Laughing Planet opens in Vancouver

Franz Spielvogel has had his eye on Vancouver and its attractive unincorporated collars for at least three years.

The owner of the Laughing Planet chain knew the community would be an ideal location for one of his restaurants. But where?

Spielvogel took a close look at downtown Vancouver and the Salmon Creek area. But he settled on east Vancouver. Specifically, he chose a spot in Fisher’s Mercantile shopping center at 16209 S.E. McGillivray Blvd. The restaurant opened last week. On Wednesday afternoon, Spielvogel participated in a Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting at the site.

And Spielvogel spent some time Wednesday talking to The Columbian about the factors that pushed the new site to the top of the list of best options.

Laughing Planet is a quick-service restaurant that opened in Portland in 2000 and traces its roots to its first store in Bloomington, Ind. The restaurant markets its fare as a healthy alternative, “serving fresh, nutritious food that is good for you and the environment,” says a news release. “The menu features bowls, burritos, soups, salads and cold-pressed juice using local ingredients from local farmers, and offers a variety of delicious vegetarian, vegan, paleo, gluten-free dishes in a bright welcoming space.”

If that doesn’t offer enough clues to its cultural bent, perhaps this slogan on a T-shirt offered on its website will help: “Make America Kind Again.” It’s one of several items on the page, right above the tote bag with this slogan: “Tree Hugger Tote Bag.”

The chain has 10 restaurants in or near Portland, two in Eugene, Ore., one in Bend, Ore., one in Corvallis, Ore., and two in Reno, Nev. And it has plans to expand to cities in Washington, Idaho and Utah.

And now it has one in Vancouver, partly by popular demand, Spielvogel said.

“We have a comment submission portal on our website where you can give feedback,” he said. “We’ve had a lot of encouragement from folks in Vancouver to come over the river and open up a shop there.”

He said these were some of the key factors in the Fisher’s Landing choice:

• The ideal spot will be near a grocery that sells natural foods. “That’s a sign there’s an appetite for that type of product,” he said, and the New Seasons Market at 2100 S.E. 164th Ave. enabled Laughing Planet site searchers to check that box on their wish list.

• The neighborhood is important. “We try to be on the border between daytime employment and a neighborhood,” Spielvogel said. “We don’t look at income so much as we look at how elementary schools are rated. How many are around us? That shows there will be a strong family showing.”

• “And then obviously we try to stay away from being in places where there are a lot of national tenants. Like Subway — ubiquitous chains. One of the things we really like where we’re at is that it’s all local businesses. Cecil’s Barber Shop (16209 S.E. McGillivray Blvd., established 1944) has been there, like, forever.”

Spielvogel said the ongoing development at The Waterfront Vancouver was impressive. And while there is not a New Seasons downtown, he said the success of The Mighty Bowl at 108 W. Eighth St. shows that downtown supports healthful eating options.

But in the final analysis, “We feel downtown is in its early rebirth, so to speak,” he said. “We were a little concerned about looking around and seeing a strong family presence. That’s one of the things that made us shy away.”

The company also looked at the Salmon Creek area, but Spielvogel said affordable lease terms contributed in part to the decision to not locate there at this time. He said the company tries to spend 5 to 6 percent of its revenue on rent while the quick-service ratio is closer to 8 to 9 percent.

Laughing Planet’s methodology is similar to others that are used by retailers in choosing a site, said Jennifer Nolfi, executive director for the Center for Retail Leadership in the School of Business at Portland State University.

A myriad of other factors typically figure into the decision, Nolfi said.

“The retail environment is changing so rapidly,” Nolfi said, “people really have to take into consideration who their target consumer is right now — who they are, where they shop and how they shop.”

Some of the basics include the amount of space and parking needed. And demographics: population, income bracket, gender, median wage and ethnicity.

“Another big one is competition,” Nolfi said. “What other kind of competitors also draw your target consumers into that area?”