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3 metal steamer baskets with steam coming out of them sitting on top of a table with a black table cloth. There is a steamer ring showing freshly steamed bao. The table has flowers to the left of it, and the table is sitting beneath a dark wood archway with brick accents.

Dark Kitchen FAQ

WHEN YOU HAVE OVER 600 LOCATIONS, YOU GET A FEW QUESTIONS ALONG THE WAY.

Wow Bao is introducing the U.S. to Bao – steamed host Asian buns. Our imaginatively inventive, chef-driven recipes combine traditional Asian flavors with high-quality ingredients. We’re not shy about telling people that our bao are amazing. So are our potstickers. And our rice bowls. You get the idea. We’re passionate about the taste, freshness, and quality of every item on our menu, and we enjoy educating and inviting our guests to share that love. Wow Bao’s signature menu offerings are uniquely suited to unlock opportunities to generate additional revenue utilizing an existing kitchen infrastructure

WHAT IS THE WOW BAO DARK KITCHEN PROGRAM?

Wow Bao has curated a “greatest hits” menu to drive top and bottom-line third-party delivery growth for existing operations with a low investment cost, little/no incremental labor cost, and a straightforward food & packaging cost. The menu can be executed with little or no adjustments to a commercial kitchen operation + a seamless process to activate on third-party delivery platforms.

WHAT IS THE START-UP COST?

The initial startup fee for a Wow Bao Dark Kitchen is less than $1000*. The fee covers onboarding, online training, reference manuals, Supply Chain & 3rd Party Delivery Platforms set-up, equipment & smallwares, and the initial packaging order.

WHAT DO I NEED TO SET UP THE WOW BAO DARK KITCHEN PROGRAM?

  • An active licensed commercial or restaurant kitchen
  • Existing kitchen equipment or capacity to add a few pieces of electrical equipment. No hood required.
    • A steamer or the ability to steam – i.e., gas/electric/induction range to use with steamer baskets, steam oven
    • Ability to cook rice – a rice cooker or an existing steamer
    • Countertop hot holding – i.e., electric food warmer
    • Flattop griddle
  • Broadliner delivery service or comparable vendor services
  • Experience with third-party delivery platforms is preferred
  • An owner, officer, or director of your business must have at least 2 years of experience in the restaurant / food service business

HOW DO I GET THE PRODUCTS?

FOOD

  • For PROPRIETARY ITEMS: We have NATIONAL distribution through the Dot Foods Network. You can work with the broadliner distributor of your choice, as long as the vendor can connect to the Dot Foods Network.
  • For NON-PROPRIETARY ITEMS: We will provide specs of ingredients, which should be readily available through your broadliner and/or local produce delivery vendors.

PACKAGING

  • We require partners to use our branded packaging, which is available from Edward Don & Company.

WILL I BE A FRANCHISEE OF WOW BAO?

NO, this is not an offer of a franchise. The relationship between Wow Bao and the dark kitchen operator is solely that of vendor and vendee via a Product Resale Agreement.**

ARE THERE ANY ON-GOING FEES PAYABLE TO WOW BAO?

No, Wow Bao is paid via the sale of its proprietary products from the Supply Chain. However, it is expected that partners will actively pursue marketing to grow sales. We want you to succeed!

WHAT BRAND AND MARKETING SUPPORT WILL I RECEIVE?

  • Wow Bao will support setting up the Wow Bao menu & associated assets on the major third-party delivery platforms. We have processes established with each platform to seamlessly activate new markets – we just need your kitchen address
  • We will provide targeted digital advertising to generate lookalike demographics of our existing customers during the initial new market launch. We will work to include links to third-party delivery partners for analytic purposes to provide the best digital assistance.

WHAT TRAINING SUPPORT WILL BE PROVIDED?

We utilize a dynamic on-line training program that can be accessed by any Internet-endabled device (e.g., tablet, smartphone, etc.), complemented with an easy-to-follow Operations Manual and tools.

I’M INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE. WHAT’S MY NEXT STEP?

Now that you have submitted an onboarding request, our team is at work to determine if your company meets our initial qualifications. Someone from our team will follow up based on your responses with a product reseller agreement to formalize the partnership if symmetry exists.

* Fee may decrease based on existing operator’s kitchen equipment

** None of the communications regarding the dark kitchen program should be construed as an offer to sell any Wow Bao franchise Systems LLC franchises in, nor is any such communication directed to the residents of, any jurisdiction requiring registration of the franchise before it is offered and sold in that jurisdiction. No Wow Bao Franchise Systems LLC franchises will be sold to any resident of such jurisdiction until the offering has been exempted from the requirements of, or duly registered in and declared effective by, such jurisdiction and the required Franchise Disclosure Document (if any) has been delivered to the prospective franchisee before the sale in compliance with applicable law.