Berry Fresh Site Selection

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Berry Fresh Cafe

Site Selection Dashboard · Prepared May 2026

Hobe Sound vs. Palm City: Where should Berry Fresh open next?

A side-by-side analysis of two real-estate opportunities, with interactive financial modeling and a clear recommendation for the Timoteo family.

Executive Snapshot

Two strong options, but one is much closer to a sure thing.

Both sites fit Berry Fresh's affluent breakfast/brunch DNA. The difference is in timing, certainty, and how much capital risk you take on Day 1.

Current Footprint
5
Berry Fresh locations operating in Florida — Jupiter, Stuart, Port St. Lucie / St. Lucie West, Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach.
Concept Hours
7.5
Hours per day open (7:00 AM – 2:30 PM weekdays). High AUV potential per hour — First Watch hits $2.3M on the same daypart.
Decision Timing
2026
Both sites are actionable now. Hobe Sound has demand on the ground today; Palm City is a 5–10 year growth bet.
SITE 1

Hobe Sound — US‑1 & Bridge Road

Corner site in a maturing affluent town, anchored by the Atlantic Fields luxury community now under construction along Bridge Road.

High Income Trade Area Mature Demand 12 mi from nearest BF
SITE 2

Palm City / Becker Road Corridor

New ground in the Becker Road extension corridor — Sundance (8,000 homes) is a long-tail growth bet on the Martin/St. Lucie border.

Top‑Tier HH Income ($129K) Population Still Building ~7 mi from St. Lucie West BF

The Recommendation

Open Hobe Sound first. Plan Palm City as the follow-on in 2027–2028.

Hobe Sound has the demographics, the daypart match, and an existing under-served breakfast market — all today, not three years from now. Atlantic Fields is delivering 317 luxury homes within walking distance of Bridge Road. Palm City is the right corridor too, but the rooftops aren't there yet and it sits ~7 miles from the St. Lucie West store, which creates cannibalization risk that Hobe Sound (12 miles out) does not.

Why Hobe Sound wins right now

  • Median age 55 + median HHI $74K — Berry Fresh's exact customer profile (retirees and active professionals with brunch budget)
  • Atlantic Fields by Discovery Land Co. is adding 317 luxury homes plus a Tom Fazio golf course right off Bridge Road — a private-club community that will eat brunch out
  • ~25,500 vehicles/day on US‑1 at Hobe Sound provides corner visibility on a destination route, not a feeder road
  • Existing breakfast competition (Harry & The Natives, Old Dixie Cafe, Bagel Bistro) is mostly diner / casual — Berry Fresh's chef-driven brunch lane is open
  • 12 miles from the Jupiter and Stuart units — far enough to draw a new customer base, close enough for ops oversight

Why Palm City should be 2nd, not 1st

  • Sundance broke ground March 2024 — the 8,000 homes deliver over a decade, not a quarter. Day‑1 trade area is thin
  • ~7 miles from existing St. Lucie West Berry Fresh raises cannibalization risk on what may be your best-performing store
  • Becker Road extension is the right bet, but it just opened — co-tenants and rooftops both need to catch up
  • When it matures, Palm City's $129K median HHI is best-in-class for the brand — worth holding territory
  • Negotiate a 2nd-generation lease with renewal options now; open in 2027 once Catalina Palms (Sundance's first 55+ neighborhood) is occupied

Site Profiles

A closer look at each opportunity.

Comparable trade-area pulls, anchor neighbors, and what each site looks like physically.

Attribute Hobe Sound — US‑1 & Bridge Rd Palm City — Becker Rd Corridor
Trade area typeMature affluent coastal town + new luxury build-outEmerging master-planned corridor
Anchor demand driverAtlantic Fields (Discovery Land Co.) — 317 homes, Fazio golf course, equestrian center, ~$20M/yr tax revenue at buildoutSundance (Akel Homes) — 2,500 acres, 8,000 homes, 25,000 future residents
Current population (zip)14,313 in 33455 (delivered)31,160 in 34990, but Sundance is < 5% built out
Median household income$74,112 (zip 33455)$129,560 (Palm City 34990)
Median age55 — perfect brunch demo51.4
Distance from nearest Berry Fresh~12 mi (Jupiter / Stuart)~7 mi (St. Lucie West) — cannibalization risk
Traffic count (AADT)~25,500 vehicles/day on US‑1 at Hobe SoundBecker Rd: lower today, growing rapidly as extension opens
VisibilityHard corner on signalized US‑1 intersectionDepends on specific parcel; new corridor
Direct breakfast competitionHarry & The Natives, Old Dixie Cafe, Bagel Bistro, Keke's nearbyLimited within 3 mi — open market
Lease maturity2nd-gen space likely availableNew construction — higher TI cost, longer ramp
Ramp curveFast — demand exists Day 1Slow — 24–36 months to stabilize
RECOMMENDED FIRST
SITE 1

Hobe Sound — US‑1 & Bridge Road

A signalized corner on the only north–south spine through town. Bridge Road is the main east–west into Hobe Sound's residential core and the gateway to Atlantic Fields.

Trade Area Highlights
  • Atlantic Fields buildout: 317 luxury homes priced $5M+, plus members-only clubhouse and farm-to-table restaurant on-site
  • 162 holes of private golf planned within 10-mile radius — wealth concentration is rising fast
  • Older, established population (32% age 65+) — daytime traffic, loyalty-driven, big tippers
  • Tourist overflow from Jupiter Island during Nov–Apr season
SITE 2

Palm City / Becker Road

The Becker Road extension just connected Village Parkway to Range Line Road, opening up the southwestern PSL corridor and the Martin County line for new commercial development.

Trade Area Highlights
  • Sundance is largest master-planned community in this region — long-term tailwind
  • Catalina Palms 55+ neighborhood opened Jan 2026 — first phase of demand arriving now
  • Two I‑95 interchanges (Becker Rd + Gatlin Blvd) make the corridor regionally accessible
  • Palm City proper is the highest-income community in Martin County — premium-priced brunch is in-zone

Traffic & Demographics

Who lives and drives near each site?

Demographic match against Berry Fresh's existing customer base. Both trade areas index well above the Florida average, but in different ways.

Population & Income

Hobe Sound (33455) Palm City (34990)

Daily Vehicle Traffic (AADT)

Source: FDOT Florida Traffic Online + St. Lucie TPO. Becker Rd figure reflects pre-extension count; will rise sharply through 2027.
Hobe Sound — Age 65+
32%
Peak brunch demographic; daytime occasion-driven
Palm City — Median Home
$710K
Wealth-anchored trade area
Hobe Sound — Households
6,309
Avg 2 per household; 56.9% families
Palm City — Pop Growth
+15%
Since 2000; Sundance will accelerate
Hobe Sound has quietly emerged as one of North America's premier golf and luxury destinations, with 162 holes of private golf, designed by 13 legendary architects, planned within a 10-mile radius. — Discovery Land Co. development overview, 2024

Competition

What you're up against in each market.

The breakfast/brunch lane is structurally less competitive than lunch or dinner. Both markets have room for a chef-driven, locally-sourced concept like Berry Fresh.

Hobe Sound — Existing Players

A mix of diner classics and bagel/deli concepts. Nothing in market matches Berry Fresh's chef-driven, locally-sourced positioning.

  • Harry & The Natives — Diner / bar hybrid. Tourist-oriented, lower check.
  • Old Dixie Cafe North — All-American diner. Open until 2 PM.
  • Hobe Sound Social & Coffee — Coffee shop, not full-service brunch.
  • Bagel Bistro — Bagel-forward, fast counter format.
  • Keke's Breakfast Cafe — Closest direct competitor; chain concept.
Lane is open: chef-driven brunch

Palm City / Becker — Existing Players

Very limited breakfast competition along the Becker corridor today. Palm City's established options sit further west on Mapp Rd / Martin Hwy.

  • Limited direct competition within 3 mi of Becker Rd
  • Chain Q‑S restaurants (McDonald's, Dunkin) at I‑95 interchanges
  • Berry Fresh St. Lucie West — only 7 mi north; trade-area overlap is the key risk
  • New retail co-tenants being signed for Sundance retail centers
Lane open, but customer base still arriving

Industry Context — Why Breakfast Is the Right Daypart

First Watch AUV
$2.3M
2025 systemwide AUV on a 7:00–2:30 operating window — same daypart as Berry Fresh
Another Broken Egg
$1.9M
Up from $1.45M in 2018 — breakfast-only concepts are growing fast
Fast-Casual AUV (avg)
$1.1M
Berry Fresh's brunch focus should beat this comfortably in either market

Interactive Breakeven Calculator

Model your overhead and target sales for each site.

Edit any of the values below. Defaults are 2025 industry medians for full-service breakfast/brunch concepts. Calculator runs live as you type.

Inputs — Edit Anything

Berry Fresh menu suggests ~$18–24 per guest with drinks
First Watch averages ~270; mature BF stores likely 200–280
7 days/wk minus ~7 holiday closures

Industry range 28–32% for breakfast concepts
Range 28–32%; brunch is labor-efficient single-shift
Target 6–10% of sales; Hobe Sound corner ~$12–16K, Palm City new build ~$15–18K
Insurance, utilities, marketing, mgr salary, supplies, fees

Live Output

Projected Annual Sales
Monthly Sales
Variable Cost % (Food + Labor)
Contribution Margin %
Total Fixed Costs (Annual)

Breakeven Annual Sales
Breakeven Daily Covers
Rent as % of Sales

Projected Net Profit
Net Profit Margin

Seasonality Stress Test

Can Hobe Sound survive the summer slump?

Treasure Coast restaurants live and die by the snowbird calendar. This section models monthly P&L using a seasonal index and stress-tests whether your projected breakeven holds when covers drop in July–September.

Florida Population Swing
+5% to +11%
Statewide snowbird-driven population increase Dec–Mar. Hobe Sound sits in the higher half (median age 55, 32% age 65+).
Florida Restaurant Summer Slump
−20% to −30%
Typical revenue decline for tourism-exposed coastal Florida restaurants from peak season to summer trough.
Berry Fresh Existing Advantage
5 stores
You already operate through this cycle in Jupiter, Stuart, PBG, PSL, WPB — your historical data should override this model.

Monthly Index — Hobe Sound Projection

Drag the sliders to set how seasonal you expect Hobe Sound to be vs. an "average" month (index = 100). Peak Jan–Mar runs hottest, July–September is the trough. Atlantic Fields residents will be 75%+ seasonal, so this trade area will be more cyclical than Jupiter or Stuart.

Current: 135 — covers 35% above average month
Current: 100 — at average
Current: 70 — covers 30% below average
Pulls forward from breakeven calc; edit to test scenarios
Monthly Revenue Monthly Breakeven
Peak Months Profit (Jan–Apr)
4-month profit run during snowbird season — when you make the year
Trough Months P&L (Jun–Sep)
4-month total during summer slump — needs to stay survivable
Months Below Breakeven
Number of months where the unit loses money — anything above 4 is a yellow flag

What this means for Hobe Sound

  • Cash management is the real risk, not annual profit. At the default settings, the model still produces a healthy annual margin — but you'll be drawing reserves June through September. Build a cash buffer equal to 3 months of fixed costs (~$75K) before Day 1.
  • Atlantic Fields makes the swing sharper, not softer. Private-club residents typically split time between northern primary homes and FL for the winter season. Expect peak indices in this trade area to be more extreme than your Stuart store, where the local working population creates a floor.
  • Staffing strategy must flex. Hobe Sound needs a peak-season staffing plan (full team Nov–Apr) and a contracted "summer team" (~60% of headcount May–Oct). Use your existing Jupiter/Stuart team to fill peak gaps.
  • Test against your own data first. Pull monthly comp store sales from Jupiter and Stuart for the last 24 months. Apply those indices to Hobe Sound projections. Your data trumps any industry average.
  • Lease structure mitigation: Negotiate percentage rent in the trough months (e.g., base rent + 6% over a sales threshold) to share seasonal risk with the landlord.

Atlantic Fields Timing — Confirmed Milestones

When does the demand actually arrive?

The Hobe Sound case rests on Atlantic Fields delivering rooftops on the timeline we expect. Here's what we can confirm publicly, what's still soft, and what to verify directly with Discovery Land.

Public Timeline (Confirmed)

DONE
Nov 2023
Executive short course opens
First playable golf inside the community — early member sales tool.
DONE
May 2023
Final county approvals
Rural-Lifestyle Land Use survived legal challenge; clear path forward.
DONE
Late 2025
Tom Fazio 18-hole course debuts
Major milestone — the amenity that triggers lot sales and home construction starts.
ACTIVE
2024–Now
Lot & home sales underway
Recent vacant lot sale: $7,950,000 (Sept 2025). Estate lots and developer-built turnkey homes both selling.
EST.
2026–2027
First home closings & move-ins
Discovery Land has not published guidance; estimated based on Discovery's typical 18–30 month custom build cycle from lot sale. Verify directly.
EST.
2028–2032
Phase 1 community delivers (~100–150 homes)
Discovery's other Florida property (Soulé in St. Augustine) took ~5 years to first-phase buildout. Atlantic Fields likely similar.
EST.
2035+
Full 317-home buildout
Net $20M annual Martin County tax revenue projected at completion. Berry Fresh would be a 10+ year mature operator by then.

What's Already Visible (Helps Day 1)

  • Construction workforce on site daily — coffee & breakfast spend right now
  • Sales-center traffic of prospective buyers touring the community (high-dollar daypart customers)
  • Realtor & broker traffic — Atlantic Fields is now Hobe Sound's #1 real estate story
  • Adjacent existing wealth: Michael Jordan's Grove XXIII, Medalist, Loblolly, McArthur, Jupiter Island residents already in the trade area
  • Hobe Sound has been growing 8%+ since 2020 census independent of Atlantic Fields

What to Confirm Directly with Discovery Land

  • First Certificate of Occupancy date for completed home (the actual day someone moves in)
  • Phase 1 home count and target completion year
  • Whether the on-site farm-to-table dining is members-only or has any public-adjacent component
  • Construction trade peak headcount (this is real Day-1 breakfast/lunch demand)
  • Member acquisition pace — they may share # of members under contract
  • Any retail partnerships planned for the Bridge Road frontage

Bottom Line on Atlantic Fields Timing

Atlantic Fields is real, funded, and physically being built — the golf course is open and homes are under contract. But the customer base flows in gradually, not all at once. Day-1 demand for Berry Fresh comes from the existing Hobe Sound population (14,300 today), seasonal residents already in town, and the construction/sales/visitor traffic Atlantic Fields generates. The full Atlantic Fields tailwind doesn't arrive until 2028–2030, by which point you should be in your 3rd or 4th year of operation. This is a positive — you get to ramp into the demand, not the other way around.

Weighted Scoring Matrix

Side-by-side scoring across the criteria that matter.

Adjust the weights to see how the picture changes. Each criterion is scored 1–10 based on the research above.

Criterion Weight (%) Hobe Sound Palm City Weighted ΔHS
Demographic match (age, HHI)
%
96
Existing demand (rooftops today)
%
94
Long-term growth potential
%
69
Distance from existing BF (cannibalization risk)
%
93
Traffic count / visibility
%
85
Competitive whitespace (brunch lane)
%
89
Real estate cost & lease terms
%
85
Speed to stabilized AUV
%
96
Anchor / co-tenant quality
%
88
Weighted Total 100%

Weights must sum to 100%. The matrix above reflects a balanced view; at the default weights Hobe Sound wins by a meaningful margin. Try weighting "Long-term growth potential" higher to stress-test the Palm City case.

Risks & Next Steps

What to validate before you sign.

A site-selection memo is only as good as the diligence behind it. These are the open questions for each option, in order of urgency.

Hobe Sound — Open Questions

  • Lease economics: Pull pro forma rent + TI offer; confirm rent stays below 9% of projected sales
  • Parking: US‑1/Bridge intersection corners can be tight — confirm 30+ spaces or shared lot
  • Hood + drainage: 2nd-gen restaurant space saves $150K–300K vs. shell
  • Seasonality: Run a Jan–Apr vs May–Oct sensitivity (Hobe Sound is seasonal)
  • Atlantic Fields timing: Confirm with Discovery Land first home closings expected 2026–2027
  • Site plan / signage: US‑1 monument visibility from both directions

Palm City / Becker — Open Questions

  • Cannibalization study: Run zip-level guest analysis on St. Lucie West to estimate sales transfer
  • Sundance retail master plan: Confirm which parcels are designated for F&B and the timeline
  • Build cost: New-construction shell + full buildout is typically $750K–1.2M; underwrite accordingly
  • Anchor agreement: Don't sign without a grocery anchor or major daytime traffic generator
  • Lease structure: Negotiate co-tenancy clauses tied to Sundance occupancy thresholds
  • Hold the territory: Letter of intent with right of first offer could be smarter than a hard lease today

Suggested 90-Day Action Plan

  1. 1 Weeks 1–2: LOI on Hobe Sound corner. Pull tax appraiser data on parcel and confirm zoning allows restaurant use with hood.
  2. 2 Weeks 3–4: Run zip-code guest study from your POS to validate Hobe Sound trade-area pull from Jupiter/Stuart stores.
  3. 3 Weeks 5–6: Site visits with GC for rough buildout estimate. Confirm hood/grease trap status. Get 2 informal landlord offers in writing.
  4. 4 Weeks 7–8: Meet with Akel Homes & Sundance retail leasing to understand 2027–2028 inventory and rent schedule.
  5. 5 Weeks 9–12: Final Hobe Sound lease negotiation; place ROFO option on a Palm City parcel for late-2027 opening.