Upward Projects

Name

Upward Projects

Legal name

Upward Projects Holdings LLC

Website

https://upwardprojects.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Dining Restaurant Services

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Chef’s Table & Tasting Menu Restaurants (THAFACAG)

Keywords

• Multi-concept restaurants
• Casual dining group
• Wine cafe concept
• Restaurant gift cards
• Wine subscription club

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenix

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Food and Beverage Sales: Primary revenue from selling food and beverages at restaurant locations across multiple concepts including Postino WineCafe, Windsor, Federal Pizza, Joyride Taco House, and Churn Ice Cream.
2. Gift Card Sales: Digital and physical gift cards sold through the company website, redeemable at any Upward Projects location.
3. Postino Bottle Club Membership: Monthly wine club membership offering flexible monthly plans with exclusive wines and perks.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Upward Projects is a multi-concept restaurant group that owns and operates distinct neighborhood restaurant brands, including Postino WineCafe (34+ locations across 7 states), Windsor, Churn, Federal Pizza, and Joyride Taco House. In addition to dine-in food and beverage service, the company sells gift cards (digital and physical) and runs the Postino Bottle Club wine subscription. A new concept, Lado A Lado, is scheduled to open in Fall 2026.

Product overview

Upward Projects is a restaurant group operating a portfolio of five distinct restaurant concepts: Postino WineCafe (an industrial winecafe with wines and local food), Windsor (prohibition cocktails and upscale bar food), Churn (ice cream, cookies, and nostalgic candy shop), Federal Pizza (midcentury-modern wood fired pizza restaurant), and Joyride Taco House (vibrant taco and margarita restaurant). The company also offers the Postino Bottle Club as a subscription add-on and has an upcoming concept called Lado A Lado launching in Fall 2026. The company operates more than 34 locations across seven states with a mission to create inspiring restaurant experiences connected to the communities they serve.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Postino WineCafe: An industrial winecafé offering unique and approachable wines, simply scrumptious food prepared with local ingredients, and a warm, edgy culture. Operates more than 34 locations across seven states.
• Windsor
• Churn
• Federal Pizza
• Joyride Taco House
• Lado A Lado

Products and services

• Postino WineCafe

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Chiwas Hospitality GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Lado A Lado is a collaboration between Upward Projects and Chiwas Hospitality Group. The partnership is rooted in a shared love for hospitality, neighborhood, and connection through food. The concept pairs live-fire Northern Mexican dining with a coastal raw bar. Located in Uptown Phoenix, opening Fall 2026.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Fox Restaurant Concepts: Phoenix-based multi-concept restaurant group founded by Sam Fox, operating brands like Culinary Dropout, Arrogant Butcher, and Doughbird. Highly comparable on multi-brand strategy, regional Southwest footprint, and full-service casual-upscale positioning.
• Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurants: Winery-restaurant chain combining dining with a wine club membership, similar to Postino WineCafe and Postino Bottle Club. Comparable on wine-led dining concept and subscription-based beverage revenue model.
• Hillstone Restaurant Group: Multi-concept upscale casual restaurant group operating Houston's, R+D Kitchen, and other brands. Comparable on multi-brand casual-upscale strategy and emphasis on distinctive concept positioning.
• True Food Kitchen: Upscale casual dining chain founded by Dr. Andrew Weil with locations across multiple states. Comparable on full-service casual-upscale positioning and multi-state expansion strategy.
• First Watch Restaurant Group: Daytime-focused casual dining chain operating more than 500 locations. Comparable on daytime dining emphasis, multi-state footprint, and full-service casual segment positioning similar to Postino's lunch-friendly winecafé model.

Broad incumbents

• Cheesecake Factory: Large publicly traded full-service casual dining chain. Comparable on full-service casual-upscale positioning, though operates as a single-brand chain rather than a multi-concept portfolio like Upward Projects.
• Darden Restaurants: Multi-brand full-service restaurant operator (Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Capital Grille). Comparable on multi-brand full-service strategy at much larger scale.
• Bloomin' Brands: Multi-brand casual dining operator (Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's, Bonefish Grill, Fleming's). Comparable on multi-brand full-service portfolio strategy.
• Brinker International: Multi-brand casual dining operator (Chili's, Maggiano's). Comparable on multi-brand full-service strategy, though operates single dominant brands rather than distinct lifestyle concepts.
• P.F. Chang's: Phoenix-headquartered casual dining chain specializing in Asian cuisine. Comparable on Phoenix headquarters and casual-upscale full-service positioning, though single-brand rather than multi-concept.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/upwardprojects
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/upward-projects

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Upward Projects