NEW YORK, May 15, 2025 – Bikky, a customer data platform built exclusively for multi-unit restaurants, announced its partnership with Playa Bowls, the nation’s leading acai shop, serving superfruit bowls, smoothies, juices, and more with sustainability and community in mind.

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Playa Bowls started as a makeshift pop-up in Belmar, NJ, in front of a pizzeria. By sharing their passion for acai with delicious, creative recipes, the brand expanded from a single blender and a small cart to more than 300 U.S. locations in just 11 years. With ambitious plans to add another 90 shops in 2025 and a need to improve their data access, Playa Bowls turned to Bikky to truly understand what’s driving their business.

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“We had a lot of questions about what was underlying some of our performance trends, but very limited data capabilities,” says Jayson Tipp, Chief Development Officer at Playa Bowls. “With Bikky, we can start answering key questions about the business using individual guest insights, rather than a gut feeling.”

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Prior to Bikky, Playa Bowls’ relied heavily on manual reporting and POS data. While directional trends were visible, the “why” behind shop performance remained elusive. Was a jump in sales driven by new guests or more frequent visits from existing ones? Was a change in behavior due to a marketing, menu, or operational change, or something else? Can we do it again? 

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“These are the questions that can only be answered with a CDP,” says Tipp.

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The brand is also excited to understand the impact of previous decisions that were made without CDP data. Before partnering with Bikky, the success of menu updates, like swapping out Chia Pudding with a new Mango base, was difficult to measure. It was also challenging to comprehend seasonality and other chain-wide trends beyond shifts in sales. Playa Bowls can now accurately gauge whether their Mango base is a favorite of new or repeat guests, and whether traffic and frequency (or both) changes with the weather.

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“With a deeper understanding of who and what is affected by every change we make, we can implement more effective marketing and operational interventions, and approach product development and testing like the mature brand we are,” continued Tipp.

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As Playa Bowls continues to rapidly scale, Bikky will play a key role in assessing how new shop openings impact guest behavior. For example, adding a new location near an existing one could divert traffic, or it could make the brand more accessible and enable guests to engage more frequently. “When you have data that tells you what your guests are actually doing, it changes the conversation,” says Tipp. “You have a clear understanding of which levers you can pull to drive specific results, and how to repeat what’s working.”

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The brand’s single biggest goal for the coming years is continuing to open locations that appeal to guests and franchise owners alike—while moving forward at lightning speed. “We’re confident Bikky will reveal the best way to set new locations up for success,” says Tipp.

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"Playa Bowls' incredible journey from a cart to more than 300 locations exemplifies the power of passion paired with strategic growth,” says Bikky CEO Abhinav Kapur. “As they continue their rapid expansion, having clear visibility into guest behavior becomes critical. Our platform will help Playa Bowls understand exactly what's driving their success, from menu innovations to new shop openings, enabling them to scale with confidence while maintaining the authentic experience that guests love."

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The fastest-growing, most innovative restaurants in today’s competitive market look to Bikky for insight into how their decisions impact key metrics like frequency and traffic. Playa Bowls joins a growing roster of brands, including Robeks, WaBa Grill, and Dave’s Hot Chicken, who rely on the groundbreaking guest data and analytics platform.