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San Francisco — The St. Regis San Francisco, the city’s premier address for luxury accommodations, gracious service and timeless elegance, has appointed Christopher Williams to the position of director of restaurant operations. A certified sommelier and accomplished restaurant industry veteran, Williams joins the property with over a decade of experience in the industry. Williams is a native of Georgia and began his career waiting tables at Maggiano’s Little Italy in Atlanta. By 2011 he took his first leadership position as captain at Atlanta’s Restaurant Eugene. Williams most recently worked at …

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Greenwood Village, Colo. — FullSpeed Automotive, one of the nation’s largest franchisors and operators of automotive aftermarket repair facilities and home to flagship brands Grease Monkey® and SpeeDee Oil Change & Auto Service®, has opened its milestone 700th unit with Grease Monkey in Garden Grove, Calif. The new store opened on January 26, 2022. This development milestone signals major growth ahead as Grease Monkey and SpeeDee awarded a combined 51 franchise agreements in 2021, and expect to exceed that in 2022. FullSpeed also hopes to acquire as many as 150 units …

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Irving, Texas — Fuzzy’s Taco Shop has signed a 50-store agreement with Richard Maddox, which will include expansion into the South with new markets in Alabama, North Carolina and Tennessee, and growth within Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, existing markets for the brand. Additionally, all 50 locations included in the agreement will be constructed to accommodate a drive-thru, a first for the brand. The Texas-based restaurant group is recognized for its Baja-style fare with nearly 150 franchise- and corporate-owned locations in 17 states. “As we look to add new Fuzzy’s …

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Atlanta — The Home Depot® has named Edward “Ted” Decker as its new CEO and president, effective March 1, 2022. He has also been elected to the company’s board of directors. Craig Menear, currently chairman and CEO, will continue to serve as chair of the board. “As a 22-year associate of The Home Depot, Ted has nurtured our culture by living our values and demonstrating servant leadership throughout his career,” says Menear. “Ted has grown with the company by taking on expanded roles of leadership from his time in Strategic …

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Bakersfield, Calif., and Henderson, Nev. — Wetzel’s Pretzels recently opened two new franchise locations in Bakersfield, Calif., and Henderson, Nev., within Walmart stores. The openings inside both Walmart stores exhibit the mutually beneficial relationship between the pair of dominant brands. “The success we’ve seen from our existing Walmart partnerships has been phenomenal, with our locations performing well beyond expectations,” says Jennifer Schuler, CEO of Pasadena, Calif.-based Wetzel’s Pretzels. “We look forward to continuing to expand our relationship with Walmart and provide yet another convenient way to ‘Bring Pretzels to the …

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Los Angeles — FAT Brands Inc., parent company of Twin Peaks and 16 other restaurant concepts, has seen Twin Peaks navigate various recent hardships facing the restaurant industry and emerge stronger than before, consistently increasing sales and generating growth over the past 2 years. “Twin Peaks continues to be a leader across all metrics of the casual dining space,” says Joe Hummel, CEO of Twin Peaks. “Our team is relentless in the pursuit to make Twin Peaks a worldwide brand, and we’re so happy about the huge steps we took …

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St. Louis, Mo. — Todd Korte has been promoted to executive chairman of The Korte Company after serving 21 years as the company’s president and CEO. Brent Korte, the company’s former chief operating officer, has been promoted to president and CEO. In the 63-year history of The Korte Company, Brent is only the fourth to hold this title. Brent Korte has been part of The Korte Company for 26 years and has nearly 28 years of valuable construction experience. Prior to serving as president and CEO, Brent Korte served as …

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Newport Beach, Calif. — Juice It Up!, a leading handcrafted smoothie, superfruit bowl and raw juice chain, reported record sales in 2021, with same store sales (SSS) up 26.3% over 2020. Total system sales (TSS) also climbed to a record level last year, increasing 29.2% over 2020 and surpassing $41 million — a new all-time high for the 26-year-old chain. “2021 was an extraordinary year for Juice It Up! as more and more consumers continued to make important lifestyle choices fueled by their health and wellness goals; and we’re extremely …

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Rock Springs, Wyo. — U-Haul Moving & Storage now occupies the former Kmart® building in Rock Springs, Wyo., and is offering truck and trailer sharing, boxes and moving supplies, and U-Box® portable storage containers out of a temporary showroom. Towing equipment, hitch accessories and bike racks, professional hitch installation, propane and much more will soon be available. Renovations to the 89,792-square-foot facility will lead to a variety of storage units. U-Haul plans to create more than 700 indoor climate-controlled self-storage rooms. U-Haul acquired the 8.19-acre property on Dec. 17, 2021. …

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Bettendorf, Iowa — After closing out one of its strongest development years to date in 2021, Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream is getting ready to make its 50th anniversary year its most successful year in brand history. The 46-unit pizza chain kicked off 2021 with 30-year industry veteran Tom Sacco as its new CEO, president and chief happiness officer. Under his direction, Happy Joe’s has driven aggressive expansion efforts across the globe. Throughout the year, Happy Joe’s signed 28 new franchise deals — resulting in an over 60% increase …

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