Moe's taking swipe at new gift card

Beginning November 1, 2003, Moe's Southwest Grill, the country's hottest "Fresh Mex" quick casual concept, will launch its own branded gift card system wide. Affinity gift cards have proven to be successful retail branding and revenue tools for brands such as Starbucks, Bath Bath & Beyond, Borders and Johnny Rocket's. Moving away from paper-based incentives to plastic gift cards, more than 70 of the top 100 retailers have customers swiping at the register.

"With our current growth of three store openings a week and size of 250 by next year, a gift card is ideal for our system," explains Matt Andrew, Vice President of Finance. "We believe our franchisees will respond well to the food category's success of 50-300 percent increased revenue over paper gifting."

The Moe's gift card will have a simple consumer fulfillment. Consumers purchase the card for any amount using cash, check or credit card. The amount of the gift card is loaded and stored. Following each use, customers receive a receipt with the balance, all updated real time. The card may be reloaded and used multiple times.

"We will continue to invest in the Moe's brand as well as our other portfolio brands because we believe tools like automated gift cards offer the consumer conveniences and enable them to align more closely with the brand," explains Martin Sprock, founder and chief. "Much like our brand and store design, the Moe's card will practically jump out of your wallet or purse. We want to always keep it fun and engaging."

Appealing to a more health-interested public, Moe's food is so fresh; there are no freezers or microwaves at any of the locations. There's no animal fat or lard in any item on the menu and everything is made fresh daily. Moe's offers burritos, tacos, quesadillas and salads with a choice of grilled tofu, chicken or steak. Moe's also offers a few vegetarian items, a kid's meal and adult beverages.

About Moe's Southwest Grill

Moe's Southwest Grill offers fun, fresh, southwest cuisine with a healthy twist. The Atlanta-based company was founded by Martin Sprock in December 2000 and currently has 82 restaurants in operation. Greeted with a trademark "Welcome to Moe's" cheer that sets the tone for a lighthearted experience in each store, Moe's is quickly becoming the southwest concept to watch with a total of 560 more Franchise units scheduled for 23 states in the Southeast, Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southwest, and Midwest regions.