EDGAR 10-K Filing

Company CIK: 1701756
Filing Year: 2021
Filename: 1701756_10-K_2021_0001493152-21-008848.json

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
ITEM 1. BUSINESS.
Our Business Overview
Muscle Maker is a fast casual restaurant concept that specializes in preparing healthy-inspired, high-quality, fresh, made-to-order lean, protein-based meals featuring chicken, seafood, pasta, hamburgers, wraps and flat breads. In addition, we feature freshly prepared entrée salads and an appealing selection of sides, protein shakes and fruit smoothies. We operate in the fast casual restaurant segment.
We believe our healthy-inspired restaurant concept delivers a highly differentiated customer experience. We combine the quality and hospitality that customers commonly associate with our full service and fast casual restaurant competitors with the convenience and value customers generally expect from traditional fast food restaurants, but in a healthy-inspired way. The following core values form the foundation of our brand:
● Quality. Commitment to provide high quality, healthy-inspired food for a perceived wonderful experience for our guests.
● Empowerment and Respect. We seek to empower our employees to take initiative and give their best while respecting themselves and others to maintain an environment for team work and growth.
● Service. Provide world class service to achieve excellence each passing day.
● Value. Our combination of high-quality, healthy-inspired food, empowerment of our employees, world class service, all delivered at an affordable price, strengthens the value proposition for our customers.
In striving for these goals, we aspire to connect with our target market and create a great brand with a strong and loyal customer base.
As of December 31, 2020, Muscle Maker and our subsidiaries and franchisees operated thirty-two Muscle Maker Grill restaurants located in 15 states and Kuwait, sixteen of which are owned and operated by Muscle Maker, and sixteen are franchise restaurants. Our company owned and operated restaurants generated company restaurant revenue of $3,672,944 and $3,466,553 for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, our total revenues which includes company restaurant sales, royalty, franchise fee, rebate revenue derived from franchisees and other revenues were $4,473,447 and $4,959,005, respectively. As of December 31, 2020, we had an aggregate accumulated deficit of $63,193,707. We anticipate that we will continue to report losses and negative cash flow. As a result of the net loss and cash flow deficit for the year ended December 31, 2020 and other factors, our independent registered public accountants issued an audit opinion with respect to our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020 that indicated that there is a substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.
We are the owner of the trade name and service mark Muscle Maker Grill®, Healthy Joe’s, MMG Burger Bar, Meal Plan AF and other trademarks and intellectual property we use in connection with the operation of Muscle Maker Grill® restaurants. We license the right to use the Muscle Maker Grill® and Healthy Joe’s trademarks and intellectual property to our wholly-owned subsidiaries, Muscle Maker Development and Muscle Maker Corp., and to further sublicense them to our franchisees for use in connection with Muscle Maker Grill® and Healthy Joe’s restaurants.
Seasonal factors and the timing of holidays cause our revenue to fluctuate from quarter to quarter. Our revenue per restaurant is typically lower in the fourth quarter due to reduced November and December traffic and higher traffic in the first, second, and third quarters.
In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) as a pandemic which continues to spread throughout the United States. In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, “shelter in place” orders and other public health measures were implemented across much of the United States and continue in limited fashion across the country.
The COVID-19 global pandemic continues to rapidly evolve. The Company is continually monitoring the outbreak of COVID-19 and the related business and travel restrictions and changes to behavior intended to reduce its spread, and its impact on operations, financial position, cash flows, inventory, supply chains, purchasing trends, customer payments, and the industry in general, in addition to the impact on its employees. The pandemic has resulted in a negative impact on the Company’s operations during the year ended December 31, 2020.
As a result of the pandemic the Company has limited its operations through limiting hours of operations, reduced its capacity and utilized a delivery only concept as mandated by each state and has temporarily closed five of our Company owned locations during the second quarter of 2020. In addition, the Company opened two new locations at the end of the third quarter on university campuses that were subsequently temporarily closed due to the impact of COVID-19 on students returning to campus. As of the date of the filing of this report the Company re-opened five of the seven temporarily closed locations and permanently closed two underperforming locations. Commencing in the second quarter of 2020 the Company provided royalty relief to its franchisees by deferring half of their royalties earned by the Company through July 2020. The Company has not attempted to collect the deferred royalties as of the date of the filing of this report as we provide time for the franchise locations to fully recover to pre-pandemic conditions. The executive team deferred a portion of their salaries in 2020 and some members continue to defer salary as of the date of the filing of this report. In addition, various franchisee locations had to take similar actions by temporarily closing their locations and limiting their operations as mandated by each state. As of the date of the filing of this report seven of the franchise locations have permanently closed.
Due to the rapid development and fluidity of this situation, the magnitude and duration of the pandemic and its impact on the Company’s operations and liquidity is uncertain as of the date of this report. While there could ultimately be an additional material impact on operations and liquidity of the Company, the full impact could not be determined, as of the date of this report.
Our Industry
We operate within the Limited-Service Restaurant, or LSR, segment, of the United States restaurant industry, which includes quick service restaurants, or QSR, and fast-casual restaurants. We offer fast-casual quality food combined with quick-service speed, convenience and value across multiple dayparts. We believe our differentiated, high-quality healthy-inspired menu delivers great value all day, every day and positions us to compete against both QSR and fast-casual concepts.
We expect that the upward trend towards healthier eating will attract and increase consumer demand for fresh and hand-prepared dishes, which may lead to a positive impact on our sales.
Our Strategy
While our 2020 business plan and the restaurant industry in general was interrupted and modified due to Covid-19, we re-positioned the Company to better support an anticipated change in the restaurant industry. Our revised strategy continues to focus on serving “healthier for you” meals in non-traditional locations and methods while emphasizing a shift into delivery, ghost kitchens, direct to consumer meal prep and strategic acquisitions. We believe the restaurant industry has experienced a change in the way consumers interact with brands. We believe consumers have become more dependent on new technologies, unique locations and new methodologies to access restaurants. We believe we have positioned the company in a unique way for future growth in a post-covid environment where consumers rely on new methods to order and access restaurant meals such as third-party delivery services, ghost kitchens and direct to consumer shipments of meal plans. In implementing our revised business plan, we plan to pursue the following strategies.
Expand Our System-Wide Restaurant Base. Our strategy focuses on non-traditional locations. We believe these locations offer somewhat of a buffer against macro-economic forces. These locations tend to be destination locations, captured audiences or inside other larger venues. Our current focus is on military bases, college campuses and ghost kitchens while also increasing our consumer reach through direct to consumer meal plan delivery via UPS or customer pickup.
● Military Bases: As of December 31, 2020, we had 6 open military locations. These locations are mostly in food court settings on military bases. These tend to be captured audiences but also support visitors, base personnel and military member families.
● College Campuses: As of December 31, 2020, we have built 4 college campus locations with the Northern Virginia Community College System. These locations were built in anticipation of students attending classes post-covid and the intent is to re-open these locations in the summer or fall semester of 2021. In addition to these four locations, we also have one university location under agreement at the Texas Tech Medical Center in El Paso Texas. This location is currently in the construction phase.
● Ghost Kitchens: As of December 31, 2020, we had five free standing ghost kitchen locations open in Chicago and Philadelphia. We currently have five additional locations under agreement for New York City, Miami and Providence. The ghost kitchens run multiple brands out of one location which include Muscle Maker Grill, Healthy Joes, Meal Plan AF, Muscle Maker Burger Bar, Bowls Deep, Wrap It Up, Salad Vibes and other concepts. Each location can support 6-8 different concepts all running out of one ghost kitchen. This creates the appearance of 6-8 different restaurants to consumers for ordering various entrees but leverages ingredients and infrastructure across all concepts to reduce the number of ingredients needed for each concept.
● In addition, in 2020, the Company purchased 2 existing franchise locations and is in the process of launching additional ghost kitchens out of these locations in addition to Muscle Maker Grill offerings.
● For year ended 2020, we opened six new company-operated restaurants of which five locations are delivery only ghost kitchen locations. In addition, we purchased two franchise locations that are now company-operated.
Improve Comparable Restaurant Sales. We plan to improve comparable restaurant sales growth through the following strategies:
● Menu Strategy and Evolution. We will continue to adapt our menu to create entrees that complement our healthy-inspired offerings and that reinforce our differentiated fast casual positioning. We believe we have opportunities for menu innovation as we look to provide customers more choices through customization and limited time only alternative proteins, recipes and other healthy-inspired ingredients. Our marketing and operations teams collaborate to ensure that the items developed in our test stores can be executed to our high standards in our restaurants with the speed and value that our customers have come to expect. To provide added variety, from time to time we introduce limited time offerings such as our grass-fed hamburger bar menu, smoothie of the month program, keto your way menu, healthy tacos and other seasonal items. Some of these items have been permanently added to the menu.
In November 2019, we opened our first Healthy Joe’s concept. This was formerly a Muscle Maker Grill location located in Tribeca New York that was converted into the Healthy Joe’s concept. Healthy Joe’s focuses on healthier for your recipes and products featuring a different menu than a typical Muscle Maker Grill. The concept is designed to attract a wider audience and features menu items such as wild caught salmon, fresh brewed iced teas, fresh lemonades, locally baked breads, house made avocado smash, fruits, nuts and other new trending menu items. The menu features hot topped bowls, salads and oven toasted sandwiches. All protein, cheese and sauces are run though a 500-degree oven to add a unique approach to serving our products. Due to the temporary Covid related closure of this new concept in 2020, we plan on relaunching the grand opening in 2021 as the Covid related restrictions are relaxed in New York City.
The Company is in the process of expanding the menu offerings in most of our non-military company owned and operated locations through ghost kitchen concepts within the existing Muscle Maker Grill locations. This allows company locations to leverage existing facilities and labor to launch unique brands without the added infrastructure costs normally associated with opening a new concept. For example, in our Chelsea Muscle Maker Grill location, we also run several ghost kitchen concepts out of the same facility. These ghost kitchen concepts include Healthy Joe’s and Muscle Maker Burger Bar.
● Attract New Customers Through Expanded Brand Awareness: Our goal is to attract new customers as the Muscle Maker Grill brand becomes more widely known due to new restaurant openings and marketing efforts focused on broadening the reach and appeal of our brand. The goal of our marketing efforts is to have consumers become more familiar with Muscle Maker Grill as we continue to penetrate our markets, which we believe will benefit our existing restaurant base. Our marketing strategy centers on our “Great Food with Your Health in Mind” campaign, which highlights the desirability of healthy-inspired food and in-house made or proprietary recipe quality of our food. We utilize various marketing techniques including email, text, social media, print, influencers, press releases and local store marketing. We believe the restaurant industry has changed over the past year and consumer preferences have shifted towards an emphasis on convenience, speed and mobility in a safe environment. This has led to an increase in home delivery and direct to consumer meal prep/plan offerings. We believe Muscle Maker Grill has the ability to adjust our business strategy to accommodate these consumer trends as we are not locked in to extensive four wall location leases and are able to transform the business to meet consumer needs.
In 2020, the company expanded its delivery services through third-party delivery companies such as Uber Eats, GrubHub, DoorDash, Seamless and others.
● Continue to Grow Dayparts: We currently have multiple dayparts and segments where revenue is generated in our restaurants. These dayparts and segments include: lunch, dinner, catering, smoothies/protein shakes and meal prep/plans in all of our locations, and breakfast in select locations. We expect to drive growth across our dayparts through enhanced menu offerings, innovative merchandising and marketing campaigns. We plan to continue introducing and marketing limited time offers to increase occasions across our dayparts as well as to educate customers on our lunch and dinner offerings. Muscle Maker Grill has the unique opportunity to grow in the pre-packaged, portion-controlled meal prep/plan category. Currently, we offer pre-portioned and packaged meal prep/plans for consumers who want to specifically plan their weekly meals for dietary or nutritional needs. These meal plans can be delivered to a consumer’s home or picked up at each restaurant location. Third party delivery services such as Uber Eats, Grub Hub, DoorDash, Seamless and others offer an expansion beyond the four walls of our restaurants and represents a growing segment of our overall revenue.
On November 11, 2020, the Company announced an agreement with Happy Meal Prep to launch an online meal plan/prep direct to consumer mail delivery service. This agreement allows Muscle Maker Grill to mail pre-made, ready to eat meals direct to consumers within a 250-mile radius around specific locations. Consumers can currently select from over 40 meal prep options. The company plans to expand the network of locations offering direct to consumer meal plan shipping throughout 2020 while also emphasizing meal prep in a more significant manner in 2020. The company operates this program under the musclemakerprep.com website.
Our Strengths
Iconic and Unique Concept: We provide guests healthy-inspired versions of mainstream-favorite dishes that are intended to taste great, in our effort to make it convenient, affordable and enjoyable to eat healthier. Our diverse menu was created for everyone - fitness enthusiasts, those starting their journey to a healthier lifestyle, and people trying to eat better while on-the-go.
We are focused on expanding our presence within new and existing markets by continuing to add franchise partners to our system and increasing the number of corporate-owned locations. Our corporate-owned restaurants will focus on an expansion in non-traditional locations such as military bases, universities and ghost kitchens while also offering direct to consumer pre-made meal prep/plan offerings to consumers within a 250 mile radius around certain locations. We believe our concept is a unique fit with the military’s “Operation Live Well” campaign and a focus on healthier eating habits.
We believe ghost kitchens offer a unique way to expand the brand into new and existing markets with lower capital costs yet provide the ability to make rapid changes to fit consumer needs. We believe consumers are looking for alternate ways to interact with restaurants and receive meals. Using non-traditional locations, third party delivery, ghost kitchens and direct to consumer meal plans offers consumers multiple choices on how to access Muscle Maker Grill concepts.
Innovative, Healthier Menu: Providing “Great Food with Your Health in Mind,” Muscle Maker Grill’s menu features items with grass-fed steak, all-natural chicken, lean turkey and plant-based products as well as options that satisfy all dietary preferences - from the carb-free consumer to guests following gluten-free or vegetarian diets. Muscle Maker Grill does not sacrifice taste to serve healthy-inspired options. We boast superfoods such as avocado, kale, quinoa, broccoli, romaine and spinach, and use only healthy-inspired carbohydrate options such as cauliflower or brown rice and whole wheat pasta. We develop and source proprietary sauces and fat free or zero-carb dressings to enhance our unique flavor profiles. Our open style kitchen allows guests to experience our preparation and cooking methods such as an open flame grill and sauté. In addition to our healthy-inspired and diverse food platform, Muscle Maker Grill offers 100% real fruit smoothies, boosters and proprietary protein shakes as well as retail supplements.
Muscle Maker Grill prides itself on making healthy-inspired versions of the guest’s favorite food, giving them easy access to the food they seek at our restaurants. This means catering to an array of healthier eating lifestyles. For over 20 years Muscle Maker Grill has been providing food to gluten-free diners, low-carbohydrate consumers and vegetarians. We offer over 30 versions of salads, wraps, bowls, sandwiches and flatbreads.
Cook to Order Preparation: We work to provide our guests their meals prepared in less time than a typical fast casual restaurant. While our service time may be slightly higher than the QSR fast casual segment, it fits well within the range of the fast-casual segment.
Daypart Mix and Revenue Streams: Standard operating hours for a Muscle Maker Grill are from 10:30 AM to 8:30 PM, Monday through Friday, 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Saturday and Sunday. However, many of our locations are closed on Sunday. Our daypart mix is typical to the QSR fast casual segment which is 5% pre-lunch, 45% lunch, 35% dinner and 15% late evening. We have multiple revenue streams including: dine-in, take-out, delivery, catering, meal plans and retail.
Attractive Price Point and Perceived Value: Muscle Maker Grill offers meals with free ‘power sides’ beginning at $8.99 per meal, using only high quality ingredients such as grass-fed beef, all-natural chicken, whole wheat pastas, brown rice and a power blend of kale, romaine and spinach. Our cook to order method, speed of service, hospitality and the experience of our exhibition style kitchen creates a great value perception for our customers. Meal Plan meals begin at $6.99 per meal, which we believe make them not only convenient but affordable too.
Delivery: A significant differentiator is that Muscle Maker Grill offers delivery at many locations nation-wide. Delivery is an option through our online ordering platform making it easy and convenient for our guests. Delivery percentages range from 10% up to 75% of sales in our corporate locations. We strongly believe the delivery segment will continue to grow as our core demographic has demonstrated the need for online ordering and delivery versus dine-in and take-out. We and our franchise owners leverage employees for local delivery but also uses third party services such as Uber Eats, GrubHub, DoorDash, Seamless and others to fulfill delivery orders. Stand alone ghost kitchen locations are 100% delivery.
Catering: Our diverse menu items are also offered through our catering program making it easy and affordable to feed a large group. Our boxed lunch program, which includes a wrap, salad, or entrée, a side and a drink for a set price is available within schools and other organizations.
Meal Prep/Plans: To make healthy-inspired eating even easier, Muscle Maker Grill’s healthy-inspired nutritionally focused menu items are available through our Meal Prep/Plan program, allowing pre-orders of meals via phone, online or in-store, available for pick up or delivered right to their door. Available as five, 10, 15 or 20 meals, guests can choose from over 40 Muscle Maker Grill menu items for each meal. With the partnership with Happy Meal Prep, Muscle Maker Grill is now able to ship meals direct to consumers within a 250-mile radius of participating locations.
Retail: All Muscle Maker Grill locations participate in our retail merchandising and supplement program. This is a unique revenue stream specific to the Muscle Maker Grill brand and is atypical in the QSR fast casual segment. Guests can purchase our propriety protein in bulk, supplements, boosters, protein and meal replacement bars and cookies. This program gives our guests the opportunity to manage their healthy lifestyle beyond meals they consume at our locations.
Our Properties
Rent Structure: Our restaurants are typically in-line or food court locations. A typical restaurant generally ranges from 1,200 to 2,500 square feet with seating for approximately 40 people. Our leases for company-operated locations generally have terms of 10 years, with one or two renewal terms of five years. Restaurant leases provide for a specified annual rent, and some leases call for additional or contingent rent based on revenue above specified levels. Generally, our leases are “net leases” that require us to pay a pro rata share of taxes, insurance and maintenance costs. New leases for our non-traditional locations usually have rent calculated as a percentage of net sales and have terms of 10 years. We do not guarantee performance or have any liability regarding franchise location leases. Stand-alone ghost kitchen locations have short term leases usually in 1 year duration with several renewal options.
System-Wide Restaurant Counts: As of December 31, 2020, our restaurant system consisted of 32 restaurants comprised of sixteen company-operated restaurants and sixteen franchised restaurants located in California, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Rhode Island and Kuwait. In addition, the Company built four new location on university campuses but due to Covid-19 restrictions have not yet open these locations but incurred expenses during the twelve months ended December 31, 2021
Site Selection Process: We consider the location of a restaurant to be a critical variable in its long-term success, and as such, we devote significant effort to the investigation and evaluation of potential restaurant locations. Our in-house management team has extensive experience developing hundreds of locations for various brands. We use a combination of our in-house team and outside real estate consultants to locate, evaluate and negotiate new sites using various criteria including demographic characteristics, daytime population thresholds and traffic patterns, along with the potential visibility of, and accessibility to, the restaurant. The process for selecting locations incorporates management’s and franchisee’s experience and expertise and includes data collection and analysis. Additionally, we use information and intelligence gathered from managers and other restaurant personnel that live in or near the neighborhoods we are considering.
A typical Muscle Maker Grill may be free standing or located in malls, airports, gyms, strip shopping centers, health clubs, military bases, non-traditional or highly concentrated business and residential demographic areas. Customers order their food at the counter and food servers deliver the food to the appropriate table. Based on our experience and results, we are currently focused on developing inline sites for franchising and non-traditional locations such as military bases for company-operated locations.
Stand-alone ghost kitchen locations offer a unique opportunity to expand the brand into new markets with lower build-out costs than a typical Muscle Maker Grill location. These locations are usually located away from high rent areas where a typical consumer traffic pattern is present. These locations rely on a delivery radius and consumer orders are placed using third party delivery apps. As long as the delivery radius covers densely populated areas for both business and residential areas, we consider the location to be in an attractive location where we can reach consumers with delivery.
Direct to consumer meal prep/plan locations can either be through existing Muscle Maker Grill locations or can be set up like a commissary where meals are prepared in a kitchen space not open to consumer traffic. These locations can be in any area as long as pick up service via UPS or Fedex is available. This allows the company to build out locations in favorable rent situations while being able to mail meal prep/plans direct to consumers within a 250 mile radius.
Our Restaurant Design
After identifying a lease site, we commence our restaurant buildout. Our typical restaurant is an inline retail space or food court that ranges in size from 1,200 to 2,500 square feet. Our restaurants are characterized by a unique exterior and interior design, color schemes, and layout, including specially designed decor and furnishings. Restaurant interiors incorporate modern designs and rich colors in an effort to provide a clean and inviting environment and fun, family-friendly atmosphere. Each restaurant is designed in accordance with plans we develop; and constructed with a similar design motif and trade dress. Restaurants are generally located near other business establishments that will attract customers who desire healthier food at fair prices served in a casual, fun environment.
Our new restaurants are typically inline or food court buildouts. We estimate that each inline or food court buildout of a restaurant will require an average total cash investment of approximately $200,000 to $350,000 net of tenant allowances but these costs can vary depending upon the location and requirements of specific municipalities or landlords. On average, it takes us approximately four to six months from identification of the specific site to opening the restaurant. In order to maintain consistency of food and customer service, as well as our colorful, bright and contemporary restaurant environment, we have set processes and timelines to follow for all restaurant openings.
Our restaurants are built-out in approximately 10 weeks and the development and construction of our new sites is the responsibility of our Development Department. Real estate managers are responsible for locating and leasing potential restaurant sites. Construction managers are then responsible for building the restaurants, and several staff members manage purchasing, budgeting, scheduling and other related administrative functions. We leverage in-house personnel as well as consultants and independent contractors in the real estate, design and construction process.
Stand-alone ghost kitchens range in size from 200 to 300 square feet. These locations are not open to the public and rely solely on third party delivery to access consumers. The total cash investment for a stand-alone ghost kitchen ranges from $50,000 to $100,000 depending on what equipment is required. There is limited leasehold improvements and the equipment is modular in general. This allows the company to reduce its risk in the event a particular location isn’t working as we can simply move the equipment to a new location and not have leasehold improvements left behind. Ghost kitchens have no consumer dining areas, no bathrooms, no furniture, etc which keeps the cost of buildout to a minimum.
Our Restaurant Management and Operations
Service: We are extremely focused on customer service. We aim to provide fast, friendly service on a solid foundation of dedicated, driven team members and managers. Our cashiers are trained on the menu items we offer and provide customers thoughtful suggestions to enhance the ordering process. Our team members and managers are responsible for our dining room environment, personally visiting tables to ensure every customer’s satisfaction. In our non-food court locations, meals are brought to the customers table using actual dishes and customers are free to leave their dishes when finished as team members clear and clean tables as guests leave the restaurant.
Operations: We intend to measure the execution of our system standards within each restaurant through an audit program for quality, service and cleanliness. The goal is to conduct these audits quarterly and may be more or less frequent based upon restaurant performance. Additionally, we have food safety and quality assurance programs designed to maintain the highest standards for food and food preparation procedures used by both company-operated and franchised restaurants.
Managers and Team Members: Each of our restaurants typically has a general manager, and shift leaders. At each location there are between six and 10 total team members who prepare our food fresh daily and provide customer service.
We are selective in our hiring processes, aiming to staff our restaurants with team members that are friendly, customer-focused, and driven to provide high-quality products. Our team members are cross-trained in several disciplines to maximize depth of competency and efficiency in critical restaurant functions.
Stand alone ghost kitchen locations typically staff 1-2 employees at any time and are managed by personnel who also oversee multiple locations.
Training: The majority of our company-operated restaurant management staff is comprised of former team members who have advanced along the Muscle Maker Grill career path. Skilled team members who display leadership qualities are encouraged to enter the team leader training program. Successive steps along the management path add increasing levels of duties and responsibilities. Our Franchisee training generally consists of 10 to 14 days in a certified training location, and an additional seven to 10 days post opening training. Our operational team members provide consistent, ongoing training through follow up restaurant visits, inspections, or email or phone correspondences.
Our Franchise Program
Overview: We use a franchising strategy to increase new restaurant growth in certain United States and international markets, leveraging the ownership of entrepreneurs with specific local market expertise and requiring a relatively minimal capital commitment by us. We believe the franchise revenue generated from our franchise base has historically served as an important source of stable and recurring cash flows to us and, as such, we plan to expand our base of franchised restaurants. In existing markets, we encourage growth from current franchisees. In our expansion markets, we seek highly qualified and experienced new franchisees for multi-unit development opportunities. We seek franchisees of successful, non-competitive brands operating in our expansion markets. Through strategic networking and participation in select franchise conferences, we aim to identify highly-qualified prospects. Additionally, we market our franchise opportunities with the support of a franchising section on our website and printed brochures.
Franchise Owner Support: We believe creating a foundation of initial and on-going support is important to future success for both our franchisees and our brand.
We have a mandatory training program that was designed to ensure that our franchise owners and their managers are equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to position themselves for success. The program consists of hands-on training in the operation and management of the restaurant. Training is conducted by a general training manager who has been certified by us for training. Instructional materials for the initial training program include our operations manual, crew training system, wall charts, job aids, recipe books, product build cards, management training materials, food safety book, videos and other materials we may create from time to time. Training must be successfully completed before a trainee can be assigned to a restaurant as a manager.
We also provide numerous opportunities for communication and shared feedback between us and franchise owners. Currently, we communicate on a frequent basis through email and system wide conference calls allowing for questions and answers with all franchisees. In addition, our operations and marketing teams conduct phone calls and/or on-site visits on a frequent basis with franchisees on current operational changes, new products, revenue generating ideas, cost savings, and local store marketing.
Franchise Arrangements: At December 31, 2020, Muscle Maker Development franchises the operation of a total of 16 Muscle Maker Grill restaurants.
The franchise agreements currently:
● Have terms for 15 years, with termination dates ranging from 2023 until 2034. These agreements are generally renewable for terms ranging from 5 to 10 years.
● Provide for the payment of initial franchise fees of $35,000.
● Require the payment of on-going royalty payments of 5% of net sales at the franchise location. In addition, franchisees contribute 2% (total) of net sales to the marketing and brand development/advertising fund.
During 2019 and continuing through 2020, we have undertaken an extensive review of the terms and conditions of our franchise relationships and have recently finalized the terms of our revised standard franchise agreement and multi-unit development agreement which we intend to govern the relationship between Muscle Maker Development and its new franchisees. Under this franchise agreement:
● Franchisees are licensed the right to use the Muscle Maker Grill® trademarks, its confidential operating manual and other intellectual property in connection with the operation of a Muscle Maker Grill restaurant at a location authorized by us.
● Franchisees are protected from the establishment of another Muscle Maker Grill restaurant within a geographic territory, the scope of which is the subject of negotiation between Muscle Make Development and the franchisee.
● The initial term of a franchise is 15 years, which may be renewed for up to two additional terms of five years each.
● Franchisees pay Muscle Maker Development an initial franchise fee of $35,000 in a lump sum at the time the Franchise Agreement is signed; however, we may offer financing assistance under certain circumstances.
● Franchisees pay Muscle Maker Development an on-going royalty in an amount equal to 5% of Net sales at the franchise location, payable weekly.
● Franchisees pay a weekly amount equal to 2% (total) of net sales at the franchise location into a cooperative advertising fund and brand development/advertising fund. The cooperative advertising fee is used by franchisees for local store marketing efforts and the brand development/advertising fund is for the benefit of all locations and is administered by Muscle Maker.
● We have historically required our franchisees to pay a software license fee of $3,500. However as of July 2019, Muscle Maker has discontinued this arrangement.
● Franchisees are required to offer only those food products that are authorized by Muscle Maker Development, prepared using our proprietary recipes; and may obtain most supplies only from suppliers that are approved or designated by Muscle Maker Development. Muscle Maker receives rebates from various vendors or distributors based on total system wide purchases.
● As partial consideration for payment of the initial franchise fee and on-going royalties, Muscle Maker Development loans its franchisees a copy of its confidential operating manual, administers the advertising/brand development fund, and provides franchisees with pre-opening and on-going assistance including site selection assistance, pre-opening training, and in-term training
Multi-Unit Development Agreements: Franchisees who desire to develop more than one restaurant and who have the financial strength and managerial capability to develop more than one restaurant may enter into a multi-unit development agreement. Under a multi-unit development agreement, the franchisee agrees to open a specified number of restaurants, at least two, within a defined geographic area in accordance with an agreed upon development schedule which could span several months or years. Each restaurant, in accordance with the development schedule, requires the execution of a separate franchise agreement prior to site approval and construction, which will be the then current franchise agreement, except that the initial franchise fee, royalty and advertising expenditures will be those in effect at the time the multi-unit agreement is executed. Multi-unit development agreements require the payment of a development fee equal to $35,000 for the first restaurant plus $17,500 multiplied by the number of additional restaurants that must be opened under such development agreement. The entire development fee is payable at the time the multi-unit development agreement is signed; however, the development fee actually paid for a particular restaurant is credited as a deposit against the initial franchise fee that is payable when the franchise agreement for the particular franchise is signed.
Area Representative Agreements: Pursuant to our area representative agreements, the area representatives will identify and refer prospective franchisee candidates to us, provide franchisees with our site selection criteria and assist franchisees to complete a site review package, and will advise franchisees concerning our standards and specifications and make on-site visits, but we retain control of all decision-making authority relative to the franchisees, including franchisee approval, site location approval and determination whether franchisees are in compliance with their franchise agreements.
Area representative agreements are generally for a term of 15 years, in consideration for which we generally compensate area representatives with 1% of net sales of the franchises that are under the area representative for the 15-year term.
Our Marketing and Advertising
We promote our restaurants and products through multiple advertising campaigns. The campaigns aim to deliver our message of fresh and healthy-inspired product offerings. The campaign emphasizes our points of differentiation, from our fresh ingredients and in-house preparation, to the preparation of our healthy inspired meals.
We use multiple marketing channels, including social media such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, email, text marketing, local store marketing, public relations/press releases and other methods to broadly drive brand awareness and purchases of our featured products. We complement this periodically with direct mail.
Our Purchasing and Distribution
Maintaining a high degree of quality in our restaurants depends in part on our ability to acquire fresh ingredients and other necessary supplies that meet our specifications from reliable suppliers. We contract with Sysco, a major foodservice distributor, for substantially all of our food and supplies. Food and supplies are delivered to most of our restaurants one to two times per week. Our distributor relationship with Sysco has been in place since 2007. Our franchisees are required to use our primary distributor, or an approved regional distributor and franchisees must purchase food and supplies from approved suppliers. In our normal course of business, we evaluate bids from multiple suppliers for various products. Fluctuations in supply and prices can significantly impact our restaurant service and profit performance.
Our Intellectual Property
We have registered Muscle Maker Grill ®, Healthy Joe’s, Muscle Maker AF, MMG Burger Bar and certain other names used by our restaurants as trademarks or service marks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and Muscle Maker Grill ® in approximately one foreign countries. Our brand campaign, Great Food with Your Health in Mind™, has also been approved for registration with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. In addition, the Muscle Maker Grill and Healthy Joe’s logo, website name and address and Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts are our intellectual property. Our policy is to pursue and maintain registration of service marks and trademarks in those countries where business strategy requires us to do so and to oppose vigorously any infringement or dilution of the service marks or trademarks in such countries. We maintain the recipe for our healthy inspired recipes, as well as certain proprietary standards, specifications and operating procedures, as trade secrets or confidential proprietary information.
Our Competition
We operate in the restaurant industry, which is highly competitive and fragmented. The number, size and strength of competitors vary by region. Our competition includes a variety of locally owned restaurants and national and regional chains that offer dine-in, carry-out and delivery services. Our competition in the broadest perspective includes restaurants, pizza parlors, convenience food stores, delicatessens, supermarkets, third party delivery services and club stores. However, we indirectly compete with fast casual restaurants, including Chipotle and Panera Bread, among others, and with healthy inspired fast casual restaurants, such as the Protein Bar, Freshii and Veggie Grill, among others.
We believe competition within the fast-casual restaurant segment is based primarily on ambience, price, taste, quality and the freshness of the menu items. We also believe that QSR competition is based primarily on quality, taste, speed of service, value, brand recognition, restaurant location and customer service. We believe the restaurant industry has changed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and an emphasis on delivery, ghost kitchens, direct mail and other non-traditional locations and methods are becoming critical to the restaurant industry and how consumers interact with brands. This changing environment will require flexibility and the ability to rapidly make adjustments.
As consumer preferences continue to evolve into healthier eating options, most restaurants are developing healthier menu options. As more restaurants offer healthier options, the competition for our product offerings becomes more intense and could pose a significant threat to future revenues. However, we believe our experience, size and flexibility allows Muscle Maker to adapt faster than many other restaurant chains.
Our Management Information Systems
All of our company-operated and franchised restaurants use computerized point-of-sale and back office systems, which we believe are scalable to support our long-term growth plans. The point-of-sale system provides a touch screen interface and a stand-alone high-speed credit card and gift card processing terminal. The point-of-sale system is used to collect daily transaction data, which generates information about daily sales and product mix that we actively analyze.
Our in-restaurant back office computer system is designed to assist in the management of our restaurants. The system also provides corporate headquarters and restaurant operations management quick access to detailed business data and reduces the time spent by our restaurant managers on administrative needs. The system also provides sales, bank deposit and variance data to our accounting department.
Ghost kitchens and meal prep/plan sales are ordered using online software with reports generated through various software packages.
Our Corporate Structure
Overview: Muscle Maker, Inc. serves as a holding company of the following subsidiaries:
● Muscle Maker Development, LLC, a directly wholly owned subsidiary, which was formed in Nevada on July 18, 2017 for the purpose of running our existing franchise operations and continuing to franchise the Muscle Maker Grill name and business system to qualified franchisees.
● Muscle Maker Corp. LLC, a directly wholly owned subsidiary, which was formed in Nevada on July 18, 2017 for the purposes of developing new corporate stores and to also operate these new and existing corporate restaurants.
● Muscle Maker USA, Inc., a directly wholly owned subsidiary, which was formed in Texas on March 14, 2019 for the purpose of holding specific assets related to a company financing arrangement.
● Muscle Maker Development International. LLC, a directly wholly owned subsidiary, which was formed in Nevada on November 13, 2020 to franchise the Muscle Maker Grill name and business system to qualified franchisees internationally.

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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
An investment in the Company’s Common Stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks described below as well as other information provided to you in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including information in the section of this document entitled “Information Regarding Forward Looking Statements.” The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing us. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently believe are immaterial may also impair our business operations. If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially adversely affected, the value of our Common Stock could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has disrupted and is expected to continue to disrupt our business, which has and could continue to materially affect our operations, financial condition and results of operations for an extended period of time.
The pandemic novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, federal, state and local government responses to COVID-19 and our Company’s responses to the outbreak have all disrupted and will continue to disrupt our business. In the United States, individuals are being encouraged to practice social distancing, restricted from gathering in groups and in some areas, have been placed on complete restriction from non-essential movements outside of their homes. As a result of the pandemic the Company has limited its operations through limiting hours of operations, reduced its capacity and utilized a delivery only concept as mandated by each state and has temporarily closed five of our Company owned locations during the second quarter of 2020. In addition, the Company opened four new locations at the end of the third quarter on university campuses that were subsequently temporarily closed due to the impact of COVID-19 on students returning to campus. As of the date of the filing of this report the Company re-opened three of the nine temporarily closed locations and permanently closed two underperforming locations. Commencing in the second quarter of 2020 the Company provided royalty relief to its franchisees by deferring half of their royalties earned by the Company through July 2020. The Company has not attempted to collect the deferred royalties as of the date of the filing of this report as we provide time for the franchise locations to fully recover to pre-pandemic conditions. The executive team deferred a portion of their salaries in 2020 and some members continue to defer salary as of the date of the filing of this report. In addition, various franchisee locations had to take similar actions by temporarily closing their locations and limiting their operations as mandated by each state. As of the date of the filing of this report seven of the franchise locations have permanently closed. The COVID-19 outbreak and these responses have affected and will continue to adversely affect our guest traffic, sales and operating costs and we cannot predict how long the outbreak will last or what other government responses may occur.
The COVID-19 outbreak has also adversely affected our ability to open new restaurants. Due to the uncertainty in the economy and to preserve liquidity, we have paused nearly all construction of new restaurants. These changes may materially adversely affect our ability to grow our business, particularly if these construction pauses are in place for a significant amount of time.
If the business interruptions caused by COVID-19 last longer than we expect, we will be required to seek other sources of liquidity. The COVID-19 outbreak is adversely affecting the availability of liquidity generally in the credit and equity markets, and there can be no guarantee that additional liquidity will be readily available or available on favorable terms, especially the longer the COVID-19 outbreak lasts.
Our restaurant operations could be further disrupted if large numbers of our employees are diagnosed with COVID-19. If a significant percentage of our workforce is unable to work, whether because of illness, quarantine, limitations on travel or other government restrictions in connection with COVID-19, our operations may be negatively impacted, potentially materially adversely affecting our liquidity, financial condition or results of operations.
Our suppliers could be adversely impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. If our suppliers’ employees are unable to work, whether because of illness, quarantine, limitations on travel or other government restrictions in connection with COVID-19, we could face shortages of food items or other supplies at our restaurants and our operations and sales could be adversely impacted by such supply interruptions.
Additional government regulations or legislation as a result of COVID-19 in addition to decisions we have made and may make in the future relating to the compensation of and benefit offerings for our restaurant team members could also have an adverse effect on our business. We cannot predict the types of additional government regulations or legislation that may be passed relating to employee compensation as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. We have implemented paid sick leave, emergency pay policies and taken other compensation and benefit actions to support our restaurant team members during the COVID-19 business interruption, but those actions may not be sufficient to compensate our team members for the entire duration of any business interruption resulting from COVID-19. Those team members might seek and find other employment during that interruption, which could materially adversely affect our ability to properly staff and reopen our restaurants with experienced team members when the business interruptions caused by COVID-19 abate or end.
We have a history of operating losses and our auditors have indicated that there is a substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.
To date, we have not been profitable and have incurred significant losses and cash flow deficits. For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, we reported net losses of $10,099,105 and $28,385,044, respectively, and negative cash flow from operating activities of $7,785,873 and $4,504,226, respectively. As of December 31, 2020, we had an accumulated deficit of $63,193,707. We anticipate that we will continue to report losses and negative cash flow. As a result of these net losses and cash flow deficits and other factors, our independent registered public accountants issued an audit opinion with respect to our financial statements for the two years ended December 31, 2020 that indicated that there is a substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.
Our financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. These adjustments would likely include substantial impairment of the carrying amount of our assets and potential contingent liabilities that may arise if we are unable to fulfill various operational commitments. In addition, the value of our securities would be greatly impaired. Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon generating sufficient cash flow from operations and obtaining additional capital and financing. If our ability to generate cash flow from operations is delayed or reduced and we are unable to raise additional funding from other sources, we may be unable to continue in business. For further discussion about our ability to continue as a going concern and our plan for future liquidity, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”
We will need additional capital to fund our operations, which, if obtained, could result in substantial dilution or significant debt service obligations. We may not be able to obtain additional capital on commercially reasonable terms, which could adversely affect our liquidity and financial position.
At December 31, 2020, Muscle Maker had a cash balance of approximately $4,195,932, a working capital deficit of approximately $1,383,568, and an accumulated deficit of approximately $63,193,707. In order to satisfy the Company’s monthly expenses and continue in operation through December 31, 2021, the Company closed on a public offering on February 12, 2020 and September 10, 2020, in which we raised aggregate net proceeds of $11,720,001. On October 27, 2020, the Company closed on the over-allotment yielding proceeds of $764,399, net of underwrites and other fees of $75,600. Even if we are able to substantially increase revenues and reduce operating expenses, we may need to raise additional capital. In order to continue operating, we may need to obtain additional financing, either through borrowings, private placements, public offerings, or some type of business combination, such as a merger, or buyout, and there can be no assurance that we will be successful in such pursuits. We may be unable to acquire the additional funding necessary to continue operating. Accordingly, if we are unable to generate adequate cash from operations, and if we are unable to find sources of funding, it may be necessary for us to sell one or more lines of business or all or a portion of our assets, enter into a business combination, or reduce or eliminate operations. These possibilities, to the extent available, may be on terms that result in significant dilution to our shareholders or that result in our shareholders losing all of their investment in our Company.
If we are able to raise additional capital, we do not know what the terms of any such capital raising would be. In addition, any future sale of our equity securities would dilute the ownership and control of your shares and could be at prices substantially below prices at which our shares currently trade. Our inability to raise capital could require us to significantly curtail or terminate our operations. We may seek to increase our cash reserves through the sale of additional equity or debt securities. The sale of convertible debt securities or additional equity securities could result in additional and potentially substantial dilution to our shareholders. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increased debt service obligations and could result in operating and financing covenants that would restrict our operations and liquidity. In addition, our ability to obtain additional capital on acceptable terms is subject to a variety of uncertainties. We cannot assure you that financing will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all. Any failure to raise additional funds on favorable terms could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity and financial condition.
We face intense competition in our markets, which could negatively impact our business.
The restaurant industry is intensely competitive, and we compete with many well-established food service companies on the basis of product choice, quality, affordability, service and location. We expect competition in each of our markets to continue to be intense because consumer trends are favoring limited-service restaurants that offer healthy-inspired menu items made with better quality products, and many limited service restaurants are responding to these trends. With few barriers to entry, our competitors include a variety of independent local operators, in addition to well-capitalized regional, national and international restaurant chains and franchises, and new competitors may emerge at any time. Furthermore, delivery aggregators and food delivery services provide consumers with convenient access to a broad range of competing restaurant chains and food retailers, particularly in urbanized areas. Each of our brands also competes for qualified franchisees, suitable restaurant locations and management and personnel. Our ability to compete will depend on the success of our plans to improve existing products, to develop and roll-out new products, to effectively respond to consumer preferences and to manage the complexity of restaurant operations as well as the impact of our competitors’ actions. In addition, our long-term success will depend on our ability to strengthen our customers’ digital experience through expanded mobile ordering, delivery and social interaction. Some of our competitors have substantially greater financial resources, higher revenues and greater economies of scale than we do. These advantages may allow them to implement their operational strategies more quickly or effectively than we can or benefit from changes in technologies, which could harm our competitive position. These competitive advantages may be exacerbated in a difficult economy, thereby permitting our competitors to gain market share. There can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully respond to changing consumer preferences, including with respect to new technologies and alternative methods of delivery. If we are unable to maintain our competitive position, we could experience lower demand for products, downward pressure on prices, reduced margins, an inability to take advantage of new business opportunities, a loss of market share, reduced franchisee profitability and an inability to attract qualified franchisees in the future. Any of these competitive factors may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations.
Our ability to continue to expand our digital business and delivery orders is uncertain, and these new business lines are subject to risks.
Our digital, delivery and catering/meal plan sales represent a significant portion of sales in many of our restaurants and expanding in others. Consumer preferences and competitors are relying more and more heavily on digital and third-party delivery services, especially in urban locations. We rely on third party providers to fulfill delivery orders, and the ordering and payment platforms used by these third parties, or our mobile app or online ordering system, could be damaged or interrupted by technological failures, user errors, cyber-attacks or other factors, which may adversely impact our sales through these channels and could negatively impact our brand. Additionally, our delivery partners are responsible for order fulfillment and may make errors or fail to make timely deliveries, leading to customer disappointment that may negatively impact our brand. We also incur additional costs associated with using third party service providers to fulfil these digital orders. Moreover, the third-party restaurant delivery business is intensely competitive, with a number of players competing for market share, online traffic, capital, and delivery drivers and other people resources. The third-party delivery services with which we work may struggle to compete effectively, and if they were to cease or curtail operations or fail to provide timely delivery services in a cost-effective manner, or if they give greater priority on their platforms to our competitors, our delivery business may be negatively impacted. Digital and delivery offerings also increase the risk of illnesses associated with our food because the food is transported and/or served by third parties in conditions we cannot control.
Because all of these offerings are relatively new, it is difficult for us to anticipate the level of sales they may generate. That may result in operational challenges, both in fulfilling orders made through these channels and in operating our restaurants as we balance fulfillment of these orders with service of our traditional in-restaurant guests as well. Any such operational challenges may negatively impact the customer experience associated with our digital or delivery orders, the guest experience for our traditional in-restaurant business, or both. These factors may adversely impact our sales and our brand reputation.
We are vulnerable to changes in consumer preferences and economic conditions that could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.
Food service businesses depend on consumer discretionary spending and are often affected by changes in consumer tastes, national, regional and local economic conditions and demographic trends. Factors such as traffic patterns, weather, fuel prices, local demographics, troop deployments or base closures specific to our military locations and the type, number and locations of competing restaurants may adversely affect the performances of individual locations. In addition, economic downturns, wage rates, health insurance costs, third-party delivery services and fees, inflation or increased food or energy costs could harm the restaurant industry in general and our locations in particular. Adverse changes in any of these factors could reduce consumer traffic or impose practical limits on pricing that could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flow. There can be no assurance that consumers will continue to regard healthy-inspired fast food favorably or that we will be able to develop new menu items that appeal to consumer preferences. Our business, financial condition and results of operations depend in part on our ability to anticipate, identify and respond to changing consumer preferences and economic conditions. In addition, the restaurant industry is currently under heightened legal and legislative scrutiny related to menu labeling and resulting from the perception that the practices of restaurant companies have contributed to nutritional, caloric intake, obesity or other health concerns of their guests. If we are unable to adapt to changes in consumer preferences and trends, we may lose customers and our revenues may decline or our costs to produce our products could significantly increase.
Our growth strategy depends in part on opening new restaurants in existing and new markets, including non-traditional locations such as universities, office buildings, ghost kitchens, military bases, airports or casinos and expanding our franchise system. We may be unsuccessful in opening new company-operated or franchised restaurants or establishing new markets, which could adversely affect our growth.
One of the key means to achieving our growth strategy will be through opening new restaurants and operating those restaurants on a profitable basis. Our ability to open new restaurants is dependent upon a number of factors, many of which are beyond our control, including our and our franchisees’ ability to:
● identify available and suitable restaurant sites;
● compete for restaurant sites;
● reach acceptable agreements regarding the lease or purchase of locations;
● obtain or have available the financing required to acquire and operate a restaurant, including construction and opening costs, which includes access to build-to-suit leases and equipment financing leases at favorable interest and capitalization rates;
● respond to unforeseen engineering or environmental problems with leased premises;
● avoid the impact of inclement weather, natural disasters, the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and other calamities;
● hire, train and retain the skilled management and other employees necessary to meet staffing needs;
● obtain, in a timely manner and for an acceptable cost, required licenses, permits and regulatory approvals and respond effectively to any changes in local, state or federal law and regulations that adversely affect our and our franchisees’ costs or ability to open new restaurants; and
● control construction and equipment cost increases for new restaurants.
There is no guarantee that a sufficient number of suitable restaurant sites will be available in desirable areas or on terms that are acceptable to us in order to achieve our growth plan. If we are unable to open new restaurants or sign new franchisees, or if existing franchisees do not open new restaurants, or if restaurant openings are significantly delayed, our revenues or earnings growth could be adversely affected, and our business negatively affected.
As part of our long-term growth strategy, we may enter into geographic markets in which we have little or no prior operating or franchising experience through company-operated restaurant growth and through franchise development agreements. The challenges of entering new markets include, but are not limited to: difficulties in hiring experienced personnel; unfamiliarity with local real estate markets and demographics; food distribution networks; lack of marketing efficiencies; operational support efficiencies; consumer unfamiliarity with our brand; and different competitive and economic conditions, consumer tastes and discretionary spending patterns that are more difficult to predict or satisfy than in our existing markets. Consumer recognition of our brand has been important in the success of company-operated and franchised restaurants in our existing markets. Restaurants we open in new markets may take longer to reach expected sales and profit levels on a consistent basis and may have higher construction, occupancy and operating costs than existing restaurants, thereby affecting our overall profitability. Any failure on our part to recognize or respond to these challenges may adversely affect the success of any new restaurants. Expanding our franchise system could require the implementation, expense and successful management of enhanced business support systems, management information systems and financial controls as well as additional staffing, franchise support and capital expenditures and working capital.
Due to brand recognition and logistical synergies, as part of our growth strategy, we also intend to open new restaurants in areas where we have existing restaurants. The operating results and comparable restaurant sales for our restaurants could be adversely affected due to close proximity with our other restaurants and market saturation.
New restaurants, once opened, may not be profitable or may close.
Some of our restaurants open with an initial start-up period of higher than normal sales volumes, which subsequently decrease to stabilized levels. In new markets, the length of time before average sales for new restaurants stabilize is less predictable and can be longer as a result of our limited knowledge of these markets and consumers’ limited awareness of our brand. In addition, our average restaurant revenues and comparable restaurant sales may not increase at the rates achieved over the past several years. Our ability to operate new restaurants profitably and increase average restaurant revenues and comparable restaurant sales will depend on many factors, some of which are beyond our control, including:
● consumer awareness and understanding of our brand;
● Troop deployments, reductions or closures of our military base locations;
● general economic conditions, which can affect restaurant traffic, local labor costs and prices we pay for the food products and other supplies we use;
● consumption patterns and food preferences that may differ from region to region;
● changes in consumer preferences and discretionary spending;
● difficulties obtaining or maintaining adequate relationships with distributors or suppliers in new markets;
● increases in prices for commodities, including proteins;
● inefficiency in our labor costs as the staff gains experience;
● competition, either from our competitors in the restaurant industry or our own restaurants;
● temporary and permanent site characteristics of new restaurants;
● changes in government regulation; and
● other unanticipated increases in costs, any of which could give rise to delays or cost overruns.
If our new restaurants do not perform as planned or close, our business and future prospects could be harmed. In addition, an inability to achieve our expected average restaurant revenues in both company owned and franchise locations, would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Opening new restaurants in existing markets may negatively impact sales at our and our franchisees’ existing restaurants.
The consumer target area of our and our franchisees’ restaurants varies by location, depending on a number of factors, including population density, other local retail and business attractions, area demographics and geography. As a result, the opening of a new restaurant in or near markets in which we or our franchisees’ already have restaurants could adversely impact sales at these existing restaurants. Existing restaurants could also make it more difficult to build our and our franchisees’ consumer base for a new restaurant in the same market. Our core business strategy does not entail opening new restaurants that we believe will materially affect sales at our or our franchisees’ existing restaurants. However, we cannot guarantee there will not be a significant impact in some cases, and we may selectively open new restaurants in and around areas of existing restaurants that are operating at or near capacity to effectively serve our customers. Sales cannibalization between our restaurants may become significant in the future as we continue to expand our operations and could affect our sales growth, which could, in turn, materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our sales growth and ability to achieve profitability could be adversely affected if comparable restaurant sales are less than we expect.
The level of comparable restaurant sales, which reflect the change in year-over-year sales for restaurants in the fiscal month following 15 months of operation using a mid-month convention, will affect our sales growth and will continue to be a critical factor affecting our ability to generate profits because the profit margin on comparable restaurant sales is generally higher than the profit margin on new restaurant sales. While we have experienced negative comparable same store sales of 12% during 2019 and 57% during 2020, we have developed new sales and marketing efforts including new menu strategy/evolution, new marketing initiatives designed to increase brand awareness, new operating platforms which improve speed of service and other tactics with the goal of providing positive same store sales in future years. Our ability to increase comparable restaurant sales depends in part on our ability to successfully implement these initiatives. It is possible such initiatives will not be successful, that we will not achieve our target comparable restaurant sales growth or that the change in comparable restaurant sales could be negative, which may cause a decrease in sales growth and ability to achieve profitability that would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our marketing programs may not be successful, and our new menu items, advertising campaigns and restaurant designs or remodels may not generate increased sales or profits.
We incur costs and expend other resources in our marketing efforts on new menu items, advertising campaigns and restaurant designs and remodels to raise brand awareness and attract and retain customers. These initiatives may not be successful, resulting in expenses incurred without the benefit of higher revenues. Additionally, some of our competitors have greater financial resources, which enable them to spend significantly more on marketing and advertising and other initiatives than we are able to. Should our competitors increase spending on marketing and advertising and other initiatives or our marketing funds decrease for any reason, or should our advertising, promotions, new menu items and restaurant designs and remodels be less effective than our competitors, there could be a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
We rely on only one company to distribute substantially all of our food and supplies to company-operated and franchised restaurants, and on a limited number of companies, and, in some cases, a sole company, to supply certain products, supplies and ingredients to our distributor. Failure to receive timely deliveries of food or other supplies could result in a loss of revenues and materially and adversely impact our operations.
Our company-operated restaurants and franchisees’ ability to maintain consistent quality menu items and prices significantly depends upon our ability to acquire quality food products from reliable sources in accordance with our specifications on a timely basis. Shortages or interruptions in the supply of food products caused by unanticipated demand, problems in production or distribution, contamination of food products, an outbreak of protein-based diseases, inclement weather, fuel supplies, governmental actions or other conditions could materially adversely affect the availability, quality and cost of ingredients, which would adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We have contracts with a limited number of suppliers, and, in some cases, a sole supplier, for certain products, supplies and ingredients. If that distributor or any supplier fails to perform as anticipated or seeks to terminate agreements with us, or if there is any disruption in any of our supply or distribution relationships for any reason, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected. If we or our franchisees temporarily close a restaurant or remove popular items from a restaurant’s menu due to a supply shortage, that restaurant may experience a significant reduction in revenues during the time affected by the shortage and thereafter if our customers change their dining habits as a result.
Changes in food and supply costs or failure to receive frequent deliveries of food ingredients and other supplies could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our profitability depends in part on our ability to anticipate and react to changes in food and supply costs, and our ability to maintain our menu depends in part on our ability to acquire ingredients that meet specifications from reliable suppliers. Shortages or interruptions in the availability of certain supplies caused by unanticipated demand, problems in production or distribution, food contamination, pandemic such as the COVID 19, inclement weather or other conditions could adversely affect the availability, quality and cost of our ingredients, which could harm our operations. Any increase in the prices of the food products most critical to our menu, such as chicken, seafood, beef, fresh produce, dairy products, packaging and other proteins, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Although we try to manage the impact that these fluctuations have on our operating results, we remain susceptible to increases in food costs as a result of factors beyond our control, such as general economic conditions, seasonal fluctuations, weather conditions, demand, food safety concerns, generalized infectious diseases, product recalls, fuel prices and other government regulations. Therefore, material increases in the prices of the ingredients most critical to our menu could adversely affect our operating results or cause us to consider changes to our product delivery strategy and adjustments to our menu pricing.
If any of our distributors or suppliers perform inadequately, or our distribution or supply relationships are disrupted for any reason, there could be a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Although we often enter into contracts for the purchase of food products and supplies, we do not have long-term contracts for the purchase of all such food products and supplies. As a result, we may not be able to anticipate or react to changing food costs by adjusting our purchasing practices or menu prices, which could cause our operating results to deteriorate. If we cannot replace or engage distributors or suppliers who meet our specifications in a short period of time, that could increase our expenses and cause shortages of food and other items at our restaurants, which could cause a restaurant to remove items from its menu. If that were to happen, affected restaurants could experience significant reductions in sales during the shortage or thereafter, if customers change their dining habits as a result. In addition, although we provide modestly priced food, we may choose not to, or may be unable to, pass along commodity price increases to consumers, including price increases with respect to ground beef, chicken, produce, dairy, packaging or other commodities. These potential changes in food and supply costs could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our revenue forecasts rely on an aggressive franchise unit sales strategy. In the event the forecasted numbers are not achieved, we will have a material negative impact on future revenues.
Our revenue projections consist of both company operated and franchised locations. Our growth plans call for an aggressive approach to franchise unit level sales and subsequent openings. In the event we cannot meet these forecasts due to the inability to sell franchise locations in certain states, are prevented from selling franchises due to historical performance, government regulations, licensing, state registrations, or other factors, we will have a material negative impact on future revenues. Our revenue model and cash flows rely heavily on initial franchise fees, ongoing 5% royalties of total net sales and vendor rebates on total purchases and services from franchised locations. A significant reduction in the total number of units sold and subsequently opened would have a material adverse effect on future revenues.
Failure to manage our growth effectively could harm our business and operating results.
Our growth plan includes opening a significant number of new restaurants, both franchised and company-owned. Our existing restaurant management systems, financial and management controls and information systems may be inadequate to support our planned expansion. Managing our growth effectively will require us to continue to enhance these systems, procedures and controls and to hire, train and retain managers and team members. We may not respond quickly enough to the changing demands that our expansion will impose on our management, restaurant teams and existing infrastructure, which could harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The planned rapid increase in the number of our restaurants may make our future results unpredictable.
We intend to continue to increase the number of our company-owned and franchised restaurants in the next several years. This growth strategy and the substantial investment associated with the development of each new restaurant may cause our operating results to fluctuate unpredictably or have an adverse effect on our profits. In addition, we may find that our restaurant concept has limited appeal in new markets or we may experience a decline in the popularity of our restaurant concept in the markets in which we operate. Newly opened restaurants or our future markets and restaurants may not be successful or our system-wide average restaurant revenue may not increase, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The financial performance of our franchisees can negatively impact our business.
As approximately 47% of our restaurants are franchised as of December 31, 2020, our financial results are dependent in significant part upon the operational and financial success of our franchisees. We receive royalties, franchise fees, vendor rebates, contributions to our marketing development fund and local co-op advertising funds and other fees from our franchisees. We also collect rebates from vendors supplying franchisees for food purchases, services and materials. We have established operational standards and guidelines for our franchisees; however, we have limited control over how our franchisees’ businesses are run. While we are responsible for the anticipated success of our entire system of restaurants and for taking a longer-term view with respect to system improvements, our franchisees have individual business strategies and objectives, which might conflict with our interests. Our franchisees may not be able to secure adequate financing to open or continue operating their Muscle Maker Grill restaurants. If they incur too much debt or if economic or sales trends deteriorate such that they are unable to repay existing debt, our franchisees could experience financial distress or even bankruptcy. If a significant number of franchisees become financially distressed, it could harm our operating results through reduced royalty revenues and the impact on our profitability could be greater than the percentage decrease in the royalty revenues. Closure of franchised restaurants would reduce our royalty revenues and other sources of income and could negatively impact margins, since we may not be able to reduce fixed costs which we continue to incur.
We have limited control with respect to the operations of our franchisees, which could have a negative impact on our business.
Franchisees are independent business operators and are not our employees, and we do not exercise control over the day-to-day operations of their restaurants. We provide training and support to franchisees, and set and monitor operational standards, but the quality of franchised restaurants may be diminished by any number of factors beyond our control. Consequently, franchisees may not successfully operate restaurants in a manner consistent with our standards and requirements or may not hire and train qualified managers and other restaurant personnel. If franchisees do not operate to our expectations, our image and reputation, and the image and reputation of other franchisees, may suffer materially and system-wide sales could decline significantly, which would reduce our royalty and other revenues, and the impact on profitability could be greater than the percentage decrease in royalties and fees.
The challenging economic environment may affect our franchisees, with adverse consequences to us.
We rely in part on our franchisees and the manner in which they operate their locations to develop and promote our business. Due to the continuing challenging economic environment, it is possible that some franchisees could file for bankruptcy or become delinquent in their payments to us, which could have a significant adverse impact on our business due to loss or delay in payments of royalties, contributions to our marketing development fund and brand development/advertising funds and other fees. Bankruptcies by our franchisees could prevent us from terminating their franchise agreements so that we can offer their territories to other franchisees, negatively impact our market share and operating results as we may have fewer well-performing restaurants, and adversely impact our ability to attract new franchisees.
We cannot be certain that the developers and franchisees we select will have the business acumen or financial resources necessary to open and operate successful franchises in their franchise areas, and state franchise laws may limit our ability to terminate or modify these franchise arrangements. Moreover, franchisees may not successfully operate restaurants in a manner consistent with our standards and requirements or may not hire and train qualified managers and other restaurant personnel. The failure of developers and franchisees to open and operate franchises successfully could have a material adverse effect on us, our reputation, our brand and our ability to attract prospective franchisees and could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Franchisees may not have access to the financial or management resources that they need to open the restaurants contemplated by their agreements with us or be able to find suitable sites on which to develop them. Franchisees may not be able to negotiate acceptable lease or purchase terms for restaurant sites, obtain the necessary permits and government approvals or meet construction schedules. Any of these problems could slow our growth and reduce our franchise revenues. Additionally, our franchisees typically depend on financing from banks and other financial institutions, which may not always be available to them, in order to construct and open new restaurants. For these reasons, franchisees operating under development agreements may not be able to meet the new restaurant opening dates required under those agreements.
Our system-wide restaurant base is geographically concentrated in the Northeastern United States, and we could be negatively affected by conditions specific to that region.
Our company-operated and franchised restaurants in the Northeastern United States represent approximately 41% of our system-wide restaurants as of December 31, 2020. Our company-operated and franchised restaurants in New Jersey and New York represent approximately 31% of our system-wide restaurants as of December 31, 2020. Adverse changes in demographic, unemployment, economic, regulatory or weather conditions in the Northeastern United States have had, and may continue to have, material adverse effects on our business. As a result of our concentration in this market, we have been, and in the future may be, disproportionately affected by these adverse conditions compared to other chain restaurants with a national footprint.
In addition, our competitors could open additional restaurants in New Jersey and New York, where we have significant concentration with 10 of our system restaurants, which could result in reduced market share for us and may adversely impact our profitability.
Negative publicity could reduce sales at some or all of our restaurants.
We may, from time to time, be faced with negative publicity relating to food quality, the safety, sanitation and welfare of our restaurant facilities, customer complaints or litigation alleging illness or injury, health inspection scores, integrity of our or our suppliers’ food processing and other policies, practices and procedures, employee relationships and welfare or other matters at one or more of our restaurants. Negative publicity may adversely affect us, regardless of whether the allegations are valid or whether we are held to be responsible. In addition, the negative impact of adverse publicity relating to one restaurant may extend far beyond the restaurant involved, especially due to the high geographic concentration of many of our restaurants, to affect some or all of our other restaurants, including our franchised restaurants. The risk of negative publicity is particularly great with respect to our franchised restaurants because we are limited in the manner in which we can regulate them, especially on a real-time basis and negative publicity from our franchised restaurants may also significantly impact company-operated restaurants. A similar risk exists with respect to food service businesses unrelated to us, if customers mistakenly associate such unrelated businesses with our operations. Employee claims against us based on, among other things, wage and hour violations, discrimination, harassment or wrongful termination may also create not only legal and financial liability but negative publicity that could adversely affect us and divert our financial and management resources that would otherwise be used to benefit the future performance of our operations. These types of employee claims could also be asserted against us, on a co-employer theory, by employees of our franchisees. A significant increase in the number of these claims or an increase in the number of successful claims could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Food safety and quality concerns may negatively impact our business and profitability, our internal operational controls and standards may not always be met and our employees may not always act professionally, responsibly and in our and our customers’ best interests. Any possible instances of food-borne illness could reduce our restaurant sales.
Incidents or reports of food-borne or water-borne illness or other food safety issues, food contamination or tampering, employee hygiene and cleanliness failures or improper employee conduct at our restaurants could lead to product liability or other claims. Such incidents or reports could negatively affect our brand and reputation as well as our business, revenues and profits. Similar incidents or reports occurring at limited service restaurants unrelated to us could likewise create negative publicity, which could negatively impact consumer behavior towards us.
We cannot guarantee to consumers that our internal controls and training will be fully effective in preventing all food-borne illnesses. Furthermore, our reliance on third-party food processors and distributors makes it difficult to monitor food safety compliance and may increase the risk that food-borne illness would affect multiple locations rather than single restaurants. Some food-borne illness incidents could be caused by third-party food suppliers and transporters outside of our control. New illnesses resistant to our current precautions may develop in the future, or diseases with long incubation periods could arise, that could give rise to claims or allegations on a retroactive basis. One or more instances of food-borne illness in one of our company-operated or franchised restaurants could negatively affect sales at all of our restaurants if highly publicized, especially due to the high geographic concentration of many of our restaurants. This risk exists even if it were later determined that the illness was wrongly attributed to one of our restaurants. A number of other restaurant chains have experienced incidents related to food-borne illnesses that have had material adverse impacts on their operations, and we cannot assure you that we could avoid a similar impact upon the occurrence of a similar incident at one of our restaurants. Additionally, even if food-borne illnesses were not identified at our restaurants, our restaurant sales could be adversely affected if instances of food-borne illnesses at other restaurant chains were highly publicized. In addition, our restaurant sales could be adversely affected by publicity regarding other high-profile illnesses such as avian flu that customers may associate with our food products.
The volatile credit and capital markets could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.
Our ability to manage our debt is dependent on our level of cash flow from company-operated and franchised restaurants, net of costs. It is anticipated that in 2021 the company will not have positive cash flow and will require additional outside funding to maintain operations. An economic downturn may negatively impact our cash flows. Credit and capital markets can be volatile, which could make it more difficult for us to refinance our existing debt or to obtain additional debt or equity financings in the future. Such constraints could increase our costs of borrowing and could restrict our access to other potential sources of future liquidity. Our failure to have sufficient liquidity to make interest and other payments required by our debt could result in a default of such debt and acceleration of our borrowings, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition. The lack of availability or access to build-to-suit leases and equipment financing leases could result in a decreased number of new restaurants and have a negative impact on our growth.
Our strategy to open a significant amount of company-owned and operated restaurants on non-traditional sites such as universities, office buildings, ghost kitchens, military bases, airports and casinos could fail.
The company currently has locations open and in development on military bases through the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, or AAFES, as well as the Marines. In addition, as of December 31, 2020, the company has four university locations built but not open due to covid restrictions and one additional lease signed for future development. The company continues to identify and open ghost kitchen locations and other non-traditional consumer access points. The company will continue to seek non-traditional locations and consumer access across multiple venues. In the event these locations do not become available in the future or the Company is not awarded specific sites, the total restaurant count of company-owned and operated locations could be materially affected. In addition, non-traditional sites tend to have a lower capital investment to build out and more favorable lease terms. In the event we cannot obtain non-traditional sites, the total outlay of capital expenditures could increase significantly over time for new locations outside of non-traditional installations.
A military conflict or large troop deployment could affect our revenue at company and franchise military locations in the future.
Our current company-operated non-traditional location strategy focuses on building restaurants on non-traditional locations such as universities, office buildings, military bases, airports and casinos. Our military bases are built in support of “Operation Live Well” and the desire of the United States military to offer healthier eating options on its bases. In the event of a large troop deployment or military conflict, the total number of troops present on any given base could be materially reduced and therefore our total revenues in these locations would likely be reduced accordingly.
The interests of our franchisees may conflict with ours or yours in the future and we could face liability from our franchisees or related to our relationship with our franchisees.
Franchisees, as independent business operators, may from time to time disagree with us and our strategies regarding the business or our interpretation of our respective rights and obligations under the franchise agreement and the terms and conditions of the franchisee/franchisor relationship. This may lead to disputes with our franchisees and we expect such disputes to occur from time to time in the future as we continue to offer franchises. Such disputes may result in legal action against us. To the extent we have such disputes, the attention, time and financial resources of our management and our franchisees will be diverted from our restaurants, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows even if we have a successful outcome in the dispute.
In addition, various state and federal laws govern our relationship with our franchisees and our potential sale of a franchise. A franchisee and/or a government agency may bring legal action against us based on the franchisee/franchisor relationships that could result in the award of damages to franchisees and/or the imposition of fines or other penalties against us.
The personal information that we collect may be vulnerable to breach, theft or loss that could adversely affect our reputation, results of operation and financial condition.
In the ordinary course of our business, we collect, process, transmit and retain personal information regarding our employees and their families, our franchisees, vendors and consumers, which can include social security numbers, social insurance numbers, banking and tax identification information, health care information and credit card information and our franchisees collect similar information. Some of this personal information is held and managed by our franchisees and certain of our vendors. A third-party may be able to circumvent the security and business controls we use to limit access and use of personal information, which could result in a breach of employee, consumer or franchisee privacy. A major breach, theft or loss of personal information regarding our employees and their families, our franchisees, vendors or consumers that is held by us or our vendors could result in substantial fines, penalties, indemnification claims and potential litigation against us which could negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition. As a result of legislative and regulatory rules, we may be required to notify the owners of the personal information of any data breaches, which could harm our reputation and financial results, as well as subject us to litigation or actions by regulatory authorities. Furthermore, media or other reports of existing or perceived security vulnerabilities in our systems or those of our franchisees or vendors, even if no breach has been attempted or has occurred, can adversely impact our brand and reputation, and thereby materially impact our business.
Significant capital investments and other expenditures could be required to remedy a breach and prevent future problems, including costs associated with additional security technologies, personnel, experts and credit monitoring services for those whose data has been breached. These costs, which could be material, could adversely impact our results of operations during the period in which they are incurred. The techniques and sophistication used to conduct cyber-attacks and breaches, as well as the sources and targets of these attacks, change frequently and are often not recognized until such attacks are launched or have been in place for a period of time. Accordingly, our expenditures to prevent future cyber-attacks or breaches may not be successful.
Information technology system failures or interruptions or breaches of our network security may interrupt our operations, subject us to increased operating costs and expose us to litigation.
As our reliance on technology has increased, so have the risks posed to our systems. We rely heavily on our computer systems and network infrastructure across operations including, but not limited to, point-of-sale processing at our restaurants, as well as the systems of our third-party vendors to whom we outsource certain administrative functions. Despite our implementation of security measures, all of our technology systems are vulnerable to damage, disruption or failures due to physical theft, fire, power loss, telecommunications failure or other catastrophic events, as well as from problems with transitioning to upgraded or replacement systems, internal and external security breaches, denial of service attacks, viruses, worms and other disruptive problems caused by hackers. If any of our technology systems were to fail, and we were unable to recover in a timely way, we could experience an interruption in our operations. Furthermore, if unauthorized access to or use of our systems were to occur, data related to our proprietary information could be compromised. The occurrence of any of these incidents could have a material adverse effect on our future financial condition and results of operations. To the extent that some of our reporting systems require or rely on manual processes, it could increase the risk of a breach due to human error.
In addition, we receive and maintain certain personal information about our customers, franchisees and employees, and our franchisees receive and maintain similar information. For example, in connection with credit card transactions, we and our franchisees collect and transmit confidential credit card information by way of retail networks. We also maintain important internal data, such as personally identifiable information about our employees and franchisees and information relating to our operation. Our use of personally identifiable information is regulated by applicable laws and regulations. If our security and information systems or those of our franchisees are compromised or our business associates fail to comply with these laws and regulations and this information is obtained by unauthorized persons or used inappropriately, it could adversely affect our reputation, as well as our restaurant operations and results of operations and financial condition. As privacy and information security laws and regulations change, we may incur additional costs to ensure that we remain in compliance.
Further, the standards for systems currently used for transmission and approval of electronic payment transactions, and the technology utilized in electronic payment themselves, all of which can put electronic payment data at risk, are determined and controlled by the payment card industry, not by us. If someone is able to circumvent our data security measures or that of third parties with whom we do business, including our franchisees, he or she could destroy or steal valuable information or disrupt our operations. Any security breach could expose us to risks of data loss, litigation, liability, and could seriously disrupt our operations. Any resulting negative publicity could significantly harm our reputation and could materially and adversely affect our business and operating results.
A number of our systems and processes are not fully integrated and, as a result, require us to manually estimate and consolidate certain information that we use to manage our business. To the extent that we are not able to obtain transparency into our operations from our systems, it could impair the ability of our management to react quickly to changes in the business or economic environment.
We anticipate expanding, upgrading and developing our information technology capabilities. If we are unable to successfully upgrade or expand our technological capabilities, we may not be able to take advantage of market opportunities, manage our costs and transactional data effectively, satisfy customer requirements, execute our business plan or respond to competitive pressures.
We outsource certain aspects of our business to third-party vendors which subjects us to risks, including disruptions in our business and increased costs.
We have outsourced certain administrative functions for our business to third-party service providers. We also outsource certain information technology support services and benefit plan administration. In the future, we may outsource other functions to achieve cost savings and efficiencies. If the service providers to which we outsource these functions do not perform effectively or are negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, we may not be able to achieve the expected cost savings and may have to incur additional costs in connection with such failure to perform. Depending on the function involved, such failures may also lead to business disruption, transaction errors, processing inefficiencies, the loss of sales and customers, the loss of or damage to intellectual property through security breach, and the loss of sensitive data through security breach or otherwise. Any such damage or interruption could have a material adverse effect on our business, cause us to face significant fines, customer notice obligations or costly litigation, harm our reputation with our customers or prevent us from paying our collective suppliers or employees or receiving payments on a timely basis.
The failure to enforce and maintain our trademarks and protect our other intellectual property could materially adversely affect our business, including our ability to establish and maintain brand awareness.
We have registered Muscle Maker Grill®, Healthy Joe’s and certain other names used by our restaurants as trademarks or service marks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The Muscle Maker Grill® trademark is also registered in some form in one foreign country. Our current brand campaign, “Great Food with Your Health in Mind” has also been approved for registration with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. In addition, the Muscle Maker Grill logo, website name and address (www.musclemakergrill.com) and Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media accounts are our intellectual property. The success of our business strategy depends on our continued ability to use our existing trademarks and service marks in order to increase brand awareness and develop our branded products. If our efforts to protect our intellectual property are not adequate, or if any third-party misappropriates or infringes on our intellectual property, whether in print, on the Internet or through other media, the value of our brands may be harmed, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, including the failure of our brands and branded products to achieve and maintain market acceptance. There can be no assurance that all of the steps we have taken to protect our intellectual property in the United States and in foreign countries will be adequate. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as do the laws of the United States.
We or our suppliers maintain the seasonings and additives for our food offerings, as well as certain standards, specifications and operating procedures, as trade secrets or confidential information. We may not be able to prevent the unauthorized disclosure or use of our trade secrets or information, despite the existence of confidentiality agreements and other measures. While we try to ensure that the quality of our brand and branded products is maintained by all of our franchisees, we cannot be certain that these franchisees will not take actions that adversely affect the value of our intellectual property or reputation. If any of our trade secrets or information were to be disclosed to or independently developed by a competitor, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
Third-party claims with respect to intellectual property assets, if decided against us, may result in competing uses or require adoption of new, non-infringing intellectual property, which may in turn adversely affect sales and revenues.
There can be no assurance that third parties will not assert infringement or misappropriation claims against us, or assert claims that our rights in our trademarks, service marks, trade dress and other intellectual property assets are invalid or unenforceable. Any such claims could have a material adverse effect on us or our franchisees if such claims were to be decided against us. If our rights in any intellectual property were invalidated or deemed unenforceable, it could permit competing uses of intellectual property which, in turn, could lead to a decline in restaurant revenues. If the intellectual property became subject to third-party infringement, misappropriation or other claims, and such claims were decided against us, we may be forced to pay damages, be required to develop or adopt non-infringing intellectual property or be obligated to acquire a license to the intellectual property that is the subject of the asserted claim. There could be significant expenses associated with the defense of any infringement, misappropriation, or other third-party claims.
We depend on our executive officers, the loss of whom could materially harm our business.
We rely upon the accumulated knowledge, skills and experience of our executive officers and significant employees. Our executive officers and significant employees have cumulative experience of more than 100 years in the food service industry. If they were to leave us or become incapacitated, we might suffer in our planning and execution of business strategy and operations, impacting our brand and financial results. We also do not maintain any key man life insurance policies for any of our employees.
Matters relating to employment and labor law may adversely affect our business.
Various federal and state labor laws govern our relationships with our employees and affect operating costs. These laws include employee classifications as exempt or non-exempt, minimum wage requirements, unemployment tax rates, workers’ compensation rates, citizenship requirements and other wage and benefit requirements for employees classified as non-exempt. Significant additional government regulations and new laws, including mandating increases in minimum wages, changes in exempt and non-exempt status, or mandated benefits such as health insurance could materially affect our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flow. Furthermore, if our or our franchisees’ employees unionize, it could materially affect our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flow.
We are also subject in the ordinary course of business to employee claims against us based, among other things, on discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, or violation of wage and labor laws. Such claims could also be asserted against us by employees of our franchisees. Moreover, claims asserted against franchisees may at times be made against us as a franchisor. These claims may divert our financial and management resources that would otherwise be used to benefit our operations. The ongoing expense of any resulting lawsuits, and any substantial settlement payment or damage award against us, could adversely affect our business, brand image, employee recruitment, financial condition, operating results or cash flows.
In addition, various states in which we operate are considering or have already adopted new immigration laws or enforcement programs, and the United States Congress and Department of Homeland Security from time to time consider and may implement changes to federal immigration laws, regulations or enforcement programs as well. Some of these changes may increase our obligations for compliance and oversight, which could subject us to additional costs and make our hiring process more cumbersome or reduce the availability of potential employees. Although we require all workers to provide us with government-specified documentation evidencing their employment eligibility, some of our employees may, without our knowledge, be unauthorized workers. Unauthorized workers are subject to deportation and may subject us to fines or penalties, and if any of our workers are found to be unauthorized, we could experience adverse publicity that negatively impacts our brand and may make it more difficult to hire and keep qualified employees. Termination of a significant number of employees who were unauthorized employees may disrupt our operations, cause temporary increases in our labor costs as we train new employees and result in additional adverse publicity. We could also become subject to fines, penalties and other costs related to claims that we did not fully comply with all recordkeeping obligations of federal and state immigration compliance laws. These factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Restaurant companies have been the target of class action lawsuits and other proceedings alleging, among other things, violations of federal and state workplace and employment laws. Proceedings of this nature are costly, divert management attention and, if successful, could result in our payment of substantial damages or settlement costs.
Our business is subject to the risk of litigation by employees, consumers, suppliers, franchisees, stockholders or others through private actions, class actions, administrative proceedings, regulatory actions or other litigation. The outcome of litigation, particularly class action and regulatory actions, is difficult to assess or quantify. In recent years, restaurant companies, including us, have been subject to lawsuits, including lawsuits, alleging violations of federal and state laws regarding workplace and employment conditions, discrimination and similar matters. A number of these lawsuits have resulted in the payment of substantial damages by the defendants. Similar lawsuits have been instituted from time to time alleging violations of various federal and state wage and hour laws regarding, among other things, employee meal deductions, overtime eligibility of managers and failure to pay for all hours worked.
Occasionally, our customers file complaints or lawsuits against us alleging that we are responsible for some illness or injury they suffered at or after a visit to one of our restaurants, including actions seeking damages resulting from food-borne illness or accidents in our restaurants. We are also subject to a variety of other claims from third parties arising in the ordinary course of our business, including contract claims. The restaurant industry has also been subject to a growing number of claims that the menus and actions of restaurant chains have led to the obesity of certain of their customers. We may also be subject to lawsuits from our employees, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or others alleging violations of federal and state laws regarding workplace and employment conditions, discrimination and similar matters.
Regardless of whether any claims against us are valid or whether we are liable, claims may be expensive to defend and may divert time and money away from our operations and result in increases in our insurance premiums. In addition, they may generate negative publicity, which could reduce customer traffic and sales. Although we maintain what we believe to have adequate levels of insurance, insurance may not be available at all or in sufficient amounts to cover any liabilities with respect to these or other matters. A judgment or other liability in excess of our insurance coverage for any claims or any adverse publicity resulting from claims could adversely affect our business and results of operations.
If we or our franchisees face labor shortages or increased labor costs, our results of operations and our growth could be adversely affected.
Labor is a primary component in the cost of operating our company-operated and franchised restaurants. If we or our franchisees face labor shortages or increased labor costs because of increased competition for employees, higher employee-turnover rates, unionization of restaurant workers, or increases in the federally-mandated or state-mandated minimum wage, change in exempt and non-exempt status, or other employee benefits costs (including costs associated with health insurance coverage or workers’ compensation insurance), our and our franchisees’ operating expenses could increase and our growth could be adversely affected.
We have a substantial number of hourly employees who are paid wage rates at or based on the applicable federal or state minimum wage and increases in the minimum wage will increase our labor costs and the labor costs of our franchisees. The federal minimum wage has been $7.25 per hour since July 24, 2009. Federally-mandated, state-mandated or locally-mandated minimum wages may be raised in the future. We may be unable to increase our menu prices in order to pass future increased labor costs on to our customers, in which case our margins would be negatively affected. Also, reduced margins of franchisees could make it more difficult to sell franchises. If menu prices are increased by us and our franchisees to cover increased labor costs, the higher prices could adversely affect transactions which could lower sales and thereby reduce our margins and the royalties that we receive from franchisees.
In addition, our success depends in part upon our and our franchisees’ ability to attract, motivate and retain a sufficient number of well-qualified restaurant operators, management personnel and other employees. Qualified individuals needed to fill these positions can be in short supply in some geographic areas. In addition, limited service restaurants have traditionally experienced relatively high employee turnover rates. Although we have not yet experienced any significant problems in recruiting employees, our and our franchisees’ ability to recruit and retain such individuals may delay the planned openings of new restaurants or result in higher employee turnover in existing restaurants, which could increase our and our franchisees’ labor costs and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. If we or our franchisees are unable to recruit and retain sufficiently qualified individuals, our business and our growth could be adversely affected. Competition for these employees could require us or our franchisees to pay higher wages, which could also result in higher labor costs.
We are locked into long-term and non-cancelable leases and may be unable to renew leases at the end of their terms.
Many of our restaurant leases are non-cancelable and typically have initial terms up to between 5 and 10 years and 1-3 renewal terms of 5 years each that we may exercise at our option. Even if we close a restaurant, we are required to perform our obligations under the applicable lease, which could include, among other things, a provision for a closed restaurant reserve when the restaurant is closed, which would impact our profitability, and payment of the base rent, property taxes, insurance and maintenance for the balance of the lease term. In addition, in connection with leases for restaurants that we will continue to operate, we may, at the end of the lease term and any renewal period for a restaurant, be unable to renew the lease without substantial additional cost, if at all. As a result, we may close or relocate the restaurant, which could subject us to construction and other costs and risks. Additionally, the revenues and profit, if any, generated at a relocated restaurant may not equal the revenues and profit generated at the existing restaurant.
We and our franchisees are subject to extensive government regulations that could result in claims leading to increased costs and restrict our ability to operate or sell franchises.
We and our franchisees are subject to extensive government regulation at the federal, state and local government levels. These include, but are not limited to, regulations relating to the preparation and sale of food, zoning and building codes, franchising, land use and employee, health, sanitation and safety matters. We and our franchisees are required to obtain and maintain a wide variety of governmental licenses, permits and approvals. Difficulty or failure in obtaining them in the future could result in delaying or canceling the opening of new restaurants. Local authorities may suspend or deny renewal of our governmental licenses if they determine that our operations do not meet the standards for initial grant or renewal. This risk would be even higher if there were a major change in the licensing requirements affecting our types of restaurants.
We are subject to the U.S. Americans with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”) and similar state laws that give civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities in the context of employment, public accommodations and other areas, including our restaurants. We may in the future have to modify restaurants, websites or other consumer interaction points by adding access ramps or redesigning certain architectural fixtures or software programs, for example, to provide service to or make reasonable accommodations for disabled persons. The expenses associated with these modifications could be material.
Our operations are also subject to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Act, which governs worker health and safety, the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act, which governs such matters as minimum wages and overtime, the U.S. Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and a variety of similar federal, state and local laws that govern these and other employment law matters. We and our franchisees may also be subject to lawsuits from our employees, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or others alleging violations of federal and state laws regarding workplace and employment matters, discrimination and similar matters, and we have been a party to such matters in the past. In addition, federal, state and local proposals related to paid sick leave or similar matters could, if implemented, have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (the “PPACA”) requires employers such as us to provide adequate and affordable health insurance for all qualifying employees or pay a monthly per-employee fee or penalty for non-compliance beginning in fiscal 2015. We began to offer such health insurance benefits on January 1, 2015 to all eligible employees and may incur substantial additional expense due to organizing and maintaining the plan which we anticipate will be more expensive on a per person basis and for an increased number of employees who we anticipate at other times may elect to obtain coverage through a healthcare plan that we partially subsidize. If we fail to offer such benefits, or the benefits that we elect to offer do not meet the applicable requirements, we may incur penalties. Since the PPACA also requires individuals to obtain coverage or face individual penalties, employees who are currently eligible but elect not to participate in our healthcare plans may find it more advantageous to do so when such individual penalties increase in size. It is also possible that by making changes or failing to make changes in the healthcare plans offered by us, we will become less competitive in the market for our labor. Finally, implementing the requirements of the PPACA is likely to impose additional administrative costs. The costs and other effects of these new healthcare requirements cannot be determined with certainty, but they may significantly increase our healthcare coverage costs and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
There is also a potential for increased regulation of certain food establishments in the United States, where compliance with a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (“HACCP”) approach would be required. HACCP refers to a management system in which food safety is addressed through the analysis and control of potential hazards from production, procurement and handling, to manufacturing, distribution and consumption of the finished product. Many states have required restaurants to develop and implement HACCP Systems, and the United States government continues to expand the sectors of the food industry that must adopt and implement HACCP programs. For example, the Food Safety Modernization Act (the “FSMA”), signed into law in January 2011, granted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”) new authority regarding the safety of the entire food system, including through increased inspections and mandatory food recalls. Although restaurants are specifically exempted from or not directly implicated by some of these new requirements, we anticipate that the new requirements may impact our industry. Additionally, our suppliers may initiate or otherwise be subject to food recalls that may impact the availability of certain products, result in adverse publicity or require us to take actions that could be costly for us or otherwise impact our business.
We are also subject to regulation by the Federal Trade Commission and subject to state laws that govern the offer, sale, renewal and termination of franchises and our relationship with our franchisees. The failure to comply with these laws and regulations in any jurisdiction or to obtain required approvals could result in a ban or temporary suspension on franchise sales, fines or the requirement that we make a rescission offer to franchisees, any of which could affect our ability to open new restaurants in the future and thus could materially adversely affect our business and operating results. Any such failure could also subject us to liability to our franchisees.
Federal, State and Local Regulation and Compliance
We are subject to extensive federal, state and local government regulation, including those relating to, among others, public health and safety, zoning and fire codes, and franchising. Failure to obtain or retain food or other licenses and registrations or exemptions would adversely affect the operations of restaurants. Although we have not experienced and do not anticipate any significant problems in obtaining required licenses, permits or approvals, any difficulties, delays or failures in obtaining such licenses, permits, registrations, exemptions, or approvals could delay or prevent the opening of, or adversely impact the viability of, a restaurant in a particular area.
The development and construction of additional restaurants will be subject to compliance with applicable zoning, land use and environmental regulations. We believe federal and state environmental regulations have not had a material effect on operations, but more stringent and varied requirements of local government bodies with respect to zoning, land use and environmental factors could delay construction and increase development costs for new restaurants.
We are also subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 and various federal and state laws governing such matters as minimum wages, overtime, unemployment tax rates, workers’ compensation rates, citizenship requirements and other working conditions. A significant portion of the hourly staff is paid at rates consistent with the applicable federal or state minimum wage and, accordingly, increases in the minimum wage will increase labor costs. In addition, the PPACA increased medical costs beginning in fiscal 2015. We are also subject to the Americans With Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in public accommodations and employment, which may require us to design or modify our restaurants to make reasonable accommodations for disabled persons.
In addition, we must comply with regulations adopted by the Federal Trade Commission, or the FTC, and with several state laws that regulate the offer and sale of franchises. The FTC’s Trade Regulation Rule on Franchising, or the FTC Rule, and certain state laws require that we furnish prospective franchisees with a franchise offering circular or Franchise Disclosure Document containing information prescribed by the FTC Rule and applicable state laws and regulations.
We also must comply with a number of state laws that regulate some substantive aspects of the franchisor-franchisee relationship. These laws may limit a franchisor’s ability to: terminate or not renew a franchise without good cause; prohibit interference with the right of free association among franchisees; alter franchise agreements; disapprove the transfer of a franchise; discriminate among franchisees with regard to charges, royalties and other fees; and place new stores near existing franchises. Bills intended to regulate certain aspects of franchise relationships have been introduced into Congress on several occasions during the last decade, but none have been enacted.
We may become subject to liabilities arising from environmental laws that could likely increase our operating expenses and materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.
We are subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations, including those concerning waste disposal, pollution, protection of the environment, and the presence, discharge, storage, handling, release and disposal of, and exposure to, hazardous or toxic substances. These environmental laws provide for significant fines and penalties for non-compliance and liabilities for remediation, sometimes without regard to whether the owner or operator of the property knew of, or was responsible for, the release or presence of hazardous toxic substances. Third parties may also make claims against owners or operators of properties for personal injuries and property damage associated with releases of, or actual or alleged exposure to, such hazardous or toxic substances at, on or from our restaurants. Environmental conditions relating to the presence of hazardous substances at prior, existing or future restaurant sites could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Further, environmental laws and regulations, and the administration, interpretation and enforcement thereof, are subject to change and may become more stringent in the future, each of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We are subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to environmental protection, including regulation of discharges into the air and water, storage and disposal of waste and clean-up of contaminated soil and groundwater. Under various federal, state and local laws, an owner or operator of real estate may be liable for the costs of removal or remediation of hazardous or toxic substances on, in or emanating from such property. Such liability may be imposed without regard to whether the owner or operator knew of, or was responsible for, the presence of such hazardous or toxic substances, and in some cases, we may have obligations imposed by indemnity provisions in our leases.
No assurance can be given that we have identified all of the potential environmental liabilities at our properties or that such liabilities will not have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.
Legislation and regulations requiring the display and provision of nutritional information for our menu offerings, and new information or attitudes regarding diet and health or adverse opinions about the health effects of consuming our menu offerings, could affect consumer preferences and negatively impact our results of operations.
Government regulation and consumer eating habits may impact our business as a result of changes in attitudes regarding diet and health or new information regarding the health effects of consuming our menu offerings. These changes have resulted in, and may continue to result in, the enactment of laws and regulations that impact the ingredients and nutritional content of our menu offerings, or laws and regulations requiring us to disclose the nutritional content of our food offerings.
The PPACA establishes a uniform, federal requirement for certain restaurants to post certain nutritional information on their menus. Specifically, the PPACA amended the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to, as of December 1, 2015, require chain restaurants with 20 or more locations operating under the same name and offering substantially the same menus to publish the total number of calories of standard menu items on menus and menu boards, along with a statement that puts this calorie information in the context of a total daily calorie intake. The PPACA also requires covered restaurants to, as of December 1, 2015, provide to consumers, upon request, a written summary of detailed nutritional information for each standard menu item, and to provide a statement on menus and menu boards about the availability of this information. The PPACA further permits the United States Food and Drug Administration to require covered restaurants to make additional nutrient disclosures, such as disclosure of trans-fat content. An unfavorable report on, or reaction to, our menu ingredients, the size of our portions or the nutritional content of our menu items could negatively influence the demand for our offerings.
Furthermore, a number of states, counties and cities have enacted menu labeling laws requiring multi-unit restaurant operators to disclose certain nutritional information to customers or have enacted legislation restricting the use of certain types of ingredients, portion sizes or packaging materials in restaurants.
Compliance with current and future laws and regulations regarding the ingredients and nutritional content of our menu items may be costly and time-consuming. Additionally, if consumer health regulations or consumer eating habits change significantly, we may be required to modify or discontinue certain menu items, and we may experience higher costs associated with the implementation of those changes. Additionally, some government authorities are increasing regulations regarding trans-fats and sodium, which may require us to limit or eliminate trans-fats and sodium in our menu offerings or switch to higher cost ingredients or may hinder our ability to operate in certain markets. Some jurisdictions have banned certain cooking ingredients, such as trans-fats, which a limited number of our menu products contain in small, but measurable amounts, or have discussed banning certain products, such as large sodas. Removal of these products and ingredients from our menus could affect product tastes, customer satisfaction levels, and sales volumes, whereas if we fail to comply with these laws or regulations, our business could experience a material adverse effect.
We cannot make any assurances regarding our ability to effectively respond to changes in consumer health perceptions or our ability to successfully implement the nutrient content disclosure requirements and to adapt our menu offerings to trends in eating habits. The imposition of additional menu-labeling laws could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial position, as well as on the restaurant industry in general.
We are exposed to the risk of natural disasters, unusual weather conditions, pandemic outbreaks, political events, war and terrorism that could disrupt business and result in lower sales, increased operating costs and capital expenditures.
Our headquarters, company-operated and franchised restaurant locations, third-party sole distributor and its facilities, as well as certain of our vendors and customers, are located in areas which have been and could be subject to natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, fires or earthquakes. Adverse weather conditions or other extreme changes in the weather, including resulting electrical and technological failures, especially such events which occur in New Jersey and New York, as a result of the concentration of our restaurants, may disrupt our and our franchisees’ business and may adversely affect our and our franchisees’ ability to obtain food and supplies and sell menu items. Our business may be harmed if our or our franchisees’ ability to obtain food and supplies and sell menu items is impacted by any such events, any of which could influence customer trends and purchases and may negatively impact our and our franchisees’ revenues, properties or operations. Such events could result in physical damage to one or more of our or our franchisees’ properties, the temporary closure of some or all of our company-operated restaurants, franchised restaurants and third-party distributor, the temporary lack of an adequate work force in a market, temporary or long-term disruption in the transport of goods, delay in the delivery of goods and supplies to our company-operated and franchised restaurants and third-party distributor, disruption of our technology support or information systems, or fuel shortages or dramatic increases in fuel prices, all of which would increase the cost of doing business. These events also could have indirect consequences such as increases in the costs of insurance if they result in significant loss of property or other insurable damage. Any of these factors, or any combination thereof, could adversely affect our operations. Some of our restaurants are located on military bases. Our strategy as of July 2019 is to continue to build corporately owned and operated non-traditional restaurants, including on military bases, which in the event of a significant troop deployment, our total revenue and operating profits could be materially adversely affected.
Upon the expansion of our operations internationally, we could be adversely affected by violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar worldwide anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws.
We anticipate developing franchised locations located outside the United States. The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and other similar anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws and regulations, generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to non-U.S. officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. We cannot assure you that we will be successful in preventing our franchisees or other agents from taking actions in violation of these laws or regulations. Such violations, or allegations of such violations, could disrupt our business and result in a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We currently have two franchise locations in Kuwait.
Members of our board of directors and our executive officers will have other business interests and obligations to other entities.
Neither our directors nor our executive officers will be required to manage the Company as their sole and exclusive function and they may have other business interests and may engage in other activities in addition to those relating to the Company, provided that such activities do not compete with the business of the Company or otherwise breach their agreements with the Company. We are dependent on our directors and executive officers to successfully operate our Company. Their other business interests and activities could divert time and attention from operating our business
Pandemics or disease outbreaks, such as the current novel coronavirus (COVID-19 virus) pandemic may disrupt our business, which could materially affect our operations and results of operations.
Pandemics or disease outbreaks such as the current novel coronavirus (COVID-19 virus) pandemic, have and may continue to impact customer traffic at our restaurants, may make it more difficult to staff our restaurants and, in more severe cases, may cause a temporary inability to obtain supplies, increase commodity costs or cause full and partial temporary closures of our affected restaurants, sometimes for prolonged periods of time. We have temporarily shifted to a “take-out, curbside pickup or delivery” only operating model across all our company and franchise restaurants, temporarily suspending sit-down dining. We and our franchisees have also implemented temporary closures, modified hours of operation or reduced on-site staff, resulting in cancelled shifts for some of our employees. COVID-19 may also materially adversely affect the timing to implement our growth plans as certain states and cities temporarily restrict business operations and implement social distancing programs. These changes and any additional changes may materially adversely affect our business or results of operations particularly if these changes are in place for a significant amount of time. In addition, our operations could be disrupted if any of our employees or employees of our business partners were or are suspected of having COVID-19 or other illnesses since this could require us or our business partners to quarantine some or all such employees or close and disinfect our restaurant facilities. If a significant percentage of our workforce or the workforce of our business partners are unable to work, including because of illness or travel or government restrictions in connection with pandemics or disease outbreaks (including the current COVID-19 pandemic), our operations and financial condition may be negatively impacted. We could also be adversely affected if government authorities impose additional restrictions on public gatherings, human interactions, operations of restaurants or mandatory closures, seek voluntary closures, restrict hours of operations or impose curfews, restrict the import or export of products or if suppliers issue mass recalls of products.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Common Stock and Lack of Liquidity
If we are unable to implement and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our Common Stock may decline.
As a public company, we are required to maintain internal control over financial reporting and to report any material weaknesses in such internal control. Further, we are required to report any changes in internal controls on a quarterly basis. In addition, we must furnish a report by management on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. As of December 31, 2020, we had material weakness in our internal controls. We need to improve the design, implementation, and testing of the internal controls over financial reporting required to comply with these obligations. If we continue to identify material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting or are unable to remedy our existing material weaknesses, if we are unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner or assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion as to the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting when required, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of the Common Stock could be negatively affected. We also could become subject to investigations by the stock exchange on an exchange, Securities and Exchange Commission, or the Commission, or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources. In connection with management’s assessment of our internal control over financial reporting as required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, we identified the following material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020:
● We do not have written documentation of our internal control policies and procedures.
● We do not have sufficient resources in our accounting function, which restricts our ability to gather, analyze and properly review information related to financial reporting in a timely manner. In addition, due to our size and nature, segregation of all conflicting duties may not always be possible and may not be economically feasible. However, to the extent possible, the initiation of transactions, the custody of assets and the recording of transactions should be performed by separate individuals.
● We have inadequate controls to ensure that information necessary to properly record transactions is adequately communicated on a timely basis from non-financial personnel to those responsible for financial reporting.
● We have significant deficiencies in the design and implementation of IT controls, specifically in the following areas: data center and network operations, access security and change management.
As an emerging growth company, our auditor is not required to attest to the effectiveness of our internal controls.
Our independent registered public accounting firm is not required to attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting while we are an emerging growth company. This means that the effectiveness of our financial operations may differ from our peer companies in that they may be required to obtain independent registered public accounting firm attestations as to the effectiveness of their internal controls over financial reporting and we are not. While our management will be required to attest to internal control over financial reporting and we will be required to detail changes to our internal controls on a quarterly basis, we cannot provide assurance that the independent registered public accounting firm’s review process in assessing the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting, if obtained, would not find one or more material weaknesses or significant deficiencies. Further, once we cease to be an emerging growth company we will be subject to independent registered public accounting firm attestation regarding the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting. Even if management finds such controls to be effective, our independent registered public accounting firm may decline to attest to the effectiveness of such internal controls and issue a qualified report.
As a smaller reporting company and will be exempt from certain disclosure requirements, which could make our Common Stock less attractive to the potential investors.
Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act defines a “smaller reporting company” as an issuer that is not an investment company, an asset-backed issuer, or a majority-owned subsidiary of a parent that is not a smaller reporting company and that:
● had a public float of less than $250 million as of the last business day of its most recently completed second fiscal quarter, computed by multiplying the aggregate worldwide number of shares of its voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates by the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average of the bid and asked prices of common equity, in the principal market for the common equity; or
● in the case of an initial registration statement under the Securities Act, or the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which we refer to as the Exchange Act, for shares of its common equity, had a public float of less than $250 million as of a date within 30 days of the date of the filing of the registration statement, computed by multiplying the aggregate worldwide number of such shares held by non-affiliates before the registration plus, in the case of a Securities Act registration statement, the number of such shares included in the registration statement by the estimated public offering price of the shares; or
● in the case of an issuer whose public float as calculated under paragraph (1) or (2) of this definition was zero, had annual revenues of less than $100 million during the most recently completed fiscal year for which audited financial statements are available.
As a smaller reporting company, we will not be required and may not include a Compensation Discussion and Analysis section in our proxy statements; we will provide only two years of financial statements; and we need not provide the table of selected financial data. We also will have other “scaled” disclosure requirements that are less comprehensive than issuers that are not smaller reporting companies which could make our Common Stock less attractive to potential investors, which could make it more difficult for our stockholders to sell their shares.
As a public company, we will incur significant increased costs as a result of operating as a public company, and our management will be required to devote substantial time to new compliance initiatives.
As a public company, we have incurred significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we did not incur as a private company. In addition, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and rules of the SEC and those of the NASDAQ Capital Market has imposed various requirements on public companies including requiring establishment and maintenance of effective disclosure and financial controls. Our management and other personnel will need to devote a substantial amount of time to these compliance initiatives. Moreover, these rules and regulations have increased and will continue to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and will make some activities more time-consuming and costlier. For example, we expect that these rules and regulations may make it more difficult and more expensive for us to obtain directors’ and officers’ liability insurance, which could make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors. We cannot predict or estimate the amount of additional costs we will incur as a public company or the timing of such costs.
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. In particular, we must perform system and process evaluation and testing of our internal control over financial reporting to allow management to report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. In addition, we will be required to have our independent registered public accounting firm attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting the later of our second annual report on Form 10-K or the first annual report on Form 10-K following the date on which we are no longer an emerging growth company. Our compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act will require that we incur substantial accounting expense and expend significant management efforts. We currently do not have an internal audit group, and we will need to hire additional accounting and financial staff with appropriate public company experience and technical accounting knowledge. If we are not able to comply with the requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner, or if we or our independent registered public accounting firm identify deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses, the market price of our stock could decline and we could be subject to sanctions or investigations by the exchange we are listed on, the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which would require additional financial and management resources.
Our ability to successfully implement our business plan and comply with Section 404 requires us to be able to prepare timely and accurate financial statements. We expect that we will need to continue to improve existing, and implement new operational and financial systems, procedures and controls to manage our business effectively. Any delay in the implementation of, or disruption in the transition to, new or enhanced systems, procedures or controls, may cause our operations to suffer and we may be unable to conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is effective and to obtain an unqualified report on internal controls from our auditors as required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. This, in turn, could have an adverse impact on trading prices for our common stock, and could adversely affect our ability to access the capital markets.
We are an emerging growth company and subject to less rigorous public reporting requirements and cannot be certain if the reduced reporting requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our Common Stock less attractive to investors.
We are a public reporting company under the Exchange Act, and thereafter publicly report on an ongoing basis as an “emerging growth company” (as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, which we refer to as the JOBS Act) under the reporting rules set forth under the Exchange Act. For so long as we remain an “emerging growth company”, we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other Exchange Act reporting companies that are not “emerging growth companies”, including but not limited to:
● Not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act;
● Taking advantage of extensions of time to comply with certain new or revised financial accounting standards;
● Being permitted to comply with reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements; and
● Being exempt from the requirement to hold a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensations and stockholder approval of a golden parachute payments not previously approved.
We expect to take advantage of these reporting exemptions until we are no longer an emerging growth company. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the market value of our Common Stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million, if we issue $1 billion or more in non-convertible debt during a three-year period, or if our annual gross revenues exceed $1 billion. We would cease to be an emerging growth company on the last day of the fiscal year following the date of the fifth anniversary of our first sale of common equity securities under an effective registration statement or a fiscal year in which we have $1 billion in gross revenues. Finally, at any time we may choose to opt-out of the emerging growth company reporting requirements. If we choose to opt out, we will be unable to opt back in to being an emerging growth company.
We cannot predict if investors will find our Common Stock less attractive because we may rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our Common Stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our Common Stock and our stock price may be more volatile.
If our shares of Common Stock become subject to the penny stock rules, it would become more difficult to trade our shares.
The Commission has adopted rules that regulate broker-dealer practices in connection with transactions in penny stocks. Penny stocks are generally equity securities with a price per share of less than $5.00, other than securities registered on certain national securities exchanges or authorized for quotation on certain automated quotation systems, provided that current price and volume information with respect to transactions in such securities is provided by the exchange or system. If we do not obtain or retain a listing on the NYSE American or NASDAQ Capital Market and if the price of our Common Stock is less than $5.00 per share, our Common Stock will be deemed a penny stock. The penny stock rules require a broker-dealer, before effecting a transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from those rules, to deliver a standardized risk disclosure document containing specified information. In addition, the penny stock rules require that, before effecting any such transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from those rules, a broker-dealer must make a special written determination that the penny stock is a suitable investment for the purchaser and receive (i) the purchaser’s written acknowledgment of the receipt of a risk disclosure statement; (ii) a written agreement to transactions involving penny stocks; and (iii) a signed and dated copy of a written suitability statement. These disclosure requirements may have the effect of reducing the trading activity in the secondary market for our Common Stock, and therefore stockholders may have difficulty selling their shares.
FINRA sales practice requirements may limit a stockholder’s ability to buy and sell our stock.
In addition to the “penny stock” rules described above, FINRA has adopted rules that require that in recommending an investment to a customer, a broker-dealer must have reasonable grounds for believing that the investment is suitable for that customer. Prior to recommending speculative, low-priced securities to their non-institutional customers, broker-dealers must make reasonable efforts to obtain information about the customer’s financial status, tax status, investment objectives and other information. The FINRA requirements may make it more difficult for broker-dealers to recommend that their customers buy our Common Stock, which may have the effect of reducing the level of trading activity in our Common Stock. As a result, fewer broker-dealers may be willing to make a market in our common stock, reducing a stockholder’s ability to resell shares of our Common Stock.
Our stock price may be volatile.
The market price of our Common Stock has been highly volatile and could fluctuate widely in price in response to various potential factors, many of which will be beyond the Company’s control, including the following:
● services by the Company or its competitors;
● additions or departures of key personnel;
● the Company’s ability to execute its business plan;
● operating results that fall below expectations;
● loss of any strategic relationship;
● industry developments;
● economic and other external factors; and
● period-to-period fluctuations in the Company’s financial results.
In addition, the securities markets have from time-to-time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of the Company’s common stock.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, or publish negative reports about our business, our share price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for our common stock will, to some extent, depends on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. We do not have any control over these analysts. If one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our shares or change their opinion of our shares, our share price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause our share price or trading volume to decline.
We do not intend to pay dividends for the foreseeable future, which could reduce the attractiveness of our stock to some investors.
We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the operation and expansion of our business, and we do not expect to declare or pay any dividends in the foreseeable future. As a result, you may only receive a return on your investment in our common stock if the market price of our common stock increases. In addition, we may incur debt financing to further finance our operations, the governing documents of which may contain restrictions on our ability to pay dividends.
Provisions in our articles of incorporation and bylaws and Nevada law may discourage, delay or prevent a change of control of our company and, therefore, may depress the trading price of our stock.
Our articles of incorporation and bylaws contain certain provisions that may discourage, delay or prevent a change of control that our stockholders may consider favorable. These provisions:
● prohibit stockholder action to elect or remove directors by majority written consent;
● provide that the board of directors is expressly authorized to make, alter or repeal our bylaws;
● prohibit our stockholders from calling a special meeting of stockholders; and
● establish advance notice requirements for nominations for elections to our board of directors or for proposing matters that can be acted upon by stockholders at stockholder meetings.
We may be subject to securities litigation, which is expensive and could divert management attention.
In the past companies that have experienced volatility in the market price of their stock have been subject to securities class action litigation. We may be the target of this type of litigation in the future. Litigation of this type could result in substantial costs and diversion of management’s attention and resources, which could seriously hurt our business. Any adverse determination in litigation could also subject us to significant liabilities.

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ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS.
Not applicable.

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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES.
During October 2020, the Company relocated its corporate office address from 308 East Renfro Street, Suite 101, Burleson, Texas, 76028 to 2600 South Shore Blvd. Suite 300, League City, Texas, 77573. We believe our current office space is suitable and adequate for its intended purposes and our near-term expansion plans.
Currently Operating System-Wide Restaurants
As of April 15, 2021, company-operated, franchised and total system-wide restaurants by jurisdiction are:
State Company-Owned Restaurants Franchised Restaurants Total Restaurants
California -
Georgia -
Illinois -
Maryland -
New Jersey -
New York
North Carolina -
Oklahoma -
Rhode Island -
Pennsylvania -
Texas
Virginia
Washington -
Kuwait -
TOTAL

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ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS.
From time to time, we are a defendant or plaintiff in various legal actions that arise in the normal course of business. We record legal costs associated with loss contingencies as incurred and have accrued for all probable and estimable settlements.
We are not currently involved in any material disputes and do not have any material litigation matters pending except:
On March 27, 2018 a convertible note holder filed a complaint in the Iowa District Court for Polk County #CVCV056029 against the Company for failure to pay the remaining balance due on a promissory note in the amount of $100,000, together with interest, attorney fees and other costs of $171,035. On June 6, 2018 a default judgement was entered against the Company for the amount of $171,035. The Company repaid an aggregate amount of $71,035, consisting of principal and interest, as of the date of the filing of this report. As of December 31, 2020, the Company has accrued for the liability in convertible notes payable in the amount of $100,000 and accrued interest of $23,056 is included in accounts payable and accrued expenses.
In May 2018, Resolute Contractors, Inc., Quality Tile, MTL Construction, Genesis Electric, JNB Interiors and Captive Aire filed a Mechanics Lien for labor, service, equipment and materials in the total amount of $98,005. The Company intends to set up various payment plans with these vendors. As of December 31, 2020, the Company has accrued for the liability in accounts payable and accrued expenses.
On December 12, 2018, the Company was listed as a defendant to a lawsuit filed by a landlord in the Superior Court of the State of California. Fountain Valley is seeking approximately $121,000 in damages for rent, interest and other expenses. On February 15, 2019, the Company entered into a settlement agreement and payment plan in the amount of $85,000. The Company agreed to make the following payments (i) $15,000 on or before March 15, 2019, and (ii) ten monthly installments of $7,000 commencing on April 15, 2019 and continuing monthly on the 15th day of each month though January 15, 2020. The Company has accrued for the liability in accounts payable and accrued expenses and has been making repayments pursuant to the settlement agreement. As of January 15, 2020, the Company has met all their obligations and the full amount has been paid.
On or about March 7, 2019, the Company was listed as a defendant to a lawsuit filed by a contractor in the State of Texas. The contractor is claiming a breach of contract and is seeking approximately $32,809 in damages for services claimed to be rendered by the contractor. The Company is working with legal counsel in order to reach a settlement. As of December 31, 2020, the Company accrued $30,000 for the liability in accounts payable and accrued expenses.
On January 23, 2020, the Company was served a judgment in the amount of $130,185 for a breach of a lease agreement in Chicago, Illinois, in connection with a Company owned store that was closed in 2018. As of December 31, 2020, the Company has accrued for the liability in accounts payable and accrued expenses.
In March 2021, the Company participated in a mediation concerning an investor who invested with American Restaurant Holdings, Inc and/or American Restaurants, LLC, our former parent company, from 2013 through 2015 in the total amount of $531,250. The Company does not believe the dispute concerns Muscle Maker, Inc. and intends to defend itself vigorously if the matter is not settled. As of the filing of this report, the company has not accrued for any potential liability pending the outcome of continued mediation.
Muscle Maker or its subsidiaries failed in certain instances in paying past state and local sales taxes collected from customers in specific states that impose a tax on sales of the Company’s products during 2017 and 2018. The Company had accrued a liability for approximately $231,177 as of December 31, 2020 related to this matter. All current state and local sales taxes from January 1, 2018 for open company owned locations have been fully paid and in a timely manner. The Company has completed or is in discussions on payment plans with the various state or local entities for these past owed amounts.

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ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES.
Not applicable.
PART II

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ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES.
Transactions in our common stock are currently reported under the symbol “GRIL” on the NASDAQ market as of April 15, 2021.
Transfer Agent
Our transfer agent is Computershare, Inc, 462 South 4th Street, Suite 1600, Louisville, KY 40202, and its telephone number is 1-877-373-6374.
Holders
As of April 15, 2021, there were 908 holders of record of our common stock.
Dividends
We have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our common stock. We currently intend to retain future earnings, if any, to finance the expansion of our business. As a result, we do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.
Warrants
As of December 31, 2020, and 2019, we had warrants to purchase an aggregate of 2,582,857 and 2,450,287 shares of common stock, respectively, outstanding with a weighted average exercise price of $4.08 and $5.51 per share, respectively.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
Equity Compensation Plan Information
The following table provides information, as of April 15, 2021 with respect to equity securities authorized for issuance under compensation plans:
Plan Category Number of Securities to be Issued Upon Exercise of Outstanding Options under the Plan (a) Weighted-Average Exercise Price of Outstanding Options under the Plan (b) Number of Securities Remaining Available for Future Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans (excluding securities reflected in Column (a)) (c)
Equity compensation plans approved by security holders $ - 1,057,173
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders $ - -
TOTAL $ - 1,057,173
Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
Issuance of Stock
The Company rescinded the issuance of 100,000 warrants and 300,000 shares of the Company’s common stock in July 2020 that were issued in the first quarter of 2020, pursuant to a consulting agreement. Although the shares were duly authorized and validity issued, the Company rescinded the stock and warrants as it did not have the required amount of equity authorized under its 2019 Incentive Stock Plan. Following the rescission of the warrants and shares of common stock, the consultant threatened to commence legal proceedings against the Company and demanded the Company to re-issue the 300,000 shares of common stock and 100,000 warrants and to provide the Consultant registration rights. In order to settle and avoid the time commitment and expense associated with potential litigation, the Company and the Consultant entered into a Settlement Agreement (“Settlement Agreement”) on August 11, 2020 whereby the Company agreed to issue 300,000 shares of common stock within 5 five days of entering into the Settlement Agreement. These shares will not be issued subject to any equity plan. The Company agreed to register the shares of common stock in consideration of a release by the Consultant. In addition, as part of the Settlement Agreement the Company will issue 100,000 stock options upon the approval of the 2020 Equity Incentive Plan.
On February 24, 2020, the Company entered into a Consulting Agreement with consultants with experience in the area of corporate finance, investor communication and financial and investor public relations. The term of the agreement is for two months from the effective date on February 27, 2020 and expires on April 27, 2020. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, the Company agreed to pay $107,500 in cash per month and to issue 10,000 shares of the Company’s common stock. In the event the Company elects to not extend the term of the Agreement, it is to notify the consultants within five days of the conclusion of the 60-day term.
On February 17, 2020 the Company authorized the issuance of an aggregate of 25,616 share of common stock to the members of the board of directors as compensation earned through the end of the fourth quarter of 2019.
On February 18, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 216,783 shares of common stock of the Company to the executive team pursuant to their employment agreements as part of completing the initial public offering. On August 11, 2020, the shares were returned to the Company for cancellation.
On March 31, 2020, the Company issued 75,000 shares of common stock of the Company to a consultant that assisted the Company in area of investor relations and capital introduction.
On April 21, 2020 the Company authorized the issuance of an aggregate of 25,616 share of common stock to the members of the board of directors as compensation earned through the end of the fourth quarter of 2019.
On April 21, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 51,105 shares of common stock in exchange for accrued interest earned on convertible debt with an aggregate fair value of $357,735.
On June 1, 2020, the Company issued 5,000 shares of common stock of the Company to a consultant.
On June 5, 2020, the Company issued 15,000 shares of common stock of the Company to a digital marketing consultant in exchange for certain services with an aggregate fair value of $46,050.
On June 24, 2020 the Company authorized the issuance of an aggregate of 4,340 shares of common stock to the members of the board of directors as compensation earned through the end of the first quarter of 2020.
On August 21, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 53,571 shares of common stock of the Company to various consultants with an aggregate fair value of $200,705.
On November 5, 2020, the Company issued 53,763 shares of common stock of the Company to a consultant with a fair value of $100,000.
On November 30, 2020, the Company issued 82,500 shares of common stock of the Company to a consultant with a fair value of $176,138. The offers, sales, and issuances of the securities described above were deemed to be exempt from registration under the Securities Act in reliance on Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act or Regulation D promulgated thereunder as transactions by an issuer not involving a public offering. The recipients of securities in each of these transactions acquired the securities for investment only and not with a view to or for sale in connection with any distribution thereof and appropriate legends were affixed to the securities issued in these transactions. Each of the recipients of securities in these transactions was an accredited or sophisticated person and had adequate access, through employment, business or other relationships, to information about us.
On February 3, 2021, the Company issued an aggregate of 20,000 shares of common stock of the Company to a digital marketing consultant with an aggregate fair value of $42,600.
On February 3, 2021, the Company issued an aggregate of 16,126 shares of common stock of the Company to the members of the board of directors as compensation earned through the end of the fourth quarter of 2020.
On February 7, 2021, the Company entered into a Consulting Agreement with consultants as a strategy business consultant to provide the Company with business and marketing advice as needed. The term of the agreement is for five months from the effective date on February 7, 2021. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement the Company agreed to pay the consultant a total of 100,000 shares of the Company’s common stock. The Company issued 60,000 shares of common stock upon the effective date of the agreement with the remaining 40,000 to be issued upon the successful completion of the agreement.
On February 11, 2021, the Company issued an aggregate of 221,783 shares of common stock the Company to various executives and an employee pursuant to the approval of the compensation committee under the 2020 Plan.
On March 8, 2021, the Company entered into a Consulting Agreement with consultants as a strategy business consultant to provide the Company with financial and business. The term of the agreement is for five months from the effective date on March 8, 2021. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement the Company agreed to pay the consultant a total of 100,000 shares of the Company’s common stock. The Company issued 70,000 shares of common stock upon the effective date of the agreement with the remaining 30,000 to be issued upon the successful completion of the agreement.
On March 22, 2021, the Company entered into a Consulting Agreement with consultants with experience in the area of investor relations and capital introductions. The term of the agreement is for six months from the effective date on March 22, 2021. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement the Company agreed to pay $250,000 in cash for ancillary marketing, to be paid out at the Company’s discretion. In addition, the Company issued 150,000 shares of the Company’s common stock as a commencement incentive which is fully earned by entering into the agreement.
On March 25, 2021, the Company entered into an asset purchase agreement with Superfit Foods, LLC a Florida limited liability company and Superfit Foods LLC, a Nevada limited liability company (the “Superfit Acquisition”). The purchase price of the assets and rights was $1,150,000. The purchase price is payable as follows: $475,000 that was paid at closing and the remaining $625,000 paid in 268,240 shares of common stock to be held for six months before being registered.
On March 31, 2021, the Company authorized the issuance of an aggregate of 12,711 shares of common stock to the members of the board of directors as compensation earned during the first quarter of 2021.
On April 7, 2021, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with an accredited investor (the “Securities Purchase Agreement”) for a private placement (the “Private Placement”) pursuant to which the investor agreed to purchase from the Company for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $10,000,000 (i) 1,250,000 shares of common stock of the Company (ii) a common stock purchase warrant to purchase up to 4,115,227 shares of Common Stock (the “Common Warrant”) and (iii) a pre-funded common stock purchase warrant to purchase up to 2,865,227 shares of Common Stock (the “Pre-Funded Warrant”). Each share and accompanying Common Warrant is being sold together at a combined offering price of $2.43 per share and Common Warrant, and each Pre-Funded Warrant and accompanying Common Warrant is being sold together at a combined offering price of $2.42 per Pre-Funded Warrant and accompanying Common Warrant. The Pre-Funded Warrant is immediately exercisable, at a nominal exercise price of $0.01 per share, and may be exercised at any time until the Pre-Funded Warrant is fully exercised. The Common Warrant will have an exercise price of $2.43 per share, are immediately exercisable and will expire five and one-half (5.5) years from the date of issuance. The Private Placement closed on April 9, 2021.
Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
None.

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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA.
We are not required to provide the information required by this item because we are a smaller reporting company.

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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.
The following discussion and analysis of the results of operations and financial condition of Muscle Maker, Inc.(“Muscle Maker”), together with its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 and for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and the notes to those financial statements that are included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K following Item 16. References in this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations to “us,” “we,” “our,” and similar terms refer to Muscle Maker. “Muscle Maker Grill” refers to the name under which our corporate and franchised restaurants do business. This Annual Report contains forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the federal securities laws. The events described in forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report may not occur. Generally, these statements relate to business plans or strategies, projected or anticipated benefits or other consequences of our plans or strategies, projected or anticipated benefits from acquisitions to be made by us, or projections involving anticipated revenues, earnings or other aspects of our operating results. The words “may,” “will,” “expect,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “project,” “plan,” “forecast,” “model,” “proposal,” “should,” “may,” “intend,” “estimate,” and “continue,” and their opposites and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We caution you that these statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and are subject to a number of uncertainties, risks and other influences, many of which are beyond our control, which may influence the accuracy of the statements and the projections upon which the statements are based. Reference is made to “Factors That May Affect Future Results and Financial Condition” in this Item 7 for a discussion of some of the uncertainties, risks and assumptions associated with these statements.
OVERVIEW
We operate under the name Muscle Maker Grill as a franchisor and owner-operator of Muscle Maker Grill and Healthy Joe’s restaurants. In addition to these restaurants, the Company also operates with the following brand names under our ghost kitchen model: Meal Plan AF, Muscle Maker Burger Bar, Bowls Deep, Burger Joe’s, Wrap It Up, Salad Vibes and Gourmet Sandwich. Our direct mail to consumer meal prep/plan program operates under the musclemakerprep.com website. As of December 31, 2020, our restaurant system included sixteen company-owned restaurants and sixteen franchised restaurants. In addition, the Company built four new location on university campuses but due to Covid-19 restrictions have not yet open these locations but incurred expenses during the twelve months ended December 31, 2021.
Muscle Maker Grill is a fast-casual restaurant concept that specializes in preparing healthy-inspired, high-quality, fresh, made-to-order lean, protein-based meals featuring chicken, seafood, pasta, hamburgers, wraps and flat breads. In addition, we feature freshly prepared entrée salads and an appealing selection of sides, protein shakes and fruit smoothies. We operate in the approximately $47 billion fast casual restaurant segment, which we believe has created significant recent disruption in the restaurant industry and is rapidly gaining market share from adjacent restaurant segments, resulting in significant growth opportunities for healthy-inspired restaurant concepts such as Muscle Maker Grill.
We believe our healthy-inspired restaurant concept delivers a highly differentiated customer experience by combining the quality and hospitality that customers commonly associate with our full service and fast casual restaurant competitors with the convenience and value customers generally expect from traditional fast food restaurants. The foundation of our brand is based on our core values of quality, empowerment, respect, service and value.
As of December 31, 2020, we had an accumulated deficit of $63,193,707 and expect to continue to incur substantial operating and net losses for the foreseeable future. In its report on our consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, our independent registered public accounting firm included an explanatory paragraph relating to our ability to continue as a going concern. See “Liquidity and Capital Resources - Availability of Additional Funds and Going Concern” and Note 1 - Business Organization and Nature of Operations, Going Concern and Management’s Plans to Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information describing the circumstances that led to the inclusion of this explanatory paragraph.
On February 26, 2020, the Company entered into a Kitchen Services Agreement with a major delivery-only kitchen concept. The Kitchen Services Agreement provides for ten locations in total with four initial locations starting in the Chicago market, two locations in the Philadelphia market, one location in the Providence market, two locations in the Miami market and one location in the New York market. In addition, the Company has placed deposits for an additional five locations to be determined. The Kitchen Services Agreement provides the Company with access to the delivery-only locations for a one-year term with an automatic one-year renewal unless terminated by either party. The delivery-only locations are set up for third party delivery and provide that the Company must pay monthly license fees, processing service fees and storage service fees. The monthly license fees for the locations range from $3,000 to $6,000. The monthly license fees become due 14 days after the Company is granted access to the location. As of the date of filing this report the Company has opened seven of the ten locations have been opened with the Miami and New York locations anticipated to be opened in 2021.
The company continued its expansion into non-traditional locations within the military. The company opened a military location in May 2020 at the Marine base Camp Elmore.
As part of the non-traditional location growth strategy, the Company entered into an agreement and announced on June 1, 2020, its expansion with the Northern Virginial Community College system to open 4 locations on various campus locations. These locations were built in 2020 with the anticipation of opening in the fall semester of 2020. However, due to covid-19 restrictions, these locations were temporarily closed and plan to re-open in summer of 2021 as students are allowed back on campus. These locations are based on a variable lease determined on monthly sales thus limiting the ongoing costs associated with these locations. The Company also has a lease agreement to build out a location on the Texas Tech Medical Center Campus in El Paso Texas. We anticipate building this location in 2021.
On November 11, 2020, the company announced an agreement with Happy Meal Prep to offer Muscle Maker meal prep/plans to consumers via direct- to-consumer shipments of over 40 meal prep/plan options. This program allows shipments of up to a 250-mile radius around participating locations increasing the total number of potential consumers who can enjoy Muscle Maker Grill meals. The company plans on making a greater push in the direct-to-consumer market meal prep/plan strategy in 2021 as an alternate, non-traditional approach to delivering or products to consumers.
The company purchased two franchise locations in 2020. One location was in Philadelphia and one location was in the Chelsea area of New York.
The company will continue to expand ghost kitchen options within existing Muscle Maker Grill restaurants to better leverage labor, equipment, ingredients, etc. This expansion allows greater consumer options and relies strictly on third-party delivery options. This approach is distinctly different than the stand along ghost kitchen model in that these ghost kitchens are ran through an existing Muscle Maker Grill location versus opening a stand along ghost kitchen.
The Company rescinded the issuance of 100,000 warrants and 300,000 shares of the Company’s common stock in July 2020 that were issued in the first quarter of 2020, pursuant to a consulting agreement. Although the shares were duly authorized and validly issued, the Company rescinded the stock and warrants as it did not have the required amount of equity authorized under its 2019 Incentive Stock Plan. Following the rescission of the warrants and shares of common stock, the consultant threatened to commence legal proceedings against the Company and demanded the Company to re-issue the 300,000 shares of common stock and 100,000 warrants and to provide the Consultant registration rights. In order to settle and avoid the time commitment and expense associated with potential litigation, the Company and the Consultant entered into a Settlement Agreement (“Settlement Agreement”) on August 11, 2020 whereby the Company agreed to issue 300,000 shares of common stock within 5 five days of entering into the Settlement Agreement. These shares will not be issued subject to any equity plan. The Company agreed to register the shares of common stock in consideration of a release by the Consultant. In addition, as part of the Settlement Agreement the Company issued 100,000 stock options upon the approval of the 2020 Equity Incentive.
Key Financial Definitions
Total Revenues
Our revenues are derived from three primary sources: company restaurant sales, franchise revenues and vendor rebates from Franchisees. Franchise revenues are comprised of franchise royalty revenues collected based on 5% of franchisee net sales and other franchise revenues which include initial and renewal franchisee fees. Vendor rebates are received based on volume purchases or services from franchise owned locations.
Food and Beverage Costs
Food and beverage costs include the direct costs associated with food, beverage and packaging of our menu items at company-operated restaurants partially offset by vendor rebates from company-owned stores. The components of food, beverages and supplies are variable in nature, change with sales volume, are affected by menu mix and are subject to fluctuations in commodity costs.
Labor
Restaurant labor costs, including preopening labor, consists of company-operated restaurant-level management and hourly labor costs, including salaries, wages, payroll taxes, workers’ compensation expense, benefits and bonuses paid to our company-operated restaurant-level team members. Like other cost items, we expect restaurant labor costs at our company-operated restaurants to increase due to inflation and as our company restaurant revenues grow. Factors that influence labor costs include minimum wage and employer payroll tax legislation, mandated health care costs and operational productivity established by the management team.
Rent
Restaurant rent, including preopening rental charges, consist of company-operated restaurant-level rental or lease payments applicable to executed rental or lease agreements. In many cases these rental payments may include payments for common area maintenance as well as property tax assessments. Our rent strategy mostly consists of a variable rent structure calculated on net sales of the restaurant. While this can have a negative effect on higher volume locations where we cannot leverage a fixed rent, it provides downside protection for lower volume locations. While we cannot guarantee a favorable variable rent expense in all future leases, we have forecasted average rental costs as a percentage of total sales at 8%.
Other restaurant operating expenses
Other restaurant operating expenses, including preopening operating expenses, consist of company-operated restaurant-level ancillary expenses not inclusive of food and beverage, labor and rent expense. These expenses are generally marketing, advertising, merchant and bank fees, utilities, leasehold and equipment repairs, insurance and maintenance. A portion of these costs are associated with third party delivery services such as Uber Eats, Grub Hub, DoorDash, Seamless, and others. The fees associated with these third-party delivery services can range up to 25% of the total order being delivered. Management believes delivery is a critical component of our business model and industry trends will continue to push consumers towards delivery. Our cost structure will need to be adjusted to reflect a different pricing model, portion sizes, menu offerings, and other considerations to potentially offset these rising costs of delivery.
Depreciation and Amortization
Depreciation and amortization primarily consist of the depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of intangible assets.
Other Expenses Incurred for Closed Locations
Other expenses incurred for closed locations consists primarily of restaurant operating expenses incurred subsequent to store closures, relating to ongoing obligations to vendors under signed agreements.
General and Administrative Expenses
General and administrative expenses include expenses associated with corporate and administrative functions that support our operations, including wages, benefits, travel expense, stock-based compensation expense, legal and professional fees, training, and other corporate costs. We expect to incur incremental general and administrative expenses as a result of the 2020 IPO, the secondary offering and the added cost associated with being a public company. A certain portion of these expenses are related to the preparation of an initial and second stock offering and should be considered one-time expenses.
Other (Expense) Income
Other (expenses) income consists of amortization of debt discounts on the convertible notes, interest expense related to convertible notes payable, inducement expense and warrant modification expense related to the conversion of convertible notes payable which was incurred by the Company in order to induce various note holders to convert approximately $9.5 million dollars of debt on our books into our common stock.
Income Taxes
Income taxes represent federal, state, and local current and deferred income tax expense.
Consolidated Results of Operations
The following table represents selected items in our consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively:
For the Years Ended
December 31,
Revenues:
Company restaurant sales, net of discounts $ 3,672,944 $ 3,466,553
Franchise royalties and fees 739,450 1,352,944
Franchise advertising fund contributions 61,053 139,508
Total Revenues 4,473,447 4,959,005
Operating Costs and Expenses:
Restaurant operating expenses:
Food and beverage costs 1,467,799 1,275,894
Labor 1,955,088 1,587,889
Rent 691,986 449,384
Other restaurant operating expenses 1,099,831 634,532
Total restaurant operating expenses 5,214,704 3,947,699
Depreciation and amortization 422,546 280,955
Impairment of intangible assets 100,000 -
Franchise advertising fund expenses 61,053 139,508
Preopening expenses 56,362 -
General and administrative expenses 8,576,231 4,244,848
Total Costs and Expenses 14,430,896
8,613,010
Loss from Operations (9,957,449 ) (3,654,005 )
Other Expenses:
Other income 27,143
Interest expense, net (115,881 ) (1,576,547 )
Change in fair value of accrued compensation (14,000 ) -
Inducement expense related to convertible notes - (15,102,206 )
Warrant modification expense - (5,405,770 )
Amortization of debt discounts (38,918 ) (2,647,355 )
Total Other Expenses, net (141,656 ) (24,731,039 )
Net Loss Before Income Tax (10,099,105 ) (28,385,044 )
Income tax provision - -
Net Loss $ (10,099,105 ) $ (28,385,044 )
Year Ended December 31, 2020 Compared with Year Ended December 31, 2019
Revenues
Our revenues totaled $4,473,447 for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to $4,959,005 for the year ended December 31, 2019. The $485,558.66 decrease is attributed to a decrease in franchise royalties and fees, partially offset by an increase in restaurant sales.
We generated company restaurant sales, net of discounts, of $3,672,944 for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to $3,466,553, for the year ended December 31, 2019. This represented an increase of $206,391, or 6.0%, which is attributable to restaurants sales from additional stores that were open during the current year ended compared to the prior year, partially offset by a decrease in restaurant sales which resulted from the temporary and permanent closure of two corporate owned stores during the current year as compared to the prior year due to Covid-19.
Franchise royalties and fees for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $739,450 compared to $1,352,944, respectively. The $613,494 decrease is primarily attributable to a decrease in initial franchise fees of $113,351 as there were fewer franchisee agreement terminations in the current year as compared to the prior year, a decrease in royalty income of $356,614 and a decrease in vendor rebates of vendor rebates of $143,529 due to fewer franchisee locations, primarily as a result of the impact of Covid-19 which resulted in lower sales and temporary and permanent closures of franchised locations current year compared to the prior year.
Franchise advertising fund contributions for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 totaled $61,053 compared to $139,508, respectively.
Operating Costs and Expenses
Operating costs and expenses primarily consist of restaurant food and beverage costs, restaurant labor expense, restaurant rent expense, other restaurant operating expenses, depreciation and amortization expenses and general and administrative expenses.
Restaurant food and beverage costs for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $1,467,799 or 40.00% as a percentage of company restaurant net sales, and $1,275,894 or 36.81%, as a percentage of company restaurant net sales, respectively. The $191,905 increase resulted from higher store count during the current year as compared to the prior year resulting in higher sales and a slight increase in restaurant and food beverage cost as a percentage of sales. The percentage increase is attributable to rising food costs, lower rebates and operational inefficiencies attributed to opening or acquiring new locations as it takes time to establish operational efficiencies. In addition, food waste increased as sales decreased due to the impact of Covid-19 on overall restaurants sales.
Restaurant labor for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $1,955,088, or 53.20%, as a percentage of company restaurant net sales, and $1,587,889, or 45.81%, as a percentage of company restaurant net sales, respectively. The $367,199 increase resulted primarily due a higher store count during the current year as compared to the prior year as the Company opened and acquired more stores as compared to the prior period. In addition, the increase in labor as a percentage of sales is a direct result of inefficiencies that is typically attributed to opening or acquiring new locations as it takes time to establish operational efficiencies.
Restaurant rent expense for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $691,986, or 18.8% as a percentage of restaurant sales, and $449,384, or 12.96%, as a percentage of restaurant sales, respectively. The increase of $242,602 is directly attributed to the acquisition of the two franchise locations and the opening of four cloud kitchen in the current year as compared to the prior year. In addition, rent as a percentage of sales increased due to the temporary closure of restaurants due to Covid-19 while rent payments were still made as per various leases.
Other restaurant operating expenses for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $1,099,831, or 29.90% as a percentage of restaurant sales, and $634,532, or 18.30% as a percentage of restaurant sales, respectively. The $465,299 increase is due to higher third-party merchant fees resulting from an increase in delivery orders and a higher sore count during the year as compared to the prior year resulting in an increase in utility fees and insurance expenses.
Depreciation and amortization expense for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $422,546 and $280,955, respectively. The $141,591 increase is attributable to depreciation expense related to additional property and equipment acquired for new store build outs and the remodeling of an existing and acquired company owned restaurant compared to the prior year.
Impairment of intangible assets for the year ended December 31, 2020 totaled $100,000. The impairment of the franchisee agreement was attributed due to the acquisition of franchised stores, initially included in the valuation of the franchisee agreement intangible, to be Company owned stores which reduces future discounted cash flows. In addition, the permanent closures of store included in the original valuation of the intangible asset due to the impact of COVID-19 attributed to the impairment being recognized.
Preopening expense for the years ended December 31, 2020, totaled $56,362 resulted from expense incurred prior to the opening of our new Company owned store that opened during the year ended December 31, 2020.
General and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $8,576,231, or 191.70% of total revenue, and $4,244,848, or 85.60% of total revenue, respectively. The $4,331,383 increase is attributable to an increase in salaries and wages of approximately $822,000 which is due to cash bonus earned by employees of approximately $295,000, an increase in consulting expense of approximately $2,196,000 which is mainly attributed to stock-based compensation expense for stock issued to various consultants for services, an increase in advertising expense of approximately $141,000 to promote our new and existing locations, $41,480 in write offs of property and equipment for a closed location, an increase in insurance expenses related to being a public company listed on a national exchange of approximately $289,000 and an increase in one-time professional fees of approximately $982,000 mainly due to fees incurred in connection with the Company’s offerings. Partially offset by a decrease in various other expenses incurred during the current year as compared to the prior year.
Loss from Operations
Our loss from operations for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $9,957,449, or 222.6% of total revenues and $3,654,005, or 73.68% of total revenue, respectively. The increase of $6,303,444 in loss from operations is primarily attributable to an increase in total costs and expenses of approximately $5,818,000, partially offset by the increase in total revenues of approximately $486,000. The increase in total costs and expenses of approximately $5,818,000 is primarily due to one-time expenses incurred in connection with our offerings in March and September of 2020, of which approximately $2,196,000 of the expenses consisted of non-cash expenses in the form of stock-based compensation. See details above for more information related to the changes included within total cost and expenses and total revenues.
Other Expense
Other expense for the year ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 totaled $141,656 and $24,731,039, respectively. The $24,589,383 decrease in expense was primarily to a decrease in inducement expense related to the convertible notes payables of approximately $15,102,000 that was incurred by the Company in order to induce various note holders to convert approximately $9.5 million dollars of debt on our books into our common stock in the prior year as compared to the current period. In addition, due to a decrease in warrant modification expense of approximately $ 5,406,000 as part of the amendments to induce the note holders to convert their notes into our common stock in the prior year as compared to the current period. The remaining decrease in expense is attributed to a decrease in amortization of debt discount of $2,608,437, a decrease of $1,460,666 in interest expense, net as the majority of the convertible notes were converted during the prior year therefore no further interest expense is being incurred in the current year.
Net Loss
Our net loss for the year ended December 31, 2020 decreased by $18,285,939 to $10,099,105 as compared to $28,385,044 for the year ended December 31, 2019, resulting from an increase in our loss from operations offset by a decrease in other expense as discussed above.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Liquidity
We measure our liquidity in a number of ways, including the following:
December 31,
December 31,
Cash $ 4,195,932 $ 478,854
Working Capital Surplus (Deficiency) $ 1,383,568
$ (3,707,541 )
Convertible notes payable, including related parties and Former Parent, net of debt discount of $0 and $38,918, respectively $ 182,458 $ 693,540
Other notes payable, including related parties $ 1,276,692 $ 682,807
Availability of Additional Funds and Going Concern
Although we have a working capital surplus of $1,383,568, we presently have an accumulated deficit of $63,193,707, as of December 31, 2020, and we utilized $7,785,873 of cash in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2020. These conditions raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern for at least one year from the date of this filing.
Our principal source of liquidity to date has been provided by loans and convertible loans from related and unrelated third parties, (ii) the sale of common stock through private placements and the (iii) and the recent closed public offering.
The pandemic novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, federal, state and local government responses to COVID-19 and our Company’s responses to the outbreak have all disrupted and will continue to disrupt our business. In the United States, individuals are being encouraged to practice social distancing, restricted from gathering in groups and in some areas during the first quarter of 2020 continuing through the fourth quarter of 2020. As a result of the disruption and volatility in the global capital markets, we have seen an increase in the cost of capital which adversely impacts access to capital.
On February 12, 2020, the Company priced its initial public offering of 1,540,000 shares of common stock at a price of $5.00 per share. The Company started trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market on February 13, 2020 under the ticker symbol “GRIL”. The Company closed on the offering on February 18, 2020, yielding proceeds of $6,780,000, net of underwriters and other fees of $920,000. Upon closing of the offering the Company issued 123,200 warrants to the underwriters as part of their agreement.
On September 10, 2020, the Company priced its public offering (“September Offering”) of 3,294,118 shares of common stock at a price of $1.70 per share. The Company closed on the September Offering on September 15, 2020, yielding net proceeds of $4,940,001, net of underwriters and other fees of $660,000. Upon closing of the September Offering the Company issued 263,529 warrants to the underwriters as part of their agreement. Pursuant to the underwriting agreement for the September Offering the Company granted the underwriters an option to exercise for 45 days, to purchase up to an additional 494,177 shares of common stock to cover the over-allotment. On October 27, 2020, the Company closed on the over-allotment yielding proceeds of $764,399, net of underwrites and other fees of $75,600 and the Company issued the 494,177 shares of common stock.
On May 9, 2020, the Company entered into Paycheck Protection Program Promissory Note and Agreement with Greater Nevada Credit Union, pursuant to which the Company received loan proceeds of $866,300 (the “PPP Loan”). The PPP Loan was made under, and is subject to the terms and conditions of, the PPP which was established under the CARES Act and is administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The term of the PPP Loan is two years with a maturity date of May 9, 2022 and contains a favorable fixed annual interest rate of 1.00%. Payments of principal and interest on the PPP Loan will be deferred for the first ten months of the term of the PPP Loan if the Company did not apply for forgiveness on the PPP Loan. Principal and interest are payable monthly and may be prepaid by the Company at any time prior to maturity with no prepayment penalties. Under the terms of the CARES Act, recipients can apply for and receive forgiveness for all or a portion of loans granted under the PPP. Such forgiveness will be determined, subject to limitations, based on the use of loan proceeds for certain permissible purposes as set forth in the PPP, including, but not limited to, payroll costs (as defined under the PPP) and mortgage interest, rent or utility costs (collectively, “Qualifying Expenses”), and on the maintenance of employee and compensation levels during the eight-week period following the funding of the PPP Loan. The Company intends to use the proceeds of the PPP Loan, when received, for Qualifying Expenses. However, no assurance is provided that the Company will be able to obtain forgiveness of the PPP Loan in whole or in part. The company has filed for loan forgiveness but as of the date of this filing has not received a response. The expenses to qualify for the PPP loans are recorded in the 2020 financials as the company made efforts to employ personnel as per the PPP program intentions. The corresponding loan amount of $866,300 was not recognized as other income until the PPP loans are deemed forgivable.
We expect to have ongoing needs for working capital in order to (a) fund operations; plus (b) expand operations by opening additional corporate-owned restaurants. To that end, we may be required to raise additional funds through equity or debt financing. However, there can be no assurance that we will be successful in securing additional capital. If we are unsuccessful, we may need to (a) initiate cost reductions; (b) forego business development opportunities; (c) seek extensions of time to fund our liabilities, or (d) seek protection from creditors.
In addition, if we are unable to generate adequate cash from operations, and if we are unable to find sources of funding, it may be necessary for us to sell one or more lines of business or all or a portion of our assets, enter into a business combination, or reduce or eliminate operations. These possibilities, to the extent available, may be on terms that result in significant dilution to our shareholders or that result in our shareholders losing all of their investment in our Company.
If we are able to raise additional capital, we do not know what the terms of any such capital raising would be. In addition, any future sale of our equity securities would dilute the ownership and control of your shares and could be at prices substantially below prices at which our shares currently trade. Our inability to raise capital could require us to significantly curtail or terminate our operations. We may seek to increase our cash reserves through the sale of additional equity or debt securities. The sale of convertible debt securities or additional equity securities could result in additional and potentially substantial dilution to our shareholders. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increased debt service obligations and could result in operating and financing covenants that would restrict our operations and liquidity. In addition, our ability to obtain additional capital on acceptable terms is subject to a variety of uncertainties.
Our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this 10K document have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”), which contemplate our continuation as a going concern and the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. The carrying amounts of assets and liabilities presented in the consolidated financial statements do not necessarily purport to represent realizable or settlement values. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustment that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Sources and Uses of Cash for the Years Ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019
For the year ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, we used cash of $7,785,873 and $4,504,226, respectively, in operations. Our cash used for the year ended December 31, 2020 was primarily attributable to our net loss of $10,099,105, adjusted for net non-cash income in the aggregate amount of $3,556,516, partially offset by $1,243,284 of net cash provided by changes in the levels of operating assets and liabilities. Our cash used for the year ended December 31, 2019 was primarily attributable to our net loss of $28,385,044, adjusted for net non-cash income in the aggregate amount of $24,270,492, partially offset by $389,674 of net cash provided by changes in the levels of operating assets and liabilities.
During the year ended December 31, 2020, cash used in investing activities was $850,334, of which $781,041 was used to purchase property and equipment, $75,000 used in connection with the acquisition of a new company stores from former franchisees and $5,707 was collected from loans to franchisees and related parties net of loan issuances. During the year ended December 31, 2019, cash used in investing activities was $1,520,569, of which $1,161,625 was used to purchase property and equipment, $60,186 which was used for the issuances of loans receivables, $335,116 used in connection with the acquisition of two new company stores from former franchisees and $36,358 was collected from loans to franchisees and related parties net of loan issuances.
Net cash provided by financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $11,720,001 proceeds from the offerings, net of underwriter’s discount and offering costs, $764,399 proceeds from the over-allotment, net of underwriter’s discount and offering costs, $150,000 proceeds from other note payable, $866,300 proceeds from the PPP loan, partially offset by repayments of various convertible notes of $550,000 and $597,415 of repayments of other notes payables, including a related party. Net cash provided by financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $6,145,807 of which $100,000 proceeds were from convertible notes from other related parties, $6,373,000 proceeds from convertible notes to various parties, $300,000 proceeds from other notes payable, offset by $718,193 repayments of convertible notes payable and other note payable.
Critical Accounting Policies
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period.
Management bases its estimates on historical experience and on various assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Significant estimates include:
● the assessment of recoverability of long-lived assets, including property and equipment, goodwill and intangible assets;
● the estimated useful lives of intangible and depreciable assets;
● estimates and assumptions used to value warrants issued in connection with notes payable;
● the recognition of revenue; and
● the recognition, measurement and valuation of current and deferred income taxes.
Estimates and assumptions are periodically reviewed, and the effects of any material revisions are reflected in the financial statements in the period that they are determined to be necessary. Actual results could differ from those estimates and assumptions.
Intangible Assets
We account for recorded intangible assets in accordance with ASC 350 “Intangibles - Goodwill and Other”. In accordance with ASC 350, we do not amortize intangible assets with indefinite useful lives. Our goodwill and trademarks are deemed to have indefinite lives, and accordingly are not amortized, but are evaluated for impairment at least annually, or more often whenever changes in facts and circumstances may indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. The Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) requires that goodwill be tested for impairment at the reporting unit level (operating segment or one level below an operating segment). Application of the goodwill impairment test requires judgment, including the identification of reporting units, assigning assets and liabilities to reporting units, assigning goodwill to reporting units, and determining the fair value. Significant judgment is required to estimate the fair value of reporting units which includes estimating future cash flows, determining appropriate discount rates and other assumptions. Changes in these estimates and assumptions could materially affect the determination of fair value and/or goodwill impairment.
Other intangible assets include franchise agreements which are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives of 13 years.
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets
When circumstances, such as adverse market conditions, indicate that the carrying value of a long-lived asset may be impaired, we perform an analysis to review the recoverability of the asset’s carrying value, which includes estimating the undiscounted cash flows (excluding interest charges) from the expected future operations of the asset. These estimates consider factors such as expected future operating income, operating trends and prospects, as well as the effects of demand, competition and other factors. If the analysis indicates that the carrying value is not recoverable from future cash flows, an impairment loss is recognized to the extent that the carrying value exceeds the estimated fair value. Any impairment losses are recorded as operating expenses, which reduce net income.
Deferred Revenue
Deferred revenue primarily includes initial franchise fees received by the Company, which are being amortized over the life of the Company’s franchise agreements, as well as unearned vendor rebates
Revenue Recognition
During the first quarter of 2019, the Company adopted Topic 606 “Revenue from Contracts with Customers” for revenue recognition related to contracts with customers and applied the guidance modified retrospectively. Under the new guidance, revenue is recognized in accordance with a five-step revenue model, as follows: (1) identifying the contract with the customer; (2) identifying the performance obligations in the contract; (3) determining the transaction price; (4) allocating the transaction price to the performance obligations; and (5) recognizing revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation. In applying this five-step model, we have made significant judgments in identifying the promised goods or services in our contracts with franchisees that are distinct, and which represent separate performance obligations. The change between Topic 605 and Topic 606, primarily impacted the way the Company recognized franchise fees. Under Topic 605 franchise fees were recognized upon opening of a restaurant or granting of a new franchise term at a point in time while under Topic 606 franchise fees are recognized on a straight-line basis over the life of the related franchise agreements and any exercised renewal periods. The impact of the adoption of Topic 606 resulted in an adjustment of $875,902 in accumulated deficit and deferred revenues.
Restaurant Sales
Retail store revenue at Company operated restaurants is recognized when payment is tendered at the point of sale, net of sales tax, discount and other sales related taxes. The Company recorded retail store revenues of $3,672,944 and $3,466,553 during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
The Company sells gift cards which do not have an expiration date, and it does not deduct dormancy fees from outstanding gift card balances. The Company recognizes revenues from gift cards as restaurant revenues once the Company performs its obligation to provide food and beverage to the customer simultaneously with the redemption of the gift card or through gift card breakage, as discussed in Other Revenues below.
Franchise Royalties and Fees
Franchise revenues consists of royalties, franchise fees and rebates. Royalties are based on a percentage of franchisee net sales revenue. The Company recognizes the royalties as the underlying sales occur. The Company recorded revenue from royalties of $331,694 and $688,308 during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, which is included in franchise royalties and fees on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
The Company provides the franchisees with management expertise, training, pre-opening assistance, and restaurant operating assistance in exchange for the multi-unit development fees and franchise fees. The Company capitalizes these fees upon collection from the franchisee, these fees are then recognized as franchise fee revenue on a straight-line basis over the life of the related franchise agreements and any exercised renewal periods. Cash payments are due upon the execution of the related franchise agreement. The Company’s performance obligation with respect to franchise fee revenues consists of a license to utilize the Company’s brand for a specified period of time, which is satisfied equally over the life of each franchise agreement. The Company recorded revenue from franchise fees of $277,255 and $390,606 during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, which is included in franchise royalties and fees on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
The Company has supply agreements with certain food and beverage vendors. Pursuant to the terms of these agreements, rebates are provided to the Company based upon the dollar volume of purchases for all company-owned and franchised restaurants from these vendors. Rebates earned on purchases by franchise stores are recorded as revenue during the period in which the related food and beverage purchases are made. The Company recorded revenue from rebates of $130,501 and $274,030 during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, which is included in franchise royalties and fees on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. Rebates earned on purchases by Company owned stores are recorded as a reduction of food and beverage costs during the period in which the related food and beverage purchases are made.
Other Revenues
Gift card breakage is recognized when the likelihood of a gift card being redeemed by the customer is remote and the Company determines there is not a legal obligation to remit the unredeemed gift card balance to the relevant jurisdiction. The determination of the gift card breakage rate is based upon the Company’s specific historical redemption patterns. The Company recognizes gift card breakage by applying its estimate of the rate of gift card breakage on a pro rata basis over the period of estimated redemption. Gift card liability is recorded in other current liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet. For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, the Company determined that no gift card breakage is necessary based on current redemption rates.
Deferred Revenue
Deferred revenue primarily includes initial franchise fees received by the Company, which are being amortized over the life of the Company’s franchise agreements, as well as unearned vendor rebates. Deferred revenue is recognized in income over the life of the franchise agreements and vendor rebates are recognized in income as performance obligations are satisfied.
Franchise Advertising Fund Contributions
Under the Company’s franchise agreements, the Company and its franchisees are required to contribute a certain percentage of revenues to a national advertising fund. The Company’s national advertising services are provided on a system-wide basis and therefore, not considered distinct performance obligations for individual franchisees. In accordance with Topic 606, the Company recognizes these sales-based advertising contributions from franchisees as franchise revenue when the underlying franchisee Company incurs the corresponding advertising expense. The Company records the related advertising expenses as incurred under general and administrative expenses. When an advertising contribution fund is over-spent at year end, advertising expenses will be reported on the consolidated statement of operations in an amount that is greater than the revenue recorded for advertising contributions. Conversely, when an advertising contribution fund is under-spent at a period end, the Company will accrue advertising costs up to advertising contributions recorded in revenue. The Company recorded contributions from franchisees of $61,053 and $139,508, respectively, during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, which are included in franchise advertising fund contributions on the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
Income Taxes
We account for income taxes under Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 740 Income Taxes (“ASC 740”). Under ASC 740, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the difference between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities and net operating loss and credit carryforwards using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to impact taxable income. Valuation allowances are established when necessary to reduce deferred tax assets to the amounts expected to be realized.
ASC 740 also clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized in an enterprise’s financial statements and prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement process for financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return.
Tax benefits claimed or expected to be claimed on a tax return are recorded in our financial statements. A tax benefit from an uncertain tax position is only recognized if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the position. The tax benefits recognized in the financial statements from such a position are measured based on the largest benefit that has a greater than fifty percent likelihood of being realized upon ultimate resolution.
Our policy is to classify assessments, if any, for tax related interest as interest expense and penalties as general and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations.
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements
See Note 3 to our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We have no off-balance sheet arrangements that have or are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on our financial condition, changes in financial condition, revenues or expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources that is material to investors.

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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK.
Not applicable.

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ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
The financial statements required by this Item 8 are included in this Annual Report following Item 16 hereof. As a smaller reporting company, we are not required to provide supplementary financial information.

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ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE.
None.

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ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES.
(a) Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation of our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer, has evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act), as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report. Based on such evaluation, our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer have concluded that, as of the end of the period covered by this Annual Report, our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective because of a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting as discussed below.
Notwithstanding this material weaknesses, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that the Consolidated Financial Statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 2020 and 2019 and the consolidated results of operations and cash flows for each of the fiscal years presented herein in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.
(b) Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
Our management assessed the effectiveness of the Company’s internal controls over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act), as of December 31, 2020. The framework used by management in making the assessment was the criteria set forth in the document entitled “Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013)” issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Based on that assessment, our management has determined that as of December 31, 2020, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting was not effective for the purpose for which it is intended and determine there to be a material weakness.
The management of the Company is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as required by Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Section 404(a). The Company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed under the supervision of the Company’s Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer and effected by the Company’s Board of Directors, management and other personnel, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements for external purposes in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles.
Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act. Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with US GAAP. Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projection of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods is subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the Company’s annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. In connection with management’s assessment of our internal control over financial reporting as required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, we identified the following material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020:
● The Company does not have sufficient resources in its accounting function, which restricts the Company’s ability to gather, analyze and properly review information related to financial reporting in a timely manner. In addition, due to our size and nature, segregation of all conflicting duties may not always be possible and may not be economically feasible. However, to the extent possible, the initiation of transactions, the custody of assets and the recording of transactions should be performed by separate individuals.
● The Company has inadequate controls to ensure that information necessary to properly record transactions is adequately communicated on a timely basis from non-financial personnel to those responsible for financial reporting.
● The Company has significant deficiencies in the design and implementation of IT controls, specifically in the following areas: data center and network operations, access security and change management.
Remediation of Material Weaknesses in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
As a company with limited resources, the Company does not have the resources to fund sufficient staff to ensure a complete segregation of responsibilities within the accounting function. However, Company management does review, and will increase the review of the financial statements. This action, in addition to future improvements identified above, will minimize any risk of a potential material misstatement occurring.
(c) Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the fourth fiscal quarter of the year ended December 31, 2020 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

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ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION.
None.
PART III

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ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE.
Board of Directors and Executive Officers
Our directors hold office until their successors are elected and qualified, or until their deaths, resignations or removals. Our executive officers hold office at the pleasure of our board of directors, or until their deaths, resignations or removals.
As of April 15, 2021, our current directors and executive officers and their ages are:
Name
Age
Principal Positions Held With Us
Kevin Mohan
Chief Investment Officer and Chairman of the Board
Michael J. Roper
Chief Executive Officer, Secretary
Kenneth Miller
Chief Operating Officer
Ferdinand Groenewald
Chief Financial Officer
Aimee Infantee
Chief Marketing Officer
Stephen A. Spanos*
Director
A.B. Southall III
Director
Paul L. Menchik
Director
Peter S. Petrosian
Director
Jeff Carl
Director
Major General (Ret) Malcolm B. Frost+
Director
Philip Balatsos+
Director
*Appointed to the Board of Directors on February 6, 2020
+Appointed to the Board of Directors on October 27, 2020
Executive Officers
Kevin Mohan. Mr. Mohan has served as Chairman of the Board and a director of Muscle Maker, Inc. since April, 2018. From April, 2018 through May, 2018, he also served as our Interim President. He has also served as the Chief Investment Officer since May, 2018. From June 2012 through January, 2018, Mr. Mohan served as the VP of Capital Markets for American Restaurant Holdings, Inc., a company focused on acquiring and expanding fast casual restaurant brands.
Based on his experience we have deemed Mr. Mohan fit to serve on the Board and as Chairman of the Board.
Michael J. Roper. Mr. Roper has served as Chief Executive Officer, of Muscle Maker, Inc. since May 1, 2018. Mr. Roper has unique experience ranging from owning and operating several franchise locations through the corporate executive levels. From May 2015 through October 2017, Mr. Roper served as Chief Executive Officer of Taco Bueno where he was responsible for defining strategy and providing leadership to 162 company-owned and operated locations along with 23 franchised locations. From March 2014 through May 2015, Mr. Roper served as the Chief Operating Officer of Taco Bueno and from July 2013 through March 2014 as the Chief Development and Technology Officer of Taco Bueno. Prior to joining Taco Bueno, Mr. Roper was a franchise owner and operator of a IMS Barter franchise and held several roles with Quiznos Sub from 2000 to 2012 starting as a franchise owner and culminating in his appointment as the Chief Operating Officer/Executive Vice President of Operations in 2009. Mr. Roper received a Bachelor of Science in Business and General Management from Northern Illinois University.
Based on his education and extensive experience in the restaurant/franchise industry, we have deemed Mr. Roper fit to serve as our principal executive officer.
Kenneth Miller. Mr. Miller has served as Chief Operating Officer of Muscle Maker, Inc. since September 2018. Mr. Miller has served in the restaurant business for an extensive portion of his career. Prior to joining us as Chief Operating Officer in September, 2018, Mr. Miller served as the Senior Vice President of Operations for Dickey’s BBQ Restaurant from April 2018 through September 2018 and in various capacities with Taco Bueno Restaurants, LP from October 2013 through April 2018 culminating in the position of Senior Vice President of Operations. Mr. Miller received a Bachelor of Arts in Business/Exercise Science from Tabor College in 1991.
Based on his education and extensive experience in the restaurant/franchise industry, we have deemed Mr. Miller fit to serve as our Chief Operating Officer.
Ferdinand Groenewald. Mr. Groenewald has served as the Chief Financial Officer of Muscle Maker, Inc. since September 2018. Mr. Groenewald had previously served as our Vice President of Finance, Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer, Muscle Maker Development, LLC and Muscle Maker Corp., LLC from January 25, 2018 through May 29, 2018. In addition, Mr. Groenewald has served as our controller from October 2017 through May 29, 2018. Mr. Groenewald is a certified public accountant with significant experience in finance and accounting. From July 2018 through August 2018, Mr. Groenewald serves as senior financial reporting accountant of Wrinkle Gardner & Company, a full service tax, accounting and business consulting firm. From February 2017 to October 2017, Mr. Groenewald served as Senior Financial Accounting Consultant at Pharos Advisors, Inc. serving a broad range of industries. From November 2013 to February 2017, he served as a Senior Staff Accountant at Financial Consulting Strategies, LLC where he provided a broad range of accounting, financial reporting, and pre-auditing services to various industries. From August 2015 to December 2015, Mr. Groenewald served as a Financial Reporting Analyst at Valley National Bank. Mr. Groenewald holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of South Africa.
Based on his education and extensive experience in the financial and accounting industries, we have deemed Mr. Groenewald fit to serve as our Chief Financial Officer.
Aimee Infante. Ms. Infante has served in various roles with us since 2014 starting as Marketing and Communications Manager in October 2014 and then as a Marketing Director from February 2015 through April 2016. Ms. Infante was then promoted to Vice President of Marketing in April 2016 prior to her appointment as Chief Marketing Officer in May 2019. Prior to joining us, Ms. Infante served in various marketing roles including Regional Marketing Manager for Qdoba Mexican Grill from November 2010 through April 2014. Ms. Infante holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Rider University.
Stephen A. Spanos. Mr. Spanos has served as director of Muscle Maker, Inc. since February 2020. Since 2013, Mr. Spanos has provided financial and accounting consulting services for both privately held and public companies. From 2009 to 2013, Mr. Spanos served as the Chief Financial Officer of Orion Seafood International, Inc., a marketer of frozen lobster products, and as the Controller of Reef Point Systems, a provider of security solutions for converged wireless and wireline networks in the United States, from 2005 to 2013. Mr. Spanos served as an audit manager for BDO USA, LLP and as an auditor for Ernst & Young. Mr. Spanos received his MBA and BS in Business Administration, Accounting and Financing in 1995 and 1985, respectively, from Boston University.
Based on his education and extensive experience in financial and accounting matters, we have deemed that Mr. Spanos is fit to serve on the Board.
A.B. Southall III. Mr. Southall has served as director of Muscle Maker, Inc. since February 2017. He has over 35 years of experience managing construction and land developing businesses. From December 1997 until December 2017 he was the President of a custom home building company. From March 2011 to current, Mr. Southall has been the President of Third Generation Builders, Inc. In addition, since 2001, Mr. Southall has been the President of Southall Landings Marina, Inc., a 189 boat slip marina complex. His involvement in the marina business led him to co-found a local Waterway Association. He has diversely invested across multiple sectors including private placements, oil & gas, real estate, restaurant businesses and commodities. Mr. Southall is an advocate of a healthy approach to the food industry and the restaurant business.
Based on his vast business and financial experience with real estate and restaurants, we have deemed Mr. Southall fit to serve on the Board.
Paul L. Menchik. Mr. Menchik has served as director of Muscle Maker, Inc. since February 2017. Since 1986, Mr. Menchik has been Professor of Economics at Michigan State University where he has been Department chairperson and Director of Graduate Programs. He has served as Senior Economist for Economic Policy for the White House Office of Management and Budget (where among other matters he worked on Social Security solvency issues) and served as Visiting Scholar at the Tax Analysis Division of the Congressional Budget Office. Menchik has also been on the faculty of Rutgers University and the University of Wisconsin and has served as visiting faculty at University of Pennsylvania, London School of Economics, University College London, and Victoria University in Wellington New Zealand. Over the years he has advised three state governments and five United States government agencies. He holds a Ph.D. from the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce at the University of Pennsylvania. He has over 40 publications including a book on household and family economics, made over 85 paper presentations at other universities and conferences around the world and has refereed for over 20 academic journals and is currently a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Income Distribution. He is a member of Who’s Who in Economics and Who’s Who in America.
Based on his education and extensive experience in economic and financial matters, we have deemed Mr. Menchik fit to serve on the Board.
Peter S. Petrosian. Mr. Petrosian has served as director of Muscle Maker, Inc. since May 2018. Mr. Petrosian is a senior level food service executive with diversified leadership experience in casual dining, contract management, quick service and quick casual segments with a background in growth and turnaround situations, demonstrated expertise in operations, mergers and acquisitions, profit improvement, strategic planning and business development. Since 2005 to the present, Mr. Petrosian owned and operated PSP Management Consulting providing interim executive support in areas of organizational development, business, franchise and operational planning and valuation assistance to private equity firms in the restaurant industry. From November 2013 to January 2017, Mr. Petrosian served as the Chief Development Officer of Franchise Sports Concepts, LLC, a franchisor of Beef ‘O’ Brady’s and the Brass Tap. From April, 2007 to November, 2013, Mr. Petrosian was the Chief Operation Officer of Steak-Out Franchising, Inc., a franchisor of a char-broiled steak and full meal delivery concept. Prior to 2007, Mr. Petrosian held various positions with McAlister’s Corporation, AFC Enterprises (Church’s Chicken), Service America Corporation (wholly owned subsidiary of GE Capital) and Marriott Corporation.
Based on his experience with various restaurant concepts and senior executive level positions, we have deemed Mr. Petrosian fit to serve on the Board.
Jeff Carl. Mr. Carl has served as director of Muscle Maker, Inc. since September 3, 2019. Since February, 2017, Mr. Carl has served as Executive Director of Nice & Company, an ad agency with a focus on print, TV, digital, experiential and mobile, and as an independent consultant to the restaurant industry. From June, 2013 to January, 2017, Mr. Carl served as the Chief Marketing Officer for Taco Bueno Restaurants and from 2009 to 2013 as the Chief Marketing Officer of Tavistock Restaurants LLC. Mr. Carl received a BA from Wake Forest University in 1977 and a MBA from University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 1979.
Based on his experience within the restaurant industry and due to the fact that he has held senior level executive positions with a focus on advertising and marketing, we have deemed Mr. Carl a fit to serve on the Board.
Major General (Ret) Malcolm B. Frost. Maj. Gen (Ret) Frost has 31 years of military experience providing large-scale strategic and operational leadership and oversight in the Indo-Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Europe, and the United States for the United States Army - successfully leading the evolution of soldier training programs in peace and war from platoon through 2-star command level. Maj. Gen. (Ret) Frost has been deployed to combat several times in a variety of leadership and command positions. Since 2019, Maj. Gen. (Ret) Frost served as Executive Consultant for Fortune 500 and larger corporations through Malcolm Frost and Associates LLC. From 2015 through 2019, Maj. Gen. (Ret) Frost served as the Commanding General for the US Army Training and Doctrine Command located at Fort Eustis, Virginia and as the Chief of Public Affairs for the US Army Headquarters based in Washington, DC. Maj. Gen. (Ret) Frost also served as the Deputy Commanding General for Support for the US Army, Deputy Director of Operations for the US Department of Defense and the Director of Operations for the US Army Pacific Headquarters. He deployed to Bosnia-Hercegovina as a company commander in 1995 and deployed twice to Iraq as commander of an 800 person Cavalry Squadron operating in Tal Afar during the Surge in 2006-7, and as commander of a 5K person Stryker Brigade Combat Team operating in Diyala, Salah ad Din, and Kirkuk provinces in 2010-11. Additionally, he deployed as Director of Operations of a 4,000 person airborne brigade task force in Afghanistan in 2002-3. In addition to a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Resources Management from the United States Military Academy at West Point, Maj. Gen. (Ret) Frost holds advanced degrees from Webster University and the U.S. Army War College in Human Resources Development and National Security Strategy, respectively. He is the recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal x2, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit x3, Bronze Star Medal x3, Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal x6 including one for Valor, Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge and Ranger Tab. He is a Certified Project Director and is the recipient of the U.S. Department of State Meritorious Honor Award for reconstruction, civic and humanitarian achievements while serving in Iraq.
Based on his vast business and financial experience with the military as well as his business experience, we have deemed Maj. Gen (Ret) Frost a fit to serve on the Board.
Philip Balatsos. Since 2016, Mr. Balatsos has worked in the restaurant and hospitality industries. In 2018, Mr. Balatsos founded and has served as the owner operator of LAPH Hospitality which operates a café/catering business and also serves as a consultant providing financial, purchasing and usage analysis as well as rollout services pertaining to ordering, invoicing and inventorying systems. From 2016 through 2018, Mr. Balatsos held various positions with Barteca Restaurant Group including Assistant General Manager and Purchasing Manager. Prior to 2016, Mr. Balatsos held various position on Wall Street for 16 years including Vice President, Foreign Exchange Sales/Trading for Credit Suisse, Director, Foreign Exchange Hedge Fund Sales for Barclays Capital and Financial Advisor for Stifel Nicolaus & Co. Mr. Balatsos graduated from Skidmore College in 1999 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and from Institute of Culinary Education in 2016.
Family Relationships
There are no family relationships among any of our executive officers and directors.
Corporate Governance
Board of Directors and Board Committees
Our stock (symbol: GRIL) is listed on the NASDAQ capital market. Under the rules of Nasdaq, “independent” directors must make up a majority of a listed company’s board of directors. In addition, applicable Nasdaq rules require that, subject to specified exceptions, each member of a listed company’s audit and compensation committees be independent within the meaning of the applicable Nasdaq rules. Audit committee members must also satisfy the independence criteria set forth in Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange Act.
Our board of directors currently consists of eight (8) members. Our board of directors has determined that Stephen Spanos, A.B. Southall III, Paul L. Menchik, Peter S. Petrosian, Malcolm Frost, Philip Baltasos and Jeff Carl, qualify as independent directors in accordance with the Nasdaq Capital Market, or Nasdaq listing requirements. Kevin Mohan is not considered independent. Nasdaq’s independence definition includes a series of objective tests, such as that the director is not, and has not been for at least three (3) years, one of our employees and that neither the director nor any of his or her family members has engaged in various types of business dealings with us. In addition, as required by Nasdaq rules, our board of directors has made a subjective determination as to each independent director that no relationships exist that, in the opinion of our board of directors, would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. In making these determinations, our board of directors reviewed and discussed information provided by the directors and us with regard to each director’s business and personal activities and relationships as they may relate to us and our management. There are no family relationships among any of our directors or executive officers.
As required under Nasdaq rules and regulations and in expectation of listing on Nasdaq, our independent directors meet in regularly scheduled executive sessions at which only independent directors are present.
Board Leadership Structure and Board’s Role in Risk Oversight
Kevin Mohan is the Chairman of the Board. The Chairman has authority, among other things, to preside over the Board meetings and set the agenda for the Board meetings. Accordingly, the Chairman has substantial ability to shape the work of our Board. We currently believe that separation of the roles of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer ensures appropriate oversight by the Board of our business and affairs. However, no single leadership model is right for all companies and at all times. The Board recognizes that depending on the circumstances, other leadership models, such as the appointment of a lead independent director, might be appropriate. Accordingly, the Board may periodically review its leadership structure. In addition, following the qualification of the offering, the Board will hold executive sessions in which only independent directors are present.
Our Board is generally responsible for the oversight of corporate risk in its review and deliberations relating to our activities. Our principal source of risk falls into two categories, financial and product commercialization. The audit committee oversees management of financial risks; our Board regularly reviews information regarding our cash position, liquidity and operations, as well as the risks associated with each. The Board regularly reviews plans, results and potential risks related to our system-wide restaurant growth, brand awareness and menu offerings. Our Compensation Committee is expected to oversee risk management as it relates to our compensation plans, policies and practices for all employees including executives and directors, particularly whether our compensation programs may create incentives for our employees to take excessive or inappropriate risks which could have a material adverse effect on the Company.
Committees of the Board of Directors
The Board of Directors has already established an audit committee (the “Audit Committee”), a Compensation Committee (the “Compensation Committee”) and a Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (“Governance Committee”). The composition and function of each committee are described below.
Audit Committee
The Audit Committee has three members, including Messrs. Spanos, Balatsos and Petrosian. Mr. Spanos serves as the chairman of the Audit Committee and satisfies the definition of “audit committee financial expert”.
Our audit committee is authorized to:
● approve and retain the independent auditors to conduct the annual audit of our financial statements;
● review the proposed scope and results of the audit;
● review and pre-approve audit and non-audit fees and services;
● review accounting and financial controls with the independent auditors and our financial and accounting staff;
● review and approve transactions between us and our directors, officers and affiliates;
● recognize and prevent prohibited non-audit services; and
● establish procedures for complaints received by us regarding accounting matters; oversee internal audit functions, if any.
Compensation Committee
The Compensation Committee has two members, including Messrs. Carl and Southall. Mr. Carl serves as the chairman of the Compensation Committee.
Our Compensation Committee is authorized to:
● review and determine the compensation arrangements for management;
● establish and review general compensation policies with the objective to attract and retain superior talent, to reward individual performance and to achieve our financial goals;
● administer our stock incentive and purchase plans; and
● review the independence of any compensation advisers.
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
The Governance Committee has three members, including Messrs. Menchik, Southall and Carl. Mr. Menchik serves as the chairman of the Governance Committee.
The functions of our Governance Committee, among other things, include:
● identifying individuals qualified to become board members and recommending director;
● nominees and board members for committee membership;
● developing and recommending to our board corporate governance guidelines;
● review and determine the compensation arrangements for directors; and
● overseeing the evaluation of our board of directors and its committees and management.
Our goal is to assemble a Board that brings together a variety of skills derived from high quality business and professional experience.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
None of the members of our Compensation Committee, at any time, has been one of our officers or employees. None of our executive officers currently serves, or in the past year has served, as a member of the Board of Directors or Compensation Committee of any entity that has one or more executive officers on our Board of Directors or Compensation Committee. For a description of transactions between us and members of our Compensation Committee and affiliates of such members, please see “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions”.
Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
We have adopted a code of business conduct and ethics that applies to all of our employees, officers and directors, including those officers responsible for financial reporting.
Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance
Our directors, executive officers, and any persons holding more than ten percent of our Common Stock became obligated to comply with such rules upon the March 29, 2018 filing of our Form 8-A12B registering our class of Common Stock.

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ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION.
Summary Compensation Table
The following Summary Compensation Table sets forth all compensation earned in all capacities during the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 by (i) our principal executive officer, (ii) our two most highly compensated executive officers, other than our principal executive officer, who were serving as executive officers as of December 31, 2020 and whose total compensation for the 2020 fiscal year, as determined by Regulation S-K, Item 402, exceeded $100,000, (iii) a person who would have been included as one of our two most highly compensated executive officers, other than our principal executive officer, but for the fact that he was not serving as one of our executive officers as of December 31, 2020 (the individuals falling within categories (i), (ii) and (iii) are collectively referred to as the “Named Executive Officers”):
Summary Compensation Table
Year Salary Bonus Stock Award Option
Awards
Non-Equity Incentive Plan
Compensation
Non-Qualified
Deferred Compensation
Earnings
All Other Compensation Total
Michael J. Roper $ 360,503 $ 180,288 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 540,791
Chief Executive Officer of Muscle Maker, Inc. $ 271,946 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 271,946
Ferdinand Groenewald $ 171,634 $ 77,885 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 249,519
Chief Financial Officer of Muscle Maker, Inc. $ 151,749 $ 10,000 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 161,749
Kenneth Miller $ 256,442 $ 53,846 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 310,288
Chief Operating Officer of Muscle Maker, Inc. $ 202,298 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 202,298
Kevin Mohan $ 185,077 $ 78,000 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 72,327 $ 335,404
Chief Operating Officer of Muscle Maker, Inc. $ 142,940 $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ - $ 142,940
Employment Agreements
Michael Roper
On October 26, 2018, the Company entered into an Employment Agreement with Michael Roper, which replaced his employment agreement from May 2018. Pursuant to the Employment Agreement, Mr. Roper will continue to be employed as Chief Executive Officer of the Company for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. The Employment Agreement will be automatically extended upon listing the Company on a national exchange and raising $3,000,000 (the “Public Offering”). During the term of the Employment Agreement, Mr. Roper will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $250,000, which was increased to $275,000 upon achieving various milestones required by the Investors that participated in the September 2018 Offering and will be increased to $350,000 upon the Company completing the Public Offering. Mr. Roper will be eligible for a discretionary performance bonus to be paid in cash or equity, provided, however, no cash bonus will be paid until the closing of the Public Offering. Mr. Roper was paid a $100,000 bonus upon closing of the Public Offering. Mr. Roper was also issued 14,285 shares of our common stock upon the closing of the Public Offering. In addition, pursuant to board approval on June 29, 2019, Mr. Roper was issued 35,714 shares of our restricted common stock awards upon closing of the Public Offering. In addition, upon the closing of the Public Offering Mr. Roper received 14,285 shares of common stock pursuant to his employment agreement. Mr. Roper was issued an additional 35,714 pursuant to his employment agreement upon the closing of the Public Offering of at least $5 million. Mr. Roper’s common stock was issued on February 18, 2020 and his bonus was paid, subsequent to completing our Public Offering. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Roper agreed to cancel 100,000 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
.
Ferdinand Groenewald
On September 26, 2018, the Company rehired Ferdinand Groenewald as Chief Financial Officer of the Company and entered into an Employment Agreement with Mr. Groenewald. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Groenewald will be employed as Chief Financial Officer of the Company for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. During the term of the agreement, Mr. Groenewald will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $150,000 and will be eligible for a discretionary performance cash bonuses which will include $10,000 upon completion of the audit for the year ended December 31, 2017 and $25,000 and up to 1,428 shares of common stock upon completion of a public offering of not less than $3 million together with listing on a national exchange (the “Public Offering”), which may be increased to 3,571 in the event $5 million is raised. Mr. Groenewald’s salary will increase to $175,000 upon closing of the Public Offering. Mr. Groenewald is also eligible to participate in employee benefits plans as the Company may institute from time to time that are available for full-time employees. Mr. Groenewald was paid a discretionary performance cash and equity bonuses including cash of $25,000 and 19,285 upon completion of the Public Offering. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Groenewald agreed to cancel 19,285 shares of the Company’s common stock previously issued and waved all rights to the equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
Kenneth Miller
On September 26, 2018, the Company appointed Kenneth Miller as Chief Operating Officer of the Company and entered into an Employment Agreement with Mr. Miller. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Miller will be employed as Chief Operating Officer of the Company for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. During the term of the agreement, Mr. Miller will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $200,000, which will be increased to $275,000 upon successful closing of the Public Offering. Mr. Miller was issued 14,285 shares of the Company’s common stock upon closing of the Public Offering. In addition, Mr. Miller was paid a discretionary performance cash and equity bonuses including cash of $50,000 and 17,857 shares of common stock upon completion of the Public Offering. Mr. Miller is also eligible to participate in employee benefits plans as we may institute from time to time that are available for full-time employees. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Miller agreed to cancel 32,142 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
Kevin Mohan
On October 26, 2018, we entered into an Employment Agreement with Kevin Mohan. Pursuant to the Employment Agreement, Mr. Mohan will be engaged as our Chief Investment Officer for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. The Employment Agreement will be automatically extended upon the IPO. During the term of the Employment Agreement, Mr. Mohan will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $156,000, which will be increased to $175,000 upon the IPO. Mr. Mohan will be eligible for a discretionary performance bonus to be paid in cash following the closing of the IPO. Mr. Mohan was paid $50,000 bonus upon closing of the IPO. Mr. Mohan was also issued 28,571 shares of our common stock upon the closing of the IPO. In addition, pursuant to board approval on June 29, 2019, Mr. Mohan was issued 35,714 shares of our restricted common stock awards upon closing of the IPO. Mr. Mohan’s common stock was issued on February 18, 2020 and his bonus was paid, subsequent to completing our IPO. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Mohan agreed to cancel 64,285 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
Elements of Compensation
Base Salary
Messrs. Roper, Groenewald, Miller and Mohan received a fixed base salary in an amount determined in accordance with their then employment agreement with Muscle Maker Inc., and based on a number of factors, including:
● The nature, responsibilities and duties of the officer’s position;
● The officer’s expertise, demonstrated leadership ability and prior performance;
● The officer’s salary history and total compensation, including annual cash bonuses and long-term incentive compensation; and
● The competitiveness of the market for the officer’s services.
Bonus
Messrs. Roper, Groenewald, Miller and Mohan received a bonus in connection with completing our IPO pursuant to their employment agreement. In addition, discretionary performance based bonus was paid to Messrs. Roper, Groenewald, Miller and Mohan.
Stock Award
In fiscal 2019 we did not issue any restricted shares of our common stock to our named executive officers.
In fiscal 2020, we issued an aggregate of 216,783 shares of our restricted common stock, with an aggregate value fair value of $1,083,915, to our executive team pursuant to their employment agreements as part of completing the initial public offering. On August 11, 2020, the executive team entered into an agreement individually with us to cancel an aggregate of 216,783 vested shares of our restricted common stock previously issued in the first quarter of 2020 and acknowledge that no further compensation is due under their employment agreements.
Equity Incentive Plans
Plan
Our board of directors and shareholders approved the 2017 Stock Option and Stock Issuance Plan or the 2017 Plan on July 27, 2017 and September 21, 2017, respectively. Upon the adoption of our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, we will no longer issue awards under the 2017 Plan, but any existing awards granted to our management team and Board of Directors will remain outstanding under the 2017 Plan. The 2017 Plan provides incentives to eligible employees, officers, directors and consultants in the form of incentive stock options and non-qualified stock options. We no longer utilize the 2017 Plan. Of these shares, approximately 4,591 shares were issued to the directors (765 shares per director) under the 2017 Plan by the Board of Directors on September 21, 2017.
Plan
Our board of directors and shareholders approved the 2019 Equity Incentive Plan or the 2019 Plan. Our shareholders approved the plan on October 28, 2019. The 2019 Plan provides incentives to eligible employees, officers, directors and consultants in the form of Non-Qualified Stock Options, Incentive Stock Options, Stock Appreciation Rights, Restricted Stock Awards, Restricted Stock Units, Stock Bonus Awards, Performance Compensation Awards (including cash bonus awards) or any combination of the foregoing. We have reserved a total of 214,286 shares of common stock for issuance under the 2019 Plan. As of the date of the issuance of these consolidated financial statements 188,527 shares have been issued under the 2019 Plan. Upon the adoption of our 2020 Equity Incentive Plan, we no longer issue awards under the 2019 Plan, but any existing awards granted to our management team and Board of Directors will remain outstanding under the 2019.
Plan
Our board of directors and shareholders approved and adopted on September 16, 2020 the 2020 Equity Incentive Plan (“2020 Plan”), effective on September 16, 2020 under which stock options and restricted stock may be granted to officers, directors, employees and consultants in the form of non-qualified stock options, incentive stock-options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock awards, restricted stock Units, stock bonus awards, performance compensation awards (including cash bonus awards) or any combination of the foregoing. Under the 2020 Plan, the we reserved 1,750,000 shares of common stock for issuance. As of the date of the issuance of these consolidated financial statements 178,333 shares have been issued under the 2020 Plan.
The administrator, which is the Compensation Committee or another committee of at least two persons or the Board, has the authority, without limitation (i) to designate participants to receive awards, (ii) determine the types of awards to be granted to participants, (iii) determine the number of shares of common stock to be covered by awards, (iv) determine the terms and conditions of any awards granted under the 2020 Plan, (v) determine to what extent and under what circumstances awards may be settled in cash, shares of common stock, other securities, other awards or other property, or cancelled, forfeited or suspended, (vi) determine whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances the delivery of cash, common stock, other securities, other awards or other property and other amounts payable with respect to an award shall be made; (vii) interpret, administer, reconcile any inconsistency in, settle any controversy regarding, correct any defect in and/or complete any omission in the 2020 Plan and any instrument or agreement relating to, or award granted under, the 2019 Plan; (viii) establish, amend, suspend, or waive any rules and regulations and appoint such agents as the administrator shall deem appropriate for the proper administration of the 2020 Plan; (ix) accelerate the vesting or exercisability of, payment for or lapse of restrictions on, awards; (x) reprice existing awards with shareholder approval or to grant awards in connection with or in consideration of the cancellation of an outstanding award with a higher price; and (xi) make any other determination and take any other action that the administrator deems necessary or desirable for the administration of the 2020 Plan. The administrator will have full discretion to administer and interpret the 2019 Plan and to adopt such rules, regulations and procedures as it deems necessary or advisable and to determine, among other things, the time or times at which the awards may be exercised and whether and under what circumstances an award may be exercised.
The administrator will be authorized to grant options to purchase Common Stock that are either “qualified,” meaning they satisfy the requirements of Code Section 422 for Incentive Stock Options, or “non-qualified,” meaning they do not satisfy the requirements of Section 422 of the Code. Options granted under the 2020 Plan will be subject to the terms and conditions established by the administrator. Under the terms of the 2020 Plan, unless the administrator determines otherwise in the case of an option substituted for another option in connection with a corporate transaction, the exercise price of the Options will not be less than the fair market value (as determined under the 2020 Plan) of the shares of common stock on the date of grant. Options granted under the 2020 Plan will be subject to such terms, including the exercise price and the conditions and timing of exercise, as may be determined by the administrator and specified in the applicable award agreement. The maximum term of an option granted under the 2019 Plan will be ten years from the date of grant (or five years in the case of an Incentive Stock Option granted to a 10% stockholder). Payment in respect of the exercise of an option may be made in cash or by check, by surrender of unrestricted shares of Common Stock (at their fair market value on the date of exercise) that have been held by the participant for any period deemed necessary by us to avoid an additional compensation charge or have been purchased on the open market, or the administrator may, in its discretion and to the extent permitted by law, allow such payment to be made through a broker-assisted cashless exercise mechanism, a net exercise method, or by such other method as the administrator may determine to be appropriate.
The administrator will be authorized to award Stock Appreciation Rights (or SARs) under the 2020 Plan. SARs will be subject to such terms and conditions as established by the administrator. A SAR is a contractual right that allows a participant to receive, either in the form of cash, shares or any combination of cash and shares, the appreciation, if any, in the value of a share over a certain period of time. A SAR granted under the 2020 Plan may be granted in tandem with an option and SARs may also be awarded to a participant independent of the grant of an Option. SARs granted in connection with an Option shall be subject to terms similar to the Option which corresponds to such SARs. SARs shall be subject to terms established by the administrator and reflected in the award agreement.
The administrator will be authorized to award Restricted Stock under the 2020 Plan. Unless otherwise provided by the administrator and specified in an award agreement, restrictions on Restricted Stock will lapse after three years of service with us. The administrator will determine the terms of such Restricted Stock awards. Restricted Stock are shares of common stock that generally are non-transferable and subject to other restrictions determined by the administrator for a specified period. Unless the administrator determines otherwise or specifies otherwise in an award agreement, if the participant terminates employment or services during the restricted period, then any unvested restricted stock will be forfeited.
The administrator will be authorized to award Restricted Stock Unit awards. Unless otherwise provided by the administrator and specified in an award agreement, Restricted Stock Units will vest after three years of service with us. The administrator will determine the terms of such Restricted Stock Units. Unless the administrator determines otherwise or specifies otherwise in an award agreement, if the participant terminates employment or services during the period of time over which all or a portion of the units are to be earned, then any unvested units will be forfeited. At the election of the administrator, the participant will receive a number of shares of common stock equal to the number of units earned or an amount in cash equal to the fair market value of that number of shares at the expiration of the period over which the units are to be earned or at a later date selected by the administrator.
The administrator will be authorized to grant Awards of unrestricted shares of common stock or other Awards denominated in shares of common stock, either alone or in tandem with other Awards, under such terms and conditions as the administrator may determine.
Equity Compensation Plan Information
The following table provides information, as of December 31, 2020, with respect to equity securities authorized for issuance under compensation plans:
Plan Category Number of
Securities to be
Issued Upon
Exercise of
Outstanding Options
under the Plan
(a)
Weighted-Average
Exercise Price of
Outstanding Options
under
The Plan
(b)
Number of
Securities
Remaining
Available
for Future
Issuance Under
Equity
Compensation
Plans
(excluding securities
reflected in
Column (a))
(c)
Equity compensation plans approved by security holders $ - 1,607,793
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders $ - -
TOTAL $ - 1,607,793
Director Compensation
On September 21, 2017, Muscle Maker granted 765 shares of common stock under our Muscle Maker 2017 Stock Option and Stock Issuance Plan to each of our six directors of Muscle Maker (4,591 shares of common stock in the aggregate) at a value of $65.31 per share. Such share grants are subject to graduated vesting in the following installments on each of the following dates: (i) 66.666% as of the date of grant and (ii) 8.333% as of (a) October 1, 2017, (b) November 1, 2017, (c) December 1, 2017, and (d) January 1,
During 2018, the directors did not receive any compensation.
On July 16, 2019, the board of directors approved a board compensation plan that would compensate the board members for their deferred compensation for 2019, 2018 and 2017. The board members are eligible for cash compensation of $4,500 or $9,000 per year. To be paid as follows: (i) directors serving on the board during 2018 and 2017, will be granted shares is lieu of payment as the letter agreements set forth certain terms pursuant to which the directors will serve as directors of the Company.
In addition, on an ongoing basis pursuant to the approved board compensation plan each director will receive 1,428 shares of common stock per year for service as director, 185 shares of common stock per year for service on each committee and 142 shares of common stock per year for service as chair for such committee. The shares of common stock for committee service will be limited to two committees.
The Company issued shares of common stock upon the occurrence of the public offering and up listing on a national exchange as follows, which was prorated for a partial year: (i) directors that served as directors during the year ended December 31, 2017 each received 714 shares of common stock, (ii) directors that served as directors during the year ended December 31, 2018 each received 1,428 shares of common stock and (iii) directors that served as directors during the year ended December 31, 2019 each received 1,428 shares of common stock.
The directors did not received compensation for services prior to the Company being up listed on a national exchange, the Company agreed to provide equity in lieu of cash compensation and equity compensation for services rendered during 2017, 2018 and 2019. For past director services in lieu of cash unpaid to date: (i) directors that served as directors during the year ended December 31, 2017 each received shares of common stock valued at $4,500 priced at the price per share of the Company’s public offering in connection with its uplisting (the “Uplisting Offering”), (ii) directors that served as directors during the year ended December 31, 2018 each received shares of common stock valued at $9,000, which was prorated for a partial year of service, and priced at the price per share of the Uplisting Offering and (iii) directors that served as directors during the year ended December 31, 2019 through the date of the Uplisting Offering each received shares of common stock valued at $9,000, which was prorated for a partial year of service, priced at the price per share of the Uplisting Offering.
On December 4, 2020, the board of directors approved a new board compensation plan that would compensate the board members for their deferred compensation for the fourth quarter 2020 through the third quarter of 2021. The board members are eligible for cash compensation of $12,000 per year to be paid quarterly within 30 days of the close of each quarter.
In addition, on an ongoing basis pursuant to the approved board compensation plan each director will receive $8,000 in value of common stock per year for service as director, $6,000 in value of shares of common stock per year for service on each committee and $4,000 in value of shares of common stock per year for service as chair for such committee. The number of shares to be issued would be based upon the closing price of the last trading date of each calendar quarter. The shares of common stock for committee service will be limited to two committees.
Kevin Mohan is an employee-director and does not receive compensation for serving in his role as a director.
Executive Compensation Philosophy
Our Board of Directors determines the compensation given to our executive officers in their sole determination. Our Board of Directors reserves the right to pay our executives or any future executives a salary, and/or issue them shares of common stock issued in consideration for services rendered and/or to award incentive bonuses which are linked to our performance, as well as to the individual executive officer’s performance. This package may also include long-term stock-based compensation to certain executives, which is intended to align the performance of our executives with our long-term business strategies. Additionally, while our Board of Directors has not granted any performance base stock options to date, the Board of Directors reserves the right to grant such options in the future, if the Board in its sole determination believes such grants would be in the best interests of the Company.
Incentive Bonus
The Board of Directors may grant incentive bonuses to our executive officers and/or future executive officers in its sole discretion, if the Board of Directors believes such bonuses are in the Company’s best interest, after analyzing our current business objectives and growth, if any, and the amount of revenue we are able to generate each month, which revenue is a direct result of the actions and ability of such executives.
Long-Term, Stock Based Compensation
In order to attract, retain and motivate executive talent necessary to support the Company’s long-term business strategy we may award our executives and any future executives with long-term, stock-based compensation in the future, at the sole discretion of our Board of Directors.

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ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS.
The following table sets forth information about the beneficial ownership of our common stock at April 15, 2021, for:
● each person, or group of affiliated persons, whom we know to beneficially own more than 5% of our common stock;
● each of our named executive officers;
● each of our directors; and
● all of our executive officers and directors as a group.
We have determined beneficial ownership in accordance with the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission. These rules generally attribute beneficial ownership of securities to persons who possess sole or shared voting power or investment power with respect to those securities. In addition, the rules include shares of common stock issuable pursuant to the exercise of stock options or warrants or upon conversion of a security that are either exercisable or convertible on or before a date that is 60 days after April 15, 2021. These shares are deemed to be outstanding and beneficially owned by the person holding those options or warrants for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of that person, but they are not treated as outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. Unless otherwise indicated, the persons or entities identified in this table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares shown as beneficially owned by them, subject to applicable community property laws.
Except as otherwise noted below, the address for persons listed in the table is c/o Muscle Maker, Inc., 2600 South Shore Blvd., Suite 300, League City, Texas 77573.
The percentage ownership information shown in the column labeled “Percentage of Shares Outstanding” is based upon 13,826,734 shares of common stock outstanding as of April 15, 2021.
Name of Beneficial Owner Number of Shares
Beneficially Owned (1) Percentage of Shares
Outstanding Prior to
Offering (1)
5% Stockholders:
Catalytic Holdings 1 LLC (2) 1,996,638 13.60 %
Thoroughbred Diagnostics, LLC (2) 1,709,000 11.85 %
Armistice Capital Master Fund LTD (3)
1,395,588
9.99 %
Directors and Named Executive Officers:
Kevin Mohan (4) 147,251 1.06 %
Michael J. Roper (5) 100,000 *
Ferdinand Groenewald (6) 19,285 *
Kenneth Miller (7) 32,142 *
Stephen Spanos (8) 6,701 *
A.B. Southall, III (9) 114,095 *
Paul L. Menchik (10) 62,930 *
Peter S. Petrosian (11) 10,022 *
Jeff Carl (12) 8,713 *
Major General (ret) Malcolm Frost (13) 1,692 *
Philip Balatsos (14) 3,206 *
All executive officers and directors as a group (12 persons) 508,639
3.68 %
* denotes less than 1%
(1) Beneficial ownership as reported in the above table has been determined in accordance with Rule 13d-3 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and is not necessarily indicative of beneficial ownership for any other purpose. The number of shares of common stock shown as beneficially owned includes shares of common stock issuable upon (i) the exercise of stock options that will become exercisable within sixty (60) days of April 15, 2021, (ii) the conversion of the convertible promissory notes into shares of our common stock, and (iii) the exercise of warrants that will become exercisable within sixty (60) days of April 15, 2021. Shares of common stock issuable pursuant to the foregoing methods are deemed outstanding for purposes of calculating the percentage of beneficial ownership of the person or entity holding such securities. Accordingly, the total percentages of beneficial ownership are in excess of one hundred percent (100%).
(2) Catalytic Holdings, LLC beneficially owns (i) 1,145,888 shares of common stock of the Company (ii) 850,750 shares of Common Stock of the Company which are subject to presently exercisable purchase warrants. The natural person with voting and investment control for Catalytic Holdings, LLC is Dmitriy Shapiro. Thoroughbred Diagnostics, LLC beneficially owns (i) 1,109,000 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker (ii) 600,000 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker which are subject to presently exercisable purchase warrants. The natural person with voting and investment control for Thoroughbred Diagnostics, LLC is Joey Giamichael.
(3) Armistice Capital Master Fund LTD beneficial owns (i) 1,250,000 shares of the common stock of the Company (ii) 4,115,227 shares of common stock of the Company which are subject to presently exercisable purchase warrants and (iii) 2,865,227 shares of common stock of the Company which are subject to presently exercisable pre-funded purchase warrants. There is a beneficial ownership limitation on the warrants and prefunded warrants owned by the holder that limits beneficial ownership of the holder to 9.99% of the number of shares of common stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to the issuance of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrant at any time. The beneficial ownership limitation can be increase by the holder by giving written notice to the Company, but this will not take effect until 61 days after the delivery of the notice to the Company. Armistice Capital Master Fund LTD is managed by Armistice Capital, LLC, its investment manager. Steven Boyd, the managing member of Armistice Capital, LLC has the sole voting and investment power over the securities held by Armistice Capital Master Fund LTD.
(4) Kevin Mohan beneficially owns (i) indirectly 5,574 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker through various family members that reside in the same household as Kevin Mohan and (ii) directly 130,963 shares of common stock of Muscle Maker of which 10,714 are subject to presently exercisable purchase warrants issued to Kevin Mohan.
(5) Michael J. Roper beneficial owns directly 100,000 shares of common stock of the Company for serving as the Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
(6) Ferdinand Groenewald beneficial owns directly 19,285 shares of common stock of the Company for serving as the Chief Financial Officer of the Company.
(7) Kenneth Miller beneficial owns directly 32,142 shares of common stock of the Company for serving as Chief Operating Officer of the Company.
(8) Stephen Spanos beneficially owns directly 6,701 shares of common stock of the Company for serving as a director through the second quarter of 2020.
(9) A.B. Southall III beneficially owns (i) directly 104,095 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker, and (ii) directly 10,000 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker subject to presently exercisable purchase warrants issued to A.B. Southall.
(10) Paul L. Menchik beneficially owns (i) directly 52,930 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker, and (ii) directly 10,000 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker subject to presently exercisable purchase warrants issued to Paul L. Menchik.
(11) Peter S. Petrosian beneficially owns directly 10,022 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker issued for services rendered as a board of director.
(12) Jeff Carl beneficially owns directly 8,713 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker for services rendered as a board of director.
(13) Major General (ret) Malcolm Frost beneficially owns directly 1,692 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker for services rendered as a board of director.
(14) Philip Balatsos beneficially owns directly 3,206 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker for services rendered as a board of director.

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ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE
Policies and Procedures for Related Party Transactions
Following this offering, pursuant to the written charter of our Audit Committee, the Audit Committee will be responsible for reviewing and approving, prior to our entry into any such transaction, all related party transactions and potential conflict of interest situations involving:
● any of our directors, director nominees or executive officers;
● any beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding stock; and
● any immediate family member of any of the foregoing.
Our Audit Committee will review any financial transaction, arrangement or relationship that:
● involves or will involve, directly or indirectly, any related party identified above and is in an amount greater than $0;
● would cast doubt on the independence of a director;
● would present the appearance of a conflict of interest between us and the related party; or
● is otherwise prohibited by law, rule or regulation.
The Audit Committee will review each such transaction, arrangement or relationship to determine whether a related party has, has had or expects to have a direct or indirect material interest. Following its review, the Audit Committee will take such action as it deems necessary and appropriate under the circumstances, including approving, disapproving, ratifying, canceling or recommending to management how to proceed if it determines a related party has a direct or indirect material interest in a transaction, arrangement or relationship with us. Any member of the Audit Committee who is a related party with respect to a transaction under review will not be permitted to participate in the discussions or evaluations of the transaction; however, the Audit Committee member will provide all material information concerning the transaction to the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee will report its action with respect to any related party transaction to the board of directors.
Transactions with American Restaurants, LLC or American Restaurant Holdings, Inc.
On January 23, 2015, in connection with the acquisition of Muscle Maker Brands, we issued two promissory notes payable in the amount of $400,000 (“MM Note”) and $204,000 (“MMB Note”), respectively. MM Note includes interest imputed at the rate of 0.41% per annum and is payable in three installments with the final installment due eighteen months after the closing date of the Acquisition of Muscle Maker Brands. MMB Note was secured by the assets of Colonia, bore no stated interest and was due on March 9, 2015.
On January 23, 2015, Muscle Maker issued 619,897 shares of Common Stock to American Restaurant Holdings in exchange for cash of $3,645,000 and an obligation to repay an aggregate of $604,000 of principal due under MM Note and MMB Note.
On March 9, 2015, the American Restaurant Holdings repaid MMB Note in full. On July 21, 2015, January 23, 2016 and July 23, 2016, installments of $100,000, $150,000 and $150,000 were repaid on the balance of MM Note by the American Restaurant Holdings. As of July 23, 2016, there is no balance outstanding related to MM Note.
On December 31, 2015, we issued a promissory note in the amount of $1,082,620 to American Restaurant (the “2015 ARH Note”). The note bore no stated interest or maturity date and was convertible into shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker at a conversion price of $32.69 per share. On March 14, 2017, American Restaurant Holdings elected to convert the 2015 ARH Note in the principal amount of $1,082,620 into 33,141 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker at a conversion price of $32.69 per share.
During the period from January 1 through December 15, 2016, we received $2,621,842 of advances from the American Restaurant Holdings. The payable due to the American Restaurant Holdings as a result of these advances was exchanged for a convertible promissory note in the amount of $2,621,842 (the “2016 ARH Note”). The 2016 ARH Note had no stated interest rate or maturity date and was convertible into shares of the Common Stock of Muscle Maker at a conversion price of $26.11 per share at a time to be determined by the lender. The 2016 American Restaurant Holdings Note included a three-year warrant for the purchase of 35,113 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $65.31 per share. On March 14, 2017, the American Restaurant Holdings elected to convert the 2016 ARH Note into 100,325 shares of Common Stock of Muscle Maker.
On February 15, 2017, we issued a promissory note in the amount of $980,949 (the “First 2017 ARH Note”) and on March 15, 2017, MMI issued a promissory note in the amount of $338,834 (the “Second 2017 ARH Note”), both to ARH. The First 2017 ARH Note and the Second 2017 ARH Note bear no stated interest rate or maturity date and are convertible into 37,536 and 10,372 shares of our common stock at a conversion price of $26.11 per share and $32.69 per share, respectively, at a time to be determined by the Former Parent. On March 14, 2017, the American Restaurant Holdings elected to convert the First 2017 ARH Note into 37,536 shares of our common stock.
The First 2017 ARH Note and the Second 2017 ARH note include a three-year warrant for the purchase of 13,137 and 2,256 shares, respectively, of Muscle Maker common stock at an exercise price of $65.31 per share. The warrants issued in connection with the First 2017 ARH Note and the Second 2017 ARH note had a grant date value of $122,820 and $23,120, respectively. Muscle Maker allocated the proceeds to the First 2017 ARH Note and the Second 2017 ARH and related warrants based on the relative fair values at the time of issuance, resulting in an effective conversion price of $22.89 and $30.45 per share, respectively. The fair value of Muscle Maker common stock on the dates the notes were issued was $50.05 per share, creating an intrinsic value of $27.16 and $19.60 per share, respectively.
On March 14, 2017, American Restaurant Holdings elected to convert aggregate principal of $4,685,411 under the 2015 ARH Note, the 2016 ARH Note and the First 2017 ARH Note into an aggregate 171,003 shares of Muscle Makers common stock.
On July 18, 2017, we issued a convertible promissory note (the “Third 2017 ARH Note”) to American Restaurant Holdings in exchange for cash proceeds of $336,932. The Third 2017 ARH Note has no stated interest rate or maturity date and is convertible into shares of our common stock at a conversion price of $52.29 per share at a time to be determined by the lender. The Third 2017 ARH Note includes a three-year warrant for the purchase of 2,256 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $65.31 per share.
On September 19, 2017, American Restaurant Holdings elected to convert aggregate principal of $675,766 under the Second 2017 ARH Note and the Third 2017 Note into an aggregate 16,818 shares of Muscle Makers common stock.
On April 6, 2018, we issued a $475,000 convertible promissory note (the “2018 ARH Note”) to American Restaurant Holdings. The 2018 ARH Note has no stated interest rate or maturity date and is convertible into shares of Muscle Makers common stock at a conversion price of $3.50 per share at a time to be determined by the lender.
On April 11, 2018, American Restaurant Holdings elected to partially convert the 2018 ARHI Note for the principal of $392,542 into 112,154 shares of our common stock.
The 2015 ARH Note, 2016 ARH Note, First 2017 ARH Note, Second 2017 ARH Note, Third 2017 ARH Note and 2018 ARH Note are together, the “ARH Notes”.
Transactions with Officers, Directors and Executives of Muscle Maker
On September 21, 2017, we granted 765 shares of common stock under our Muscle Maker 2017 Stock Option and Stock Issuance Plan to each of our six directors of Muscle Maker (4,591 shares of common stock in the aggregate) at a value of $65.31 per share. Such share grants are subject to graduated vesting in the following installments on each of the following dates: (i) 66.666% as of the date of grant and (ii) 8.333% as of (a) October 1, 2017, (b) November 1, 2017, (c) December 1, 2017, and (d) January 1, 2018.
On May 1, 2018, Muscle Maker board of directors agreed to issue 14,285 shares of common stock upon a Public Offering of at least $3,000,000, to Michael Roper, our Chief Executive Officer, as part of his initial employment agreement. Mr. Roper is also eligible to receive 14,285 restricted common stock awards on each anniversary of his employment date during the employment contract period as well as up to 35,714 additional restricted common stock awards upon the successful completion of an initial public offering of at least $5,000,000. In addition, pursuant to board approval on June 29, 2019, Mr. Roper is entitled to 35,714 shares of our common stock that will be issued upon a Public Offering of at least $3,000,000.
During April 2019, we repaid other notes payable in the aggregate principal amount of $710,000, of which $435,000 belong to related parties. In addition, we issued 84,427 of our common stock as payment for the interest incurred on the other notes payable repaid in the aggregate amount of $590,989.
On May 14, 2019, we issued a $91,000 promissory note to a related party. The note has a stated interest rate of 15% over the original term of one year with monthly interest payments. The note becomes due in one year or the first day our common stock trades publicly on an exchange.
On June 29, 2018, Muscle Maker board of directors agreed to issue Kevin Mohan and Michael Roper an additional 35,714 restricted common stock awards. These stock awards was issued upon the successful completion of an initial public offering.
On September 26, 2018, we rehired Ferdinand Groenewald as our Chief Financial Officer and entered into an Employment Agreement with Mr. Groenewald. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Groenewald will be employed as our Chief Financial Officer for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. During the term of the agreement, Mr. Groenewald will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $150,000 and will be eligible for a discretionary performance cash bonuses which will include $10,000 upon completion of the audit for the year ended December 31, 2017 and $25,000 and up to 1,428 shares of common stock upon completion of a public offering of not less than $3 million together with listing on a national exchange (the “Public Offering”), which may be increased to 3,571 shares of common stock in the event $5 million is raised. Mr. Groenewald’s salary will increase to $175,000 upon closing of the Public Offering. Mr. Groenewald is also eligible to participate in employee benefits plans as we may institute from time to time that are available for full-time employees. In addition, pursuant to board approval, Mr. Groenewald was issued 15,714 shares of our common stock upon closing of the IPO. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Groenewald agreed to cancel 19,285 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
On September 26, 2018, we appointed Kenneth Miller as our Chief Operating Officer and entered into an Employment Agreement with Mr. Miller. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Miller will be employed as our Chief Operating Officer for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. During the term of the agreement, Mr. Miller will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $200,000, which will be increased to $275,000 upon successful closing of the Public Offering. Mr. Miller is also entitled to 14,285 shares of our common stock that will be issued upon a Public offering of at least $3,000,000. Mr. Miller is eligible for a discretionary performance cash and equity bonuses which will include cash of $50,000. Mr. Miller was issued 14,285 shares of our common stock upon closing of the IPO. In addition, Mr. Miller was paid a discretionary performance cash and equity bonuses including cash of $50,000 and 17,857 shares of common stock upon completion of the IPO. Mr. Miller is also eligible to participate in employee benefits plans as we may institute from time to time that are available for full-time employees. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Miller agreed to cancel 32,142 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement
On October 26, 2018, we entered into an Employment Agreement with Michael Roper, which replaced his employment agreement from May 2018. Pursuant to the Employment Agreement, Mr. Roper will continue to be employed as our Chief Executive Officer for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. The Employment Agreement will be automatically extended upon listing our common stock on a national exchange and raising $3,000,000 (the “IPO”). During the term of the Employment Agreement, Mr. Roper will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $250,000, which was increased to $275,000 upon achieving various milestones required by the Investors that participated in the September 2018 Offering and will be increased to $350,000 upon our completing the IPO. Mr. Roper will be eligible for a discretionary performance bonus to be paid in cash or equity, provided, however, no cash bonus will be paid until the closing of the IPO. Mr. Roper was paid $100,000 bonus upon closing of the IPO. Mr. Roper was also issued 14,285 shares of our common stock upon the closing of the IPO. In addition, pursuant to board approval on June 29, 2019, Mr. Roper was issued 35,714 shares of our restricted common stock awards upon closing of the IPO. In addition, upon the closing of the IPO Mr. Roper received 14,285 shares of common stock pursuant to his employment agreement. Mr. Roper was issued an additional 35,714 pursuant to his employment agreement upon the closing of the IPO of at least $5 million. Mr. Roper’s common stock was issued on February 18, 2020 and his bonus was paid, subsequent to completing our IPO. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Roper agreed to cancel 100,000 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
On October 26, 2018, we entered into an Employment Agreement with Kevin Mohan. Pursuant to the Employment Agreement, Mr. Mohan will be engaged as our Chief Investment Officer for a period of two years unless earlier terminated pursuant to the terms of the agreement. The Employment Agreement will be automatically extended upon the IPO. During the term of the Employment Agreement, Mr. Mohan will be entitled to a base salary at the annualized rate of $156,000, which will be increased to $175,000 upon the IPO. Mr. Mohan will be eligible for a discretionary performance bonus to be paid in cash following the closing of the IPO. Mr. Mohan was paid $50,000 bonus upon closing of the IPO. Mr. Mohan was also issued 28,571 shares of our common stock upon the closing of the IPO. In addition, pursuant to board approval on June 29, 2019, Mr. Mohan was issued 35,714 shares of our restricted common stock awards upon closing of the IPO. Mr. Mohan’s common stock was issued on February 18, 2020 and his bonus was paid, subsequent to completing our IPO. On August 11, 2020, Mr. Mohan agreed to cancel 64,285 shares of common stock previously issued to him and waived all rights to equity compensation provided under his employment agreement.
We have entered into indemnification agreements with each of our directors and entered into such agreements with certain of our executive officers. These agreements require us, among other things, to indemnify these individuals for certain expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and settlement amounts reasonably incurred by such person in any action or proceeding, including any action by or in our right, on account of any services undertaken by such person on behalf of our company or that person’s status as a member of our Board of Directors to the maximum extent allowed under Nevada law.

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ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES. [OPEN]
Marcum LLP has served as our independent registered public accountants for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019.
The following is a summary of the fees billed or expected to be billed to us by Marcum LLP, our independent registered public accountants, for professional services rendered with respect to the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019:
Audit fees (1) $ 312,390 $ 238,075
Audit-related fees (2) - -
Tax fees (3) - -
All other fees (4) - -
$ 312,390 $ 238,075
(1) Audit Fees consist of fees billed and expected to be billed for services rendered for the audit of our consolidated financial statements for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 and in connection with the filing of multiple Forms S-1.
(2) Audit-Related Fees consist of fees billed for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit of our financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.”
(3) Tax Fees consist of fees billed for professional services related to preparation of our U.S. federal and state income tax returns and tax advice.
(4) All Other Fees consist of fees billed for products and services provided by our independent registered public accountants, other than those disclosed above.
The Audit Committee is responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of the independent registered public accountants and approves in advance any services to be performed by the independent registered public accountants, whether audit-related or not. The Audit Committee reviews each proposed engagement to determine whether the provision of services is compatible with maintaining the independence of the independent registered public accountants. The fees shown above were pre-approved either by our Board or our Audit Committee.
PART IV

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ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
ITEM 15. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES.
Exhibit No.
Exhibit Description
3.1
Articles of Incorporation of Muscle Maker, Inc., a Nevada corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 14, 2019)
3.2
Bylaws of Muscle Maker, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 14, 2019)
3.3
Certificate of Change Pursuant to NRS 78.209 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 11, 2019)
3.4
Certificate of Amendment to Articles of Incorporation of Muscle Maker, Inc., a Nevada corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on November 16, 2020)
4.1
Form of Warrants to Purchase Common Stock - September 2018 Offering (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 6, 2018)
4.2
Form of Warrants to Purchase Common Stock - April 2019 Offering (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on April 17, 2019)
4.3†
Form of Representative’s Warrant (Incorporated by reference to the Form S-1 Registration Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 26, 2019)
4.4
Equity Incentive Plan (Incorporated by reference to the Amendment No. 3 to the Form S-1 Registration Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 10, 2020)
4.5
Equity Incentive Plan
10.1†
Muscle Maker 2017 Stock Option and Stock Issuance Plan and form of award agreements (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 6.1 to Amendment No 1 to the Offering Statement Report on Form 1-A/A filed on September 21, 2017)
10.2†
Form of Restricted Stock Agreement under Muscle Maker 2017 Stock Option and Stock Issuance Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 6.5 to Amendment No 1 to the Offering Statement Report on Form 1-A/A filed on September 21, 2017)
10.3
Assignment and Assumption Agreement, dated August 25, 2017, between Muscle Maker Brands Conversion, Inc. and Muscle Maker Development, LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 6.7 to Amendment No 1 to the Offering Statement Report on Form 1-A/A filed on September 21, 2017)
10.4
Agreement of Conveyance, Transfer and Assigning of Assets and Assumptions of Obligations, dated September 15, 2017, between Muscle Maker, Inc. and Muscle Maker Corp., LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 6.8 to the Registrant’s Amendment No 1 to the Offering Statement Report on Form 1-A/A filed on September 21, 2017)
10.5†
Employment Agreement, between Muscle Maker and Ferdinand Groenewald (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 22, 2018)
10.6†
Employment Agreement, between Muscle Maker and Ken Miller (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 22, 2018)
10.7†
Employment Agreement between Michael Roper and Muscle Maker, Inc. dated October 26, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 6, 2018)
10.8†
Employment Agreement between Kevin Mohan and Muscle Maker, Inc. dated October 26, 2018 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 6, 2018)
10.9†
Employment Agreement between Aimee Infante and Muscle Maker, Inc. dated May 6, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on May 10, 2019)
10.10†
Form of Director Agreement dated July 16, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on May 10, 2019)
10.11±
Master Distribution Agreement between Muscle Maker Franchising LLC and Sysco Corporation dated June 1, 2011 (Incorporated by reference to the Form S-1 Registration Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 26, 2019)
10.12±
Amendment to Master Distribution Agreement between Muscle Maker Franchising LLC and Sysco Corporation dated October 17, 2017 (Incorporated by reference to the Form S-1 Registration Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 26, 2019)
10.13
Form of Conversion Agreement (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 10, 2019)
10.14
Form of Addendum to Conversion Agreement (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 10, 2019)
21.1+
List of Subsidiaries (Incorporated by reference to the Form S-1 Registration Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 26, 2019)
31.1
Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a) as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
31.2
Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a) as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
32.1
Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.2
Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
101.INS
XBRL Instance Document*
101.SCH
XBRL Schema Document*
101.CAL
XBRL Calculation Linkbase Document*
101.DEF
XBRL Definition Linkbase Document*
101.LAB
XBRL Label Linkbase Document*
101.PRE
XBRL Presentation Linkbase Document*
† Includes management contracts and compensation plans and arrangements
*Filed herewith.
+Previously filed.