For nearly three decades, Dean LaFollette ran Village Inn restaurants across Florida, building sales, developing teams and mastering every system in the book.
Now, for the first time, the veteran operator owns one outright — the Riverview Village Inn, which he first championed nearly 20 years ago.
“This is just a great, great opportunity for myself and my family to grow from working for somebody to working for ourselves,” LaFollette said.
A career built one pancake at a time
LaFollette joined Village Inn in 1996. By 2000, he was managing multiple locations in Florida. He rose to the position of operations director, overseeing eight restaurants for the Lehan franchise group.
His career crossed paths with Riverview in 2006, when the location first opened its doors.
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“I was advocating for it, and there wasn’t a lot here. There was a bowling alley and a Sonic, and that was about it,” he recalled. Sam’s Club and a hospital were on the way, and LaFollette argued the area was primed for growth.
He was right.
Two decades later, Riverview is one of Tampa Bay’s fastest-growing suburbs, and the restaurant LaFollette once pitched is now the one he owns.
Bankruptcy opens the door to ownership
LaFollette’s path to ownership wasn’t straightforward. When the franchisor dissolved in 2020, the Lehan franchise group took over the Riverview, Land O’ Lakes and Brandon locations, where he stayed on as operations director.
“This created the opportunity to purchase this Riverview location, where we had a franchise,” he said.
Leaving behind equity in the management company, he partnered with Valley Bank and secured financing through the SBA 7(a) program.
“Other financial institutions weren’t able to do it,” he said, crediting SBA Vice President Hugh Rabjohns for “having the vision for what we’re trying to accomplish here.”
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One restaurant, one focus
Ownership has reshaped LaFollette’s day-to-day. Instead of commuting across Tampa Bay, he drives to one place.
“I have one place I go to work every day,” he said. “I do have good, solid managers here at the restaurant, and I’ve joined them in operations responsibilities. And of course, being the sole owner operator, I also have plenty of administrative things to do.”
Familiarity, he said, is his biggest advantage.
“One of the challenges with anyone getting into a franchise is, how do you get to be the expert on operating that brand? I have the fantastic advantage of being an expert on operating the Village Inn brand in advance of taking ownership of this property.”
Modern touches to an old-school brand
LaFollette is already making small changes, with an eye toward long-term growth. One of his first moves was to add a cappuccino machine, after noticing customers carrying in cups from a nearby coffee shop.
He’s also introduced avocado toast and Florentine Benedict to broaden appeal and added a small retail section up front, “like the lobby of a Cracker Barrel, almost,” he said.
What keeps him confident is the resilience of the breakfast-all-day concept.
“We are comfort food. When times get difficult, people turn to comfort food,” LaFollette said. “Actually, a booming economy is not necessarily better for us than the opposite because when people are rolling high, they sometimes are not looking for diner comfort food.”
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For Riverview, he believes consistency and community ties will be key. A 16-year resident, LaFollette raised his kids through local schools and now greets neighbors as both operator and owner.
“I want folks to stop by, say ‘Hi’ and see what’s cooking,” he said.