Invest in Soul Slice: Feeding the Soul of America

At its core, Soul Slice aims to bring healthy, affordable soulful pizza to underserved urban communities, while nurturing skills, talent and entrepreneurship in its family of employees. Founder Karter Louis is visionary, talented and experienced in creating a menu that will nourish, delight and overwhelm its patrons - by blending soul food ingredients that are delicious and heart-warming. As a kid, he made his own pizza on biscuit crust when the family didn't have money to order in. There’s no end to his creative genius - he’s also a very talented musician, which helps him bring artistic flair to every idea.
Karter's vast range of experience includes hillbilly tea and the Mina Group. I know the ingredients and the employee training and profit sharing model is well-thought out, inspiring and innovative. Karter’s team includes two experts in operations/finance, and branding/ marketing. Like the visionary entrepreneur and philanthropist, George Eastman, who pioneered the ideas of employee profit-sharing, while promoting the arts, and investing in the community and local talent through the building Kodak, the University of Rochester, the Eastman School of Music and the Eastman Theater. I hope more entrepreneurs follow Karter’s lead and build products and services that truly serve their employees, customers and communities, by investing in underserved communities and investing in every employee while offering them chances to become an inherent part of the business. We are not in it for the short-term, we are in it for the long-haul.

Liz Puccianti Incite Fusion
Lead Investor Investing $15,000 this round

What a great idea for a pizza! I'm excited to be a part of this local business and wish Soul Slice the greatest success.

Dan Davies

Amateur investor interested in social impact and community improvement.

Karter Louis

Founder and CEO

Artist, Designer & Restaurant Creator, Founder of Hillbilly Tea & Co-founder of HHnL Design Group, Uno Lai Design & Samovar Tea Lounge.

Investor Q&A

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What does your company do?

Our mission is to heal the soul of America with food. Soul Slice is more than an innovative pizza chain – it’s an economic starting point for an under-supported workforce. We are committed to paying our employees a livable salary while providing access to personal and professional development to support long-term career success. Soul Slice nourishes our employees, who nourish our customers.

Where will your company be in 5 years?

We are eager to serve communities throughout America. Our assertive “turn-key” growth plan leverages the abundance of abandoned premium restaurant spaces for quick expansion and build-out at pandemic pricing. With our flagship location launching in Oakland, future targets include Atlanta, Harlem, Chicago, Houston, and Los Angeles. We hope to expand up to 20 locations by 2026, with annual revenues over $25 million. These projections cannot be guaranteed.

Why did you choose this idea?

While witnessing the pandemic’s devastating effect on the restaurant industry, we saw an opportunity to do better. Our unique restaurant model builds community through food. The Soul Slice ethos is service – to be of service – to our team, to our patrons, and to our communities. Founder Karter Louis sees Soul Slice as a legacy project.

How far along are you? What's your biggest obstacle?

With over three decades in the restaurant and design industries and seven brands under his belt, founder Karter Louis has the confidence that comes with experience. We've tested Soul Slice across ages and ethnicities: people love soul food and will buy our pizza. Our company manual, cookbook, and design plan are set. We have nailed down our launch locations. We’re ready to do this. All that stands between us and the finish line is a successful WeFunder campaign.

Who competes with you? What do you understand that they don't?

There are 8 competitive independent pizza chains with about 20 locations that focus on creative expressions of pizza and/or quality ingredients. According to the Pizza Today 2019 Top 100 list, these chains average $1.7 million in sales per unit with an average annual total revenue of $41 million. Notable up-and-coming pizza chains are "&"Pizza and Slim and Husky's, which are growing fast with masterfully crafted brands. Soul Slice takes a more culinary-driven approach, rooted in heritage and nutrition which sets us apart, with the potential to establish a new restaurant category. Supporting this public-facing distinction is our employee-focused business model, with profit-sharing and ownership for all.

How will you make money?

We will make money the old fashioned way, by offering unique and delicious food to build a diverse blend of loyal patrons. We will invest in our employees and our communities, who will in turn advance our business. To get specific about budget: our cost of ingredients is below industry averages (fried chicken and sweet potatoes, collards greens are cheaper foodstuffs). Revenues are from the sale of food, initially 70% delivery and 30% to-go during the pandemic, expanding with more in-store dining when safe. Select Deluxe locations will offer sit-down and beverage service to capture more margin and build brand presence.

What are the biggest risks? If you fail, what would be the reason? What has to go right for you to succeed?

Soul Slice has three musts: We must motivate our team to embrace their own personal and professional development. We must have a tangible positive impact on the communities we serve. We must make money. The success of this venture is directly related to the lives we affect. With Karter Louis as the architect of our holistic approach to this restaurant model, we have a key-man liability. In the unlikely event of his absence, Soul Slice has engaged two experienced advisers to ensure the full implementation of our plan.

Is a new restaurant chain a good financial investment in this economic climate when so many restaurants are closing for good?

There have been clear winners and losers in the restaurant industry during the COVID-19 crisis. Pizza chains, large (up 28%) and smaller independents (up 2x on a smaller base), are undeniable winners due to their inherent advantage in the to-go/delivery format (QSR magazine). Soul Slice, while innovative in many ways, is fundamentally a pizza chain, and so, ideal for the current economic and health climate. Sit-down service is an easy extension when the health environment permits, but it’s harder to go the other way, as most restaurants have learned. Fine casual restaurants that were able to adapt quickly to the to-go/delivery model have also thrived during the pandemic (e.g., check out Rooster and Rice).

Is Soul Slice’s advantage sustainable post-pandemic?

Yes. Other elements of the Soul Slice model and ethos come to play in a post-pandemic economic and health climate. Top trends (pre- and during pandemic) are: healthy ingredients, sustainable agriculture, better-for-the-planet operations and materials, employee- and community-centricity, tech-enabled innovations in delivery, and contactless pick-up and drive-through. Fine casual, better-for-you brands that are aligned with changing consumer preferences and shared social responsibility and sustainability values are projected to be well positioned for growth in the coming decades. (QSR magazine, Aug 2020)

How does your B Corp mission benefit employees and their communities?

Our B Corp charter requires adherence to specific goals we have set out for: 1) extensive professional development and training regimens; 2) wealth-building through year end profit sharing and employee-ownership; and 3) an Advisory Board of experts to guide and judge the efficacy of policies and outcomes.

How can Soul Slice afford to give employees profit sharing and stock options when other restaurants cannot?

All it takes is being intentional about how to construct and manage profit-sharing and ownership incentives in a restaurant chain, just like is regularly done in tech startups. We believe restaurant employees are just like other brave souls that throw in their lot in with a startup. They are risk-takers, are just as committed, just as eager to learn, just as interested in innovating. With the right operations and management, owners can share returns in the restaurant business as well as elsewhere. Specifically, Soul Slice’s year-end profit-sharing pool includes all employees, and deposits half into retirement savings. For employees, this is projected to be $1.6 million paid out over the first five years. Managers receive stock options vesting after 3 years. We plan to create a liquidity mechanism that allows them to harvest the wealth they’ve built if they choose to pursue other opportunities.

How does the professional development model give employees more opportunity?

Every employee is ladder-trained from dishwashing up to management through a multifaceted empathy-based development program rooted in mentorship, efficiency and life skills. Managers have opportunities to travel and launch new locations. All employees will gain marketable skills to pursue other careers if desired.

What impact will your B Corp mission have on returns?

We believe that the elements of the B Corp that we have committed to are projected to make it easier to run a higher-margin operation. Full-time salaries and benefits total 64% of total expenses vs. the industry average of 60%. However, we believe these full-time, committed employees will save money for the company over time. Each store has a small group working as a team. As team members sharing in the year end profit-sharing pool, with transparency in the data used and shared by the team every day, we believe other expenses will be kept low and that employee ownership at the higher management levels will have the same effect. Other cost offsets include: 1) Our ingredients costs and Cost of Goods Sold are projected to be 17-20%, due to the lower cost of fresh non-processed soul food ingredients, lower than industry average; and 2) Our space and build-outs will be modest, and will be even easier to acquire in this pandemic and post-pandemic environment.

What is the investment horizon of this offering?

We think of the investment timeline for this offering as five (5) years. By that time, we are projecting to have to have 18-20 locations with $25 million in revenues and 24% margin before 10% employee profit-sharing. In year 5, we are projecting to have some kind of capital event – a purchase, or a private equity investment – to go to the next level. We expect that early investors will be able to ride the next wave, or do an exit at this time, or some combination of both. A group of comparable companies with 20-25 locations in Pizza Today Top 100 has average revenues of $41 million, so we feel we are being conservative in our goal of $25 million.

What is the rationale for the valuation of this offering?

The valuation is based on projected profitability, assuming an 8x multiple of projected EBITDA. So the key to our valuation is our projected profit margin. You'll see we list several reasons why our profit margins are projected to be healthy -- low cost space acquisition and build outs, lower cost ingredients, locally sourced and hand prepared to greatly reduce food costs, employee profit sharing for heightened cost awareness, etc. The whole system has been devised with an eye to steady profits, projected to start in the 14% range and top out at about 24%. Our first locations will be built with infrastructure ready to scale -- menu, employee development, integrating Time and Labor and payroll systems, POS and accounting systems, and carefully managing delivery relationships for preserving margins. Our expansion plan projects we will achieve the valuation early in Year 2. If things go according to plan, investors are expected to benefit from our expansion plan, as well as our plan to self-fund for the next 5 years after this offering is closed.

1	First to market soul food on a biscuit crust pizza.
2	Renowned restaurateur Karter Louis is the mastermind behind this menu and mission.
3	B Corp offering employees not only a livable wage and profit-sharing but ultimately ownership.
4	Growth opportunity fueled by an assertive expansion plan.
5	The $8.2 billion gourmet pizza market has proven to be pandemic proof.

1	Pandemic - Restaurants are struggling, except for those able to thrive, or built to thrive in the case of Soul Slice, with a delivery/to-go format. These conditions may continue through 2021.
2	Our future success depends on the efforts of a small management team. The loss of services of the members of the management team may have an adverse effect on the company. There can be no assurance that we will be successful in attracting and retaining other personnel we require to successfully grow our business.
3	Startup - Although we've created successful restaurants and startups before, Soul Slice is a startup and the model is not yet proven.
4	Key man liability - Karter Louis is the architect of our unique approach to sourcing, menu, brand experience, employee skills and wealth building, and replicability of the model. As such, Soul Slice has engaged two advisers who have the background and experience to ensure that the plan can be fully implemented in his absence if every needed.
5	Training - Our model has a strong training component which makes personnel costs higher than other fast casual restaurants.
6	Part-time employees. Our CEO is full-time but other founders are part-time. We will hire more full-time employees after the funds are raised.
7	Carla Dearing is a part-time officer. As such, it is likely that the company will not make the same progress as it would if that were not the case.
8	We are an emerging growth company, and, for as long as we continue to be an emerging growth company, we may choose to take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies but not to “emerging growth companies,” including: not being required to have our independent registered public accounting firm audit our internal control over financial reporting under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and annual report on Form 10-K; and exemptions from the requirements of holding nonbinding advisory votes on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We can continue to be an emerging growth company, as defined in the JOBS Act, for up to five years following our IPO.

Director	Occupation	Joined
Carla Dearing	Investor, Soul Slice CFO @ Velo Group	2020
Karter Louis	CEO @ Soul Slice	2020

Officer	Title	Joined
Carla Dearing	CFO Secretary Treasurer	2020
Karter Louis	CEO President	2020

Holder	Securities Held	Voting Power
Carla Dearing	25,000 Common	25.0%
Karter Louis	60,000 Common	60.0%

Invest in Soul Slice

Feeding the Soul of America

Invest in Soul Slice

Feeding the Soul of America

$64,505

Why you may want to invest in us...

Why investors us

we've raised $64,505 since our founding

Our team

Join the Soul Slice movement...

Investor Q&A

Financials

At a Glance

Risks

Details

The Board of Directors

Officers

Voting Power

Past Equity Fundraises

Outstanding Debts

Related Party Transactions

Use of Funds

Capital Structure

The Funding Portal

Form C Filing on EDGAR

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$140,000	Opening costs for the first location in Oakland, CA: 67.9% Purchase of restaurant assets and assumption of lease 25.6% Working capital 6.5% Wefunder fees
$350,000	Opening costs for the first two locations in Oakland, CA: 54.3% Purchase of restaurant assets and assumption of lease 39.2% Working capital 6.5% Wefunder fees

Class of Security	Securities (or Amount) Authorized	Securities (or Amount) Outstanding	Voting Rights
Preferred	10,000	10,000	Yes
Common	90,000	90,000	Yes

Why you may want to invest in us...

Why investors us

we've raised $64,505 since our founding

Our team

Join the Soul Slice movement...

Investor Q&A

Financials

At a Glance

Risks

Details

The Board of Directors

Officers

Voting Power

Past Equity Fundraises

Outstanding Debts

Related Party Transactions

Use of Funds

Capital Structure

The Funding Portal

Form C Filing on EDGAR

Ask a Question

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