Winston-Salem, N.C. — According to Andrea Cocchi, CEO of Carpigiani Group and Ali Group for EMEA and APAC Regions, Penny Klingler has been promoted to president of Carpigiani North America, an Ali Group Company. The position was effective September 1, 2019. Klingler served as executive vice president of sales and marketing for Carpigiani North America since 2017, and prior to that served as senior vice president of key accounts. As president, Klingler will be responsible for driving strategic growth while strengthening the foundation of the North American platform. Klingler has …
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Atlanta — Tropical Smoothie Cafe, a leading national fast-casual cafe concept, is opening its 800th location. The location will open on September 6, 2019 in Arlington Heights, Ill. This milestone opening comes on the heels of a tremendous growth year for the brand, with the opening of its 750th location in May. “Just last August we were celebrating the opening of our 700th location, and now 1 year later we will be celebrating the opening of our 800th location in the Chicago area,” says Charles Watson, CEO of Tropical Smoothie …
Westford, Mass. — On Aug. 29, 2019, PUMA opened its first-ever North American flagship store, located at 609 Fifth Ave. in New York City. The store showcases an immersive PUMA brand space —offering consumers a unique shopping experience through innovative sports engagement zones, a customization studio and digitally connected offerings. The store features 18,000 square feet of interactive retail space spanning two floors, with state-of-the-art double-height storefronts across 160 feet of wraparound frontage. “PUMA is thrilled to open its first flagship in New York City, in a prime Manhattan location, …
Orlando, Fla. — MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes, a fast-casual “better burger” chain founded in Plano, Texas, in 2007, is set to have two openings in late 2019 and early 2020 in Orlando, Fla. The Orlando openings mark the second and third MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes restaurants in the market, joining the existing Oviedo Mall location that opened last fall. The franchise brand is planning to bring an additional six locations to the greater Orlando area. For more information, visit www.MOOYAH.com. SOURCE: MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes
Phoenix — Telgian Fire Safety has appointed Terrence Magee as its new vice president, operations. He will be responsible for the customer service and customer care operations for the fire and life safety testing, inspections and repair company. Magee brings more than 30 years of operations experience to Telgian, including extensive knowledge of quality systems management, supply chain logistics, operational excellence and continuous improvement. Prior to joining Telgian, Magee served as senior manager, continuous improvement and business transformation with Ciox Health. He has also served in a number of global …
Houston — Atlanta-based Tin Drum Asian Kitchen, a Pan-Asian restaurant that transports its guests to a street side café in Asia, complete with hawker style cuisine and atmosphere, will open the first of five restaurants in Houston this year. Tin Drum has tapped experienced Houston restaurateurs Shairoz Lakhani, Avez Maredia and Faizan Momin to own and operate the five units in the Houston area. They are currently identifying potential locations and plan to open by early 2020. Spouses Lakhani and Maredia currently own and operate three Wingstop restaurants in Texas …
New York City — Blink Fitness, a premium-quality, affordable fitness concept, has hit its stride with multi-unit franchising. In the past few months, Blink has signed three major franchise development agreements representing nearly 40 units in Sacramento, Calif.; Boston and Nashville, Tenn. These deals increase the brand’s franchise footprint by 50%. “We’re growing strategically — and quickly — with experienced multi-unit operators across the country,” says Todd Magazine, CEO of Blink Fitness. “Our franchise opportunity is gaining widespread attention, especially with multi-unit groups who are seeking a low-labor concept to …
Chicago and Salt Lake City — Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, a Chicago-based multi-concept restaurant group, and Grubhub, the nation’s leading online and mobile food-ordering and delivery marketplace, are partnering to offer Whole30 Delivered, Whole30’s first-ever branded restaurant. This delivery-only restaurant concept from Whole30, the 30-day dietary reset chosen by millions for stunning, life-changing results, is operated by Lettuce Entertain You and provides diners across Chicago access to prepared, Whole30-compliant meals for delivery exclusively on Grubhub. The culinary team at Lettuce Entertain You worked directly with Whole30 to create a menu for the virtual …
Orlando, Fla. — Filta Environmental Kitchen Solutions (Filta), the world’s restaurant kitchen and hospitality leader in active fryer management and environmental sustainability, has promoted two executives. Tom Dunn, formerly COO and a 20-year veteran of the franchise industry, assumes responsibility as CEO for The Filta Group, Inc., the company’s Orlando, Fla.-based North American franchise business unit, and Rob Totten has been promoted to COO. Both executive moves are effective immediately. “Tom has run the comprehensive day-to-day operations at Filta as COO for several years, so his promotion to CEO is …
Seattle — Leading fashion retailer Nordstrom, Inc. has hired Teri Bariquit as chief merchandising officer. In this newly created role, Bariquit will serve as a member of the company’s executive team, leading the full-price and off-price merchandising areas. She will report to Pete Nordstrom, co-president. “We believe we have the best merchandising team in retail. Teri has been an integral part of the development of this team and she is well positioned to lead this organization into the future as we evolve our relationships with our brand partners and deliver …