Never a Lack of Ideas

Edit on 11/11/14: After further consideration, I no longer agree that Portillo's should franchise. I still like my first two ideas, though. Portillo's is a terrific fast casual restaurant chain predominantly in the Chicagoland area. It's a true Chicago original, famous for its hot dogs, Italian beef, and chocolate cake. And it's reportedly for sale. Since I don't have a spare hundred million dollars lying around to make a bid, I'd like to share a few big ideas for the next owner on how to take Portillo's to the next level. I spent three summer and winter breaks from school working at my local Portillo's. I loved working there and I still love eating there. So to the next owner of Portillo Restaurant Group: here are three big ideas for you. We should chat sometime soon: Expand to Illinois' biggest college towns. Portillo's is extremely popular among young people — especially high school students. And 33 out of 38 Portillo's restaura...