Locations
Before
1
→
After
3
Monthly Online Reservations
Before
40
→
After
280 (all locations)
Opening Week (Location 2)
Before
—
→
After
$48,000
Email List
Before
0
→
After
4,200 subscribers
The Problem
Sakura Sushi's original Westchase location was consistently packed. Owner James and Yuki Tanaka knew they had a concept that worked but weren't sure which Tampa neighborhoods to expand into — and didn't want to pick wrong. They also wanted their second and third locations to open with demand already established, not to have to build from scratch.
We'd seen other restaurant groups open a second location and watch it fail because nobody knew they existed. We wanted to know there were customers before we signed a lease.
— James Tanaka, Co-Owner, Sakura Sushi Group
What We Did
Phase 1 — Location 1 Optimization
Google Ads geo-targeted to existing location, GBP rebuilt, SEO for 'sushi Westchase Tampa'
Monthly online reservations grew from 40 to 140 at the original location
Phase 2 — Market Research via Ads
Ran low-budget ($10/day) test campaigns in Carrollwood, South Tampa, and Wesley Chapel measuring click-through and form conversion by zip code
Wesley Chapel and South Tampa both outperformed baseline → signed leases there
Phase 3 — Pre-Launch Campaigns
Built anticipation campaigns 60 days before each opening (email waitlist, Instagram countdown, 'Coming to South Tampa' ads)
Location 2 opened to $48,000 opening week; Location 3 to $61,000
Results
Metric
Before
After
Locations
1
3
Monthly online reservations
40
280 (all locations)
Opening week revenue (Location 2)
—
$48,000
Opening week revenue (Location 3)
—
$61,000
Email list
0
4,200 subscribers
We used our ad data to pick where to open next. That's not something most restaurant owners think to do. It worked.
— James Tanaka, Co-Owner
Services Used
Client
Sakura Sushi Group
Industry
Food & Hospitality
Market
Tampa Bay, FL
Package
Web + SEO + Google Ads ($3,200/mo — multi-location)
Timeline
18 months