with a drive-thru and outdoor patio seating. Several FRESH locations did not survive the pandemic, but the Cape Girardeau ones persisted.
“I think it’s important people understand we are a purpose-driven entity. We didn’t open up FRESH just to make money … one of the reasons we opened up FRESH here was we wanted to give people the opportunity to eat healthier,” Hetzel said.
Not a month goes by, he added, without people thanking him for opening the locations, crediting FRESH with helping them lose weight. Hetzel aimed to create a business that can help people live healthier lifestyles. He eats there every day.
“It’s an old cliché, but we are what we eat. It’s just as simple as that,” he said.
FRESH Express does not serve cooked food, but it does serve the rest of the restaurant’s menu. Hetzel opened at the SportsPlex so he could target younger customers who are more likely to be active and educate them about healthy eating habits.
In a similar vein, his restaurants have become a stop for various high school and collegiate athletics teams, even offering name, image and likeness deals with local student-athletes.
With three locations in three formats, Hetzel said he hopes future franchisees opening FRESH Healthy Cafés can find something to emulate in the way he and his wife have operated their Cape Girardeau stores.
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