WATERTOWN — Joseph A. Biccum, franchisee of Jake's Wayback Burgers in Watertown, will receive the Small Business Excellence Award on May 5 at the 16th annual awards luncheon at the DoubleTree Hotel in Syracuse hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Nominated by Watertown Savings Bank, Mr. Biccum was selected for the award based on successful sales after opening the restaurant in 2013 at Salmon Run Mall. First-year sales at the restaurant exceeded $750,000, according to a news release.
Mr. Biccum, who plans to open five new franchise locations in the Northeast over the next five years, gave credit to the restaurant's staff for the award.
"My employees and managers are overjoyed to receive this award," Mr. Biccum said in a statement. "Everyone worked extremely hard to reach our goal, and to actually exceed it is a phenomenal accomplishment. We all look forward to continuing down this successful path."
Giving back to the community is also a priority for Mr. Biccum. In a twist on the Thanksgiving tradition, Jake's Wayback Burgers donated 100 of its Turkey Dinner burgers to the Salvation Army soup kitchen on State Street.
To open the Watertown restaurant, Mr. Biccum received matching loans of $40,000 from the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency and North Country Alliance. It also secured a loan of about $133,000 from Watertown Savings Bank.
