A&W
It has been five years since A&W Restaurants, Inc. was acquired from YUM! by a core group of franchisees, and the company is reporting repeated year-over-year same store sales and profit gains, along with the opening of more than 40 new U.S. units, including 15 in gas and convenience stores.
The restaurant chain was purchased under the newly established A Great American Brand, LLC in 2011, and former A&W president Kevin Bazner returned to the company as CEO.
“We acquired a troubled brand with a franchise community that was very apathetic, having been neglected for many years,” Bazner said. “Our initial goal was to grow profitable sales, one restaurant at a time, and we’ve accomplished that.”
In addition to opening 41 new U.S. restaurants, with 20 more planned for 2017, the chain has boosted same-store sales by 24 percent and introduced 23 new products, in addition to its new prototype and kitchen designs. The restaurant also plans to launch a new franchise sales initiative in early 2017, with a focus on adding more gas and convenience stores to its mix.
There are currently more than 625 A&W locations in the United States and 1,100 locations worldwide. Roughly 375 are co-branded with either KFC or Long John Silver’s. A Great American Brand currently operates 310 A&W restaurants in eight countries.