Raintree Franchise Development: Scale Your Restaurant Brand Nationally

Brand: Raintree Website: Supplier Profile: Service Segment: Franchise Development, Franchise Sales, Consultant Network Management, Digital Marketing Top Clients: Teriyaki Madness, Capital Tacos, Toastique, Footprints Floors, Hounds Town USA

Raintree is a franchise development company that specializes in helping emerging brands grow into nationally recognized franchise systems. Raintree was founded by Brent Dowling, a former franchisor who built a gourmet popcorn brand to over 300 locations before realizing his true passion lay in helping multiple brands scale, not just one. Dowling launched Raintree with the mission to simplify and optimize the franchise growth process for emerging brands that had strong potential but lacked the internal resources or expertise to scale effectively.

In its early years, Raintree faced an uphill battle convincing franchisors — and even franchise brokers — that restaurant brands could scale as successfully as home service concepts, which tend to dominate the industry. But through strategic execution and data-backed development systems, Dowling and his team quickly proved otherwise.

Since its founding, Raintree has helped award more than 2,500 franchises and guided 12 brands past the 100-unit milestone. In 2022, Raintree was acquired by Franchise FastLane and private equity firm Southfield Capital, a move that positions the company to further expand its reach — especially within the competitive foodservice segment.

Raintree's approach allows franchise founders and executives to stay focused on improving their business models while the Raintree team manages everything related to franchise development — from concept positioning and marketing to lead generation and closing deals.

Raintree differentiates itself by offering an all-in-one development service rooted in industry experience and performance-driven strategy. The company employs a strict client selection process, partnering only with brands that have solid unit economics and a unique market differentiator. Once onboard, Raintree executes a comprehensive franchise growth program — including content creation, digital strategy, broker and consultant network management, and sales — with a high-touch, tailored approach.

The acquisition by Franchise FastLane has allowed Raintree to layer in a best-in-class sales structure and operational model, accelerating scalability for its clients.

• Lead Generation and Digital Strategy: Digital marketing that targets and converts high-quality franchise candidates.

Raintree has helped some of the fastest-growing food franchises in the U.S. scale effectively, including Teriyaki Madness, which has surpassed 100 units under Raintree’s guidance, and Capital Tacos, which is rapidly gaining ground as a standout fast-casual brand. Other notable successes include Toastique and Cheba Hut, which have expanded their footprints significantly since partnering with Raintree.

With the backing of Franchise FastLane and Southfield Capital, Raintree is entering a new era. The brand plans to introduce new programs aimed at serving more emerging franchisors — even those who might not yet be ready for full-service development.

• Specialization in Foodservice: One of the few franchise sales organizations with proven expertise in scaling restaurant franchises.

Raintree has carved out a niche as the go-to growth partner for emerging restaurant franchises and other high-potential brands. With a laser focus on results and a full-service approach, Raintree continues to prove that with the right team, scaling a franchise system doesn’t have to be hard — it just has to be smart.

1851 Franchise's Supplier Database is designed to help franchises find the right supplier. If you're looking for help with finances, marketing, real estate or other services for your business, visit *