USA- The world’s largest franchisee, Flynn Group, has announced the acquisition of 83 Wendy’s restaurants, making it one of the fast food giant’s largest operators.
The franchisee now owns 277 Wendy’s restaurants. The acquired outlets are located in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
The specific terms of the acquisition have not been made public.
Flynn Group’s franchise relationship with Wendy’s started in 2021 when it bought 194 Wendy’s and 937 Pizza Hut locations for US$552.6 million from the insolvent NPC International.
The franchiser has since entered a master franchise agreement with Wendy’s in Australia and will develop at least 200 outlets in the country over the next decade. Flynn Group has also bought out the New Zealand market, acquiring 21 Wendy’s restaurants in the country.
Welcoming the move, Flynn Group acknowledge Wendy’s brand image and resilience in the market, especially at a time when QSR chains worldwide are facing cost-pricing pressures due to inflation.
Greg Flynn, the franchisee’s CEO, said, “The resilience and strength of the brand, and the foresight and strategy put forth by [Wendy’s] leadership, is unmatched.”
“We could not be prouder to continue to grow and scale with Wendy’s both internationally and domestically, especially now here in the Northeast.”
The CEO highlighted the acquisition is part of the franchisee’s efforts to leverage the potential of the QSR market.
He reiterated the international franchise space has ‘unlimited’ opportunity, with literally millions of restaurants. The company can leverage its capitalization strength and reputation franchising large QSR brands like Wendy’s, Applebee’s, Arby’s, Taco Bell, Panera and Pizza Hut.
The new outlets will be managed by Rasheeda Clark, Flynn Wendy’s brand president.
Rasheeda explained the strategy moving into the acquisition will be to maintain positive customer experiences in all outlets, consistently retain customers and survive the challenging QSR market.
The brand president also reiterated the need to ensure the company stays abreast of all industry trends and customer needs.
The acquired restaurants are also expected to implement a comprehensive digital transformation strategy. Outlets are expected to incorporate AI and cloud computing in streamlining operations, reducing wait times and overall enhance efficiency.
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