Growth at Beaner's

LANSING - The past two months have been productive for the Beaner's Gourmet Coffee franchise company. The company has enjoyed a surge in expansion in Michigan and Ohio.

March 8, 2001 - Zikar Maredia and three partners formed Albatross LLC and signed a franchise agreement to open a store in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area.

March 6, 2001 - Barry Greenblatt of Barry Bagels in Toledo Ohio signed another agreement to open his first independent Beaner's Gourmet Coffee store in the Toledo area with plans for one more in the works.

April 4, 2001 - Rajesh Johsi signed a franchise agreement to open a store in the Brighton, Michigan area.

April 19, 2001 - An undisclosed party signed an agreement to open a store in Okemos, Michigan.

April 20, 2001 - Cynthia Pugh signed a lease with Michigan State University to open a franchise store in the Union at the University.

"We have worked hard for the past five years building a solid foundation for the Beaner's Gourmet Coffee concept and we have positioned our company to expand rapidly. We are fortunate to have so much interest in our concept and I wish I could see into the future and where we will be in five years," said Michael J. McFall, vice president of Beaner's Gourmet Coffee.