Craveworthy's Architect: How Gregg Majewski Is Rewriting the Playbook for Restaurant Empires

CHICAGO, IL – June 17, 2026 – In a world defined by rapid innovation and geopolitical turbulence, the strategies that drive lasting competitive advantage are often found not in radical invention, but in the masterful reimagining of existing models. This principle is vividly illustrated by Gregg Majewski, the founder and CEO of Craveworthy Brands, who was just named an EY US Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2026 Midwest Award winner. While the award itself is a significant honor, its true importance lies in the validation it provides for a business model that could reshape the future of the restaurant industry.

Majewski, a finance-trained operator with a 30-year track record, is building something more complex than a simple collection of eateries. In just over three years, Craveworthy has exploded from a concept into a formidable platform of more than 20 brands and 300 locations, surpassing $300 million in systemwide sales with a clear trajectory toward the $1 billion mark. This is not merely growth; it is hyper-scaling executed with a clear, replicable strategy.

The Architect of Scalability

To understand Craveworthy, one must first understand Majewski’s history. His career is a case study in operational excellence. Starting as an intern at Jimmy John's, he rose through the ranks to become one of the youngest executives to hold the titles of CEO, CFO, and COO. During his tenure, he was a key architect in scaling the sandwich chain from a regional player with around 30 locations to a national powerhouse with over 300, while selling an additional 700 franchises. He didn't just grow the store count; he engineered the systems behind the growth, most notably the brand's legendary "freaky fast delivery" model that became a category-defining competitive advantage.

In late 2022, Majewski leveraged that deep experience to launch Craveworthy, founded on a dual premise: emerging concepts need sophisticated systems to scale, and legacy brands deserve a second chance to thrive. This isn't a private equity-style roll-up. It's a strategic platform built to provide shared infrastructure—centralizing everything from supply chain and technology to marketing and real estate—allowing individual brands to focus on their core product and guest experience.

"This recognition belongs to our team," Majewski stated in the announcement. "Over three years ago, Craveworthy was a dream people just smiled at and thought was too ambitious. Today, we're one of the fastest-growing restaurant companies in the country, and we built it by betting on ourselves, our food and our operators every single day."

A New Blueprint for Empire Building

Craveworthy's model presents a compelling alternative to established multi-brand giants like Inspire Brands (owner of Arby's and Dunkin') and Restaurant Brands International (owner of Burger King and Popeyes). While those behemoths also leverage shared services, Craveworthy’s approach is distinguished by its agility and its focus on what Majewski calls an "IP platform built for proof of scale." The company acquires promising restaurant intellectual property, perfects its operations and unit economics within a controlled environment, and only then prepares it for national franchising.

This deliberate, quality-focused process is a form of de-risking that benefits both the brand and its future franchisees. The portfolio is intentionally diverse, spanning fast-casual, quick-service, and full-service concepts. It includes high-profile, celebrity-backed ventures like Shaquille O’Neal’s Big Chicken and Jon Taffer’s Taffer’s Tavern, alongside regional champions like Gregorys Coffee and Fresh Brothers Pizza. This diversity mitigates risk and captures a wide swath of consumer tastes.

Furthermore, the company is innovating at the intersection of physical and digital retail. Its "Craveworthy Kitchens" concept allows a single brick-and-mortar location to operate multiple virtual brands from the same kitchen, maximizing revenue per square foot and adapting to the omnichannel reality of modern dining. This isn't just about adding delivery; it's about re-engineering the physical restaurant asset for maximum efficiency and output—a critical strategy in an era of high real estate costs and shifting consumer habits.

People, Product, and Process—In That Order

Perhaps the most telling aspect of Majewski’s strategy—and the one with the most profound implications for the future—is his unwavering focus on human capital. The company’s mantra is "people, product, and process," with the order being non-negotiable. While many corporations pay lip service to a people-first culture, Craveworthy is embedding it into its financial and operational structure.

Majewski’s stated goal is to create "100,000 success stories" by 2035. This isn't a metric for unit count or revenue, but for the number of employees and franchisees who achieve personal and professional growth within the system. "I've never measured success only in number of locations open or sales made. I measure it in success stories – the dishwasher who becomes a general manager, the cashier who earns their first bonus check, the director who becomes a franchisee," Majewski added. "They're why we dream, why we keep going, why we win."

This philosophy is backed by tangible investment. Programs like Crave University provide multi-level training to cultivate the next generation of hospitality leaders from within. By prioritizing the development and success of its operators, Craveworthy is building a resilient, motivated, and deeply loyal network—a formidable competitive advantage in an industry plagued by high turnover. The EY award, which assesses candidates on purpose-driven commitment as well as growth, recognizes that this human-centric approach is not incidental to Craveworthy's success, but fundamental to it.

As a Midwest winner, Majewski now advances to the national competition in November. Regardless of that outcome, his work with Craveworthy Brands offers a powerful lesson: in the complex 2026 landscape, the most durable empires are built not just on scalable systems and smart acquisitions, but on a genuine investment in the people who bring those brands to life every day.