---
title: "Nation's Restaurant News: Fuzzy’s Taco Shop outlines plan for ‘controlled expansion’"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/84975e68-fdf4-48ce-a5bc-df3067ec78cc
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/nations-restaurant-news-fuzzys-taco-shop-outlines-plan-for-controlled-expansion-2703019
category: "Mexican"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Mexican"
topics: ["Development & multi-unit"]
published: 2017-06-13T03:22:00.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:32:40.234Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/29537f2d8f49d6bddeb393c1f177fcbb2072.jpg
---

# Nation's Restaurant News: Fuzzy’s Taco Shop outlines plan for ‘controlled expansion’

**TL;DR:** Fuzzy's Taco Shop has tripled its openings since NRD Capital acquired 70% of the company, and plans to open 30 more locations by year's end. The brand is focusing on controlled expansion with a franchisee-first approach.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2017-06-13. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/nations-restaurant-news-fuzzys-taco-shop-outlines-plan-for-controlled-expansion-2703019).*

## Story

There is a lot to celebrate after the first year of partnership between Fuzzy's Taco Shop and NRD Capital. According to a recent article by Nation's Restaurant News, the Fort Worth-based restaurant franchise has tripled their openings since NRD Capital acquired 70-percent of the company and fueled the brand's trajectory behind experience, strategy, and a franchisee-first focus.

“When we first started, Aziz and I had a conversation,” Mel Knight, president of Fuzzy's Taco Shop, told NRN. “I basically asked him what he was most concerned with as we partnered up. He said, quite frankly, it was the infrastructure to support our franchisees. He was right on target.”

Following up on the first year's success, Fuzzy's expects to open 30 locations by year's end. Aziz Hashim, managing partner of NRD Capital, created the fund to give emerging franchise concepts a way to reach the next level behind decades of franchise experience, resources, and strategic guidance - and Fuzzy's Taco Shop fit the type of franchise concept that he and the company are interested in.

“Most of the investors in our fund are franchisees, so unit economics are a huge factor for us,” Hashim told NRN. “What we saw in Fuzzy’s was not just amazing unit economics, but an amazing culture. The franchisees there are very highly regarded. It was a brand that was perfect for us.”

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- franchise development (topic)
- private equity (topic)
- Nation's Restaurant News (publication)
- unit growth (topic)
- Fuzzy's Taco Shop (company)
- NRD Capital (investor)
- NRD Capital acquisition of Fuzzy's Taco Shop (deal)
- controlled expansion (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/nations-restaurant-news-fuzzys-taco-shop-outlines-plan-for-controlled-expansion-2703019). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/84975e68-fdf4-48ce-a5bc-df3067ec78cc).