In this episode of Restaurant Catering Smarts, Michael Attias welcomes Phillip Scotton, President & COO of Primo Partners—one of the most successful multi-unit, multi-brand franchise operators in the Ben & Jerry’s system, and a rapidly growing partner within the Starbucks licensed store network.
Phillip shares his remarkable journey from unpaid intern to executive leader, helping Primo Partners scale from a single Ben & Jerry’s shop in Chapel Hill to more than 20 locations across the Southeast. Under his leadership, Primo became the #1 Ben & Jerry’s franchisee globally for off-premise operations, fueled by a focus on culture, servant leadership, and guest experience.
Michael and Phillip dive into the strategies behind Primo’s off-premise and catering success, including:
This episode is packed with actionable insights for any restaurant or catering leader looking to grow off-premise revenue and build a stronger, more scalable organization.
Restaurant Catering Smarts is sponsored by CaterZen Catering Software.
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✅ Off-Premise as a Growth Engine: In Primo’s early years, off-premise represented up to 40% of total revenue—proving how powerful this channel can be.
✅ Differentiate Through Experience: Primo’s catering isn’t “drop and go”—it’s scooping, music, games, and fun. The experience is their signature.
✅ Grassroots Sales Still Work: Delivering flavors to offices, using email campaigns, and investing early in SEO helped Primo stand out.
✅ Systems Make Scale Possible: Large activations—serving 2,000 to 10,000 people—required new operational systems and workflows.
✅ Culture Drives Performance: Primo’s culture is built on three values: servant leadership, hospitality, and growth. These fuel hiring, leadership, and service.
✅ People-First Leadership Wins: Profit sharing for every store employee and equity for long-term leaders support retention and high performance.
✅ Expansion Requires Purpose: Growth into Starbucks and additional Ben & Jerry’s markets is intentional, aligned with community impact and team development.
✅ Catering Works Across Brands: Primo is already exploring how to scale Starbucks catering—a huge future opportunity.
✅ Real Estate Creates Stability: Parallel investments in land and development help fund growth and support team wealth-building.
✅ Feedback Fuels Leadership: Annual 360 reviews keep leaders grounded, self-aware, and continuously improving.
🔹 “We always believed in delivering an experience—not just ice cream.”
🔹 “Off-premise became our biggest engine. At one point, it was 40% of our revenue.”
🔹 “We learned quickly—you can’t serve 2,000 people the same way you serve 100.”
🔹 “Our culture comes down to three values: servant leadership, hospitality, and growth.”
🔹 “Nobody can turn down free ice cream.”
🔹 “If we wanted to provide opportunities, we had to grow.”
🔹 “Our managers and frontline workers split 2% of monthly revenue based on hours worked.”
🔹 “We’ve served events up to 10,000 people—and we’re doing a 6,000-person hot chocolate event this year.”
🔹 “Ice cream is not easy to cater, but the experience makes it unforgettable.”
🔹 “We didn’t get into business for business—we got into it to develop people.”
