Wendy’s International Inc.’s franchisees have been concerned that the company’s attention has been on matters other than its flagship hamburger operations.
With a spinoff of Tim Hortons Inc., investors’ push for operational changes at the Dublin company and the departure of several top executives, including the company’s CEO, their worries could be understandable. “The franchisor was so involved in corporate activities that they lost focus on the mother ship,” said Dave Norman, head of the newly formed Old Fashioned Franchisee Association. “Wendy’s had been an innovator. We were the first with dinner salads, the first to take credit cards, the first to open late night. But it’s gotten away from being the quality brand. That’s just not talked about anymore.”
To settle the unrest, the No. 3 burger chain last week named Dave Near, a Texas franchise operator and the son of a former Wendy’s CEO, as chief operations officer of the Wendy’s brand – a new job that will include overseeing restaurant operations.
Norman said that while members of Wendy’s Franchise Advisory Council, which Near has led since January 2005, have worked hard, some franchisees felt their concerns weren’t being heard. So, they formed the Old Fashioned Franchisee Association three weeks ago. The independent franchisee group has 840 restaurants under its umbrella – roughly 16 percent of the company’s 5,244 franchisees.
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