He Went from Tech CEO to Dishwasher. Now, He's Behind 320 Restaurants and $750 Million in Assets. Andrew K. Smith discusses how storytelling drives scale, how founders lead and how family stays part of the journey.
By Shawn P. Walchef Edited by Jessica Thomas
Key Takeaways
- Smith built Savory Fund alongside his wife, Shauna, who now serves as CEO. Their approach blends personal and professional life, proving that work-life balance can be redefined as integration.
- For Savory Fund, storytelling is not just a branding exercise. Smith sees it as a core business tool.
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On his first day in the restaurant business, Andrew K. Smith was the dishwasher.
Not the investor. Not the strategist. Not the guy fixing tech stacks or analyzing labor margins. Just the guy at the sink, scrubbing trays, rinsing off sheet pans.
It wasn't exactly what he had pictured when he told his wife he was ready for a new challenge.
Today, Smith is the managing partner and co-founder of Savory Fund, a restaurant investment firm known for helping brands scale nationally. But before the boardrooms and portfolios, he started where few investors do: behind the dish pit.
Rewind a year. His wife had launched a bakery, a fast-casual dessert concept that opened in the middle of the 2008 financial crash. Smith, still deep in his tech CEO role, didn't exactly love the idea. "In my mind, I'm like, that's the worst idea," he now admits. "But you know what I responded? I was like, 'I think it's a great idea. Of course. And we should absolutely do that.'"
It wasn't sarcasm. It was marriage. And, as he puts it, "because of that, I just celebrated my 26th anniversary."
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Fast-forward a year, and his company was stable. The bakery was bustling. And Smith was ready to do something new. Something less theoretical. Something real. He called his wife and said, "I think I want to come join you in the restaurant business."
Her reply? "Perfect. My dishwasher just called out."
So that's how Smith, a guy who had sold companies, raised millions and built tech startups, walked away from the boardroom and stepped straight into the dish pit.
No business cards. No title. Just soap, steam and a head-first dive into restaurant life. It wasn't glamorous, but it was the beginning. And eventually, it led to the creation of Savory Fund.
How storytelling became a growth strategy
If your restaurant doesn't have a story, it doesn't have a brand. That's Smith's philosophy, and it's baked into everything Savory Fund does. Before the systems, funding and growth playbook, there's the story. Who are you? Why do you exist? And why should anyone care?
"Storytelling is what galvanizes your consumer with your brand," Smith says. "If you can't explain your purpose, it's a pretty hollow business."
At Savory, storytelling isn't fluff. It's foundational. It shapes how a brand communicates, hires, markets, scales and builds culture. From social media presence to internal training, it's the thread that holds everything together.
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But make no mistake. Savory is more than a storytelling shop. It's a serious growth engine.
The firm combines more than $750 million in assets under management with a proven operational playbook developed over 16 years in the restaurant industry. Savory partners with high-potential, profitable, emerging restaurant brands and gives them more than capital. It provides hands-on support with operations, real estate, marketing, systems and training.
Savory's team of more than 85 people contributes directly to all aspects of growth. The goal is not just expansion, but sustainable replication. Founder involvement is a must. The early success of a restaurant often hinges on instincts and insights that only the founder can explain. Savory helps translate that into scalable systems without losing what made the brand matter in the first place.
It's a deeply personal mission for Smith. His wife, Shauna K. Smith, serves as CEO of Savory Fund and leads the charge on brand support and development. Together, they've built a company that doesn't just invest in restaurants. It invests in the people who make them work.
Family has always been central to that approach.
When his sons were younger, Smith brought them into his world — taking calls on the way to football practice, asking what they noticed and learned. It wasn't a balancing act between work and life. It was an intentional blend, designed to make both more meaningful.
That mindset carries into how Savory works with founders. Business should be personal. And the best brands don't just serve food. They serve a purpose.
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