Martin Investments LLC Group
What: Hot Head Burritos franchisee of five locations in Butler and Warren counties
Where: Office at 403 Vista Glen, Cincinnati
Co-owners: Father and son team Kevin and Zachery Ketring
Website: www.hotheadburritos.com
Butler County will be taken over by Hot Head Burritos by the end of the year.
A Fairfield resident and his father are co-owners of a Hot Head franchise with five stores in Butler and Warren counties: Liberty Twp., Middletown, Hamilton, Mason, and a fifth Butler County location this year. The Liberty Twp. and Middletown stores already are open, and are doing well, said Zachery Ketring, co-owner, and Mason is next. The store in Hamilton will open by the beginning of next year at the latest, and the site is opening in a new strip mall being built in west Hamilton, Ketring said.
Ketring said he and his father, Kevin, who owned a veterinary practice in College Hill for 20 years, are trying to build a cluster of Hot Head restaurants close to home to build the brand. And they think Butler County’s growing population and appetite for burritos will successfully support the franchise.
“They’re all different communities. One of our biggest things is looking for opportunities for growth,” Ketring said. “This specific area thrives on fast casual Mexican food.”
Hot Head is a Kettering-based franchise that started in 2007. It has 18 locations in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Northern Kentucky, including the ones in Middletown and Liberty Twp., with 10 more locations on the way this year, said Ray Wiley, Hot Head’s president and co-founder.
By the end of the year, Hot Head also will be in Indiana, opening a total 20 Hot Head restaurants this year, Wiley said.
“We have a good product and a good concept,” he said.
The Ketrings are one of eight or nine franchisees.
Ketring, 29, said his string of locations are the first in the Cincinnati area in the following places:
- 6862 Liberty Plaza Drive, Liberty Twp., which opened in February;
- 3585 S. Dixie Highway, Middletown, which opened last month;
- 4752 Fields Ertel Road, Mason, which is planned to open by Oct. 1;
- Main Street, Hamilton, which is planned to open early next year; and
- A site in Butler County still to be determined, which is planned to open early next year.
Each store has about 15 employees, he said.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2551 or clevingston@coxohio.com.
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