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Carvel to Debut Brick-and-Mortar Presence in Houston Market

by Katie Lee

Atlanta — Carvel, the nostalgic ice cream franchise under the Focus Brands portfolio, is moving westward beyond its East Coast roots with its debut in a new market: Houston. This first-of-its-kind collaboration will bring Carvel to eight Houston-area locations over the next 5 years. The new locations are Buttermilk Baby restaurants — the newest concept developed by Berg Hospitality. Each Buttermilk Baby restaurant integrates the Carvel brand in its design and menu offerings, bringing Carvel to Houstonians in a unique way. Ben Berg, owner of Houston-based Berg Hospitality Group, is …

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Newspeoplerestaurants

Church’s Texas Chicken Names New EVP, Global Chief Marketing Officer

by Katie Lee

Atlanta — Quick-service chicken restaurant chain Church’s Texas Chicken® has hired Natalia Franco as executive vice president, global chief marketing officer role on March 6, bringing more than 30 years of executive leadership experience to the brand. In her new role, Franco is responsible for providing a strategic vision for the brand and creatively leading marketing ideation, brand execution and digital prowess across the organization to drive brand awareness and positioning, resulting in continued growth and stronger franchise relationships. “I’m thrilled to join this iconic brand as it continues on …

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franchise developmentNewsrestaurants

Focus Brands® Opened 400+ Locations Globally in 2022; Signed 650 New Franchise Deals

by Katie Lee

Atlanta — Focus Brands®, the parent company of Auntie Anne’s®, Carvel®, Cinnabon®, Jamba®, McAlister’s Deli®, Moe’s Southwest Grill® and Schlotzsky’s®, has closed out fiscal year 2022 exceeding $3.9 billion in system-wide sales for the first time in its history. Nearly 650 new franchise deals were signed, and 400-plus stores opened globally. Key to Focus Brands’ growth strategy has been its transformation into a platform company. Finding portfolio-wide synergies and cost savings adds more fuel to the company’s individual brands. In 2023, Focus Brands is prioritizing the ‘Power of the Portfolio,’ …

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construction and designNewspeoplerestaurants

Focus Brands Bolsters Leadership Team with 3 New Additions

by Katie Lee

Atlanta — Focus Brands®, parent company of Auntie Anne’s®, Carvel®, Cinnabon®, Jamba®, McAlister’s Deli®, Moe’s Southwest Grill® and Schlotzsky’s®, has appointed three senior leaders across two areas of the business. Effective immediately, the following executives will be leading these key business functions within the company: Chris Newman, Senior Vice President, Real Estate Jim Cannon, Senior Vice President, Design & Construction Julie Younglove-Webb, Chief Brand Officer, Auntie Anne’s “One of the most important investments a leader can make is in recruiting the best talent and assembling the right teams,” says Jim …

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Blaze Pizza Names Focus Brands President as its New CEO

by Katie Lee

Los Angeles — Blaze Pizza, the nation’s leading fast-casual franchise pizza brand, has appointed Beto Guajardo as its new president and chief executive officer. Guajardo formerly served as president of Focus Brands International. Guajardo joins Blaze Pizza after overseeing the international business at Focus Brands, which included more than $400 million of chain sales in over 50 markets with 1,900 restaurants, 100 franchisees and eight brands (Cinnabon, Auntie Anne’s, Jamba, Seattle’s Best Coffee, Moe’s Southwest Grill, McAlister’s Deli and Schlotzsky’s). Before being promoted to this role, Guajardo was responsible for …

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Former Focus Brands President/COO Joins Virtual Restaurant Company Nextbite

by Katie Lee

Denver — Nextbite, a leader in virtual restaurants, has added Kat Cole, a 25-year restaurant industry executive and former president and chief operating officer (COO) of Focus Brands, as advisor. Cole will guide Nextbite with her experience in building high-growth strategies, support the advancement of healthy brands in the portfolio and streamline operations. Cole is currently president and COO of Athletic Greens, one of the fastest growing wellness brands and subscription businesses, where she focuses on driving organizational scale, accelerating business growth and global expansion, innovation and more. Prior to …

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International Dairy Queen Names New COO, International

by Katie Lee

Minneapolis — International Dairy Queen Inc. (IDQ) has hired Nicolas Boudet as chief operating officer, international. Boudet will lead the international business, including operations, franchise development, supply chain and marketing in more than 20 countries outside of the U.S. and Canada. He brings more than 20 years of business leadership experience at well-known, globally recognized hospitality and quick-service restaurant brands. Boudet most recently served as senior vice president global development and president of international at Wingstop Restaurants, Inc. Before joining Wingstop in 2018, he was executive vice president and group …

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Church’s Texas Chicken and Texas Chicken Names Industry Veteran as New CEO

by Katie Lee

Atlanta — Church’s Texas Chicken™ and Texas Chicken™, one of the largest quick-service chicken restaurant chains in the world, has named industry veteran Joe Guith as the brand’s new CEO, effective August 1, 2022. As Church’s Texas Chicken looks to accelerate a new phase of growth, Guith brings extensive experience in the consumer and restaurant businesses as well as deep expertise working in a highly franchised organization. “I’m impressed with this brand’s resiliency and its ability to navigate a challenging environment over the past few years. With a strong base …

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Fuzzy’s Taco Shop Names New SVP of Franchise Sales

by Katie Lee

Irving, Texas — Fuzzy’s Taco Shop has hired franchise veteran Nick Booras as senior vice president of franchise sales. The Texas-based restaurant group has nearly 150 franchise- and corporate-owned locations in 17 states. Most recently, Booras served as senior director of franchise development at FOCUS Brands, LLC. In his previous position, Booras was responsible for selling all seven of the FOCUS brands in the Southwest region. Prior to that his role was dedicated to one brand in the FOCUS portfolio, McAlister’s Deli, where he sold over 250 units as director …

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Driving Force

by Katie Lee

Just in time for its 50th anniversary, Schlotzsky’s rolls out two new prototypes with plans to build on lessons learned during COVID-19. — By Katie Lee —   At Schlotzsky’s, the drive-thru has always been a driving force of its business. Eighty-five percent of its 339 locations already had a drive-thru — often with double lanes — and this positioned the sandwich chain well when COVID-19 changed the world in early 2020. Schlotzsky’s already understood customers’ evolving needs — and the pandemic accelerated that evolution. Several years prior to the …

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