Cousins Maine Lobster on a roll, reveals growth plans

Cousins Maine Lobster, a Portland, Maine, U.S.A.-based operator of lobster food trucks and restaurants, has expanded rapidly nationwide, taking the brand’s popular food truck concept on the road to several locations across the U.S.

Founded in 2012 as a single food truck by cousins Jim Tselikis and Sabin Lomac, both of whom hail from Maine, the company’s popularity skyrocketed after the cousins appeared on Shark Tank and partnered with Barbara Corcoran, a real estate mogul and investor who is a co-host on the popular reality show.

“On the day we launched, the Shark Tank producers saw we were coming to Los Angeles and asked us to audition. My brother [Jim] said no to Shark Tank twice,” Cousins Maine Lobster Director of Marketing and Franchise Sales Annie Tselikis recalled. “They had no valuation on the company but knew that with the first truck, they [only] had to sell 37 lobster rolls to break even.”

Through a franchising model set up with the help of Corcoran, the company has grown to eight restaurants and around 60 food trucks in 30 markets. Each market includes a cluster of cities that the mobile CML food trucks visit.

“All of our growth had been more organic, [but] now, we would like to be more strategic and targeted,” Annie Tselikis said.

This year, the company has expanded its ... 

Photo courtesy of Cousins Maine Lobster