- How to Manage Leases and Landlords in Uncertain Times
(fsrmagazine.com - 5/28/2020) Three experts chime in on renegotiating leases, communicating with landlords, and managing rent when sales are crashing. (full story)
- COVID-19 Can't Slow Dollar General's Expansion
(progressivegrocer.com - 5/28/2020) Undeterred by COVID-19, Dollar General managed to open 250 stores during a first quarter period that also saw same store sales surge 21.7%. (full story)
- AutoZone Reports 3rd-Quarter Results
(finance.yahoo.com - 5/27/2020) At the end of the quarter, AutoZone launched 21 new stores in the U.S. and two in Mexico... (full story)
- Wienerschnitzel Franchise Signs 20-Unit Area Development Deal in Louisiana
(restaurantnews.com - 5/27/2020) Wienerschnitzel, is proud to announce a new area development agreement with Lake Charles-based, Henderson Family Restaurants, LLC, to build 20 new Wienerschnitzel restaurants throughout the State of Louisiana over the next 13 years. (full story)
- Off-price retailer Tuesday Morning has filed for bankruptcy with plans to close 230 stores
(businessinsider.com - 5/27/2020) It said in a press release on Wednesday that it had requested court approval to shutter at least 132 stores in the first round of closures this summer. It is also looking to close the Phoenix distribution center for the affected stores. (full story)
- Le Pain Quotidien, Struggling Pre-Pandemic, Files For Bankruptcy Protection
(restaurantbusinessonline.com - 5/27/2020) In its filing, Le Pain Quotidien said that a sale to New York City-based Aurify Brands would allow for the reopening of at least 35 of its restaurants and avoid a liquidation. (full story)
- Taco John's plans to open at least 10 Milwaukee-area restaurants in the next few years
(tmj4.com - 5/26/2020) Brooks Speirs, the company's vice president of franchise development, said a couple of franchise owners are already scouting potential locations in Milwaukee. (full story)
- Boxing and kickboxing concept signs deal for first east Texas location
(franchising.com - 5/26/2020) Husband-and-wife team Greg and Renee Branch will own and operate the newest RockBox Fitness location. The duo is eyeing sites in south Tyler due to the area’s recent growth. (full story)
- Chicken Salad Chick Announces Opening Of First Little Rock Restaurant
(franchising.com - 5/26/2020) Gray and Sandefur saw an opportunity to spread Chicken Salad Chick's unique dining experience and flavorful menu items to more cities across Arkansas and have plans to open two additional restaurants in the greater Little Rock area over the next couple years.
(full story)
- Hertz Says Pandemic Decimated Revenue, Leading to Bankruptcy
(ca.finance.yahoo.com - 5/25/2020) In April, the first full month after the health crisis took hold in the U.S., its global revenue dropped 73% from the same month in the previous year, according to Hertz. (full story)
- Savvy Biscuit Chain Plots Virginia Takeover with 25 Unit Franchise Expansion Deal
(franchising.com - 5/22/2020) Area development representatives David Dowdy, Matt Hurley and Nash Osborn of BDVA Holdings, LLC have committed to opening a minimum of 25 Rise locations throughout Virginia over the next nine years. (full story)
- Stoner's Pizza Joint Signs New Three-Unit Franchise Agreement with Existing Franchisee
(wfmz.com - 5/22/2020) This new partnership supports Stoner's Pizza Joint's plans to further develop the Georgia Market. The first new Georgia location, slated to open today, May 20, is located at 1080 GA- Highway 96, in Warner Robins, GA, and will be owned by Stoner's Pizza Joint franchisee, John Stetson. (full story)
- Juice It Up! Named a 2020 Fast Casual Top Mover & Shaker
(restaurantnews.com - 5/22/2020) "We’ve completely overhauled our website, signed new franchise deals, developed a fresh and exciting new store prototype," said Chris Braun, CEO. The brand leadership team continues to identify markets in California and the Western U.S. that have a strong appetite for an established juice, bowl and smoothie concept like Juice It Up!
(full story)
- Scooter’s Coffee Grows to New Market in North Carolina
(franchising.com - 5/22/2020) Scooter’s Coffee is extremely excited about expanding to new areas by adding locations in Raleigh. Rob Southerland signed a multi-unit agreement with Scooter’s Coffee. (full story)
- Lidl set to open 100th U.S. store
(supermarketnews.com - 5/22/2020) Next week, hard discount grocer Lidl plans to open its 100th U.S. location in Suwanee, Ga. (full story)
- Bath & Body Works Is Closing 50 Stores Across the Country
(housebeautiful.com - 5/22/2020) The closures will largely take place in malls, where social distancing measures continue to impact foot traffic, CNN reported. Bath & Body Works has about 1,700 locations across North America. (full story)
- Krystal Announces New Ownership
(restaurantnews.com - 5/22/2020) Krystal Restaurants LLC, is pleased to announce that it has been acquired by funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group LLC, and its operating partner, Golden Child Holdings, effective Monday, May 18. (full story)
- Fortress to Acquire CraftWorks for $93 million
(fsrmagazine.com - 5/22/2020) The deal is $45 million less than the original offer. The restaurant chain had an agreement with Fortress in March for $138 million. Fortress said during the proceedings that it plans to keep at least 150 units open.
(full story)
- Pizza Guys Franchise Eyeing Additional Expansion in Southern California
(restaurantnews.com - 5/22/2020) The brand currently has 4 locations in Southern California: Santa Clarita, Apple Valley, Victorville and Rancho Cucamonga, and has a solid foundation for franchise support. Nejad believes they can open up to 75 locations in Southern California, providing up to 1,100 new job opportunities.
(full story)
- Ace Hardware Reports Record First Quarter 2020 Results
(franchising.com - 5/20/2020) Ace added 22 new domestic stores in the first quarter of 2020 and cancelled 12 stores. The Company’s total domestic store count was 4,566 at the end of the first quarter of 2020 which was an increase of 69 stores from the first quarter of 2019. (full story)
- Victoria’s Secret parent L Brands sales tumble 37%, with stores shut during coronavirus pandemic
(cnbc.com - 5/20/2020) It said it expects to permanently shut roughly 250 Victoria’s Secret and PINK stores across North America this year. (full story)
- Chicken Salad Chick to Open 16th Texas Restaurant
(qsrmagazine.com - 5/20/2020) Katy Cinco Ranch restaurant marks the brand’s 16th location in the state and fourth Texas opening in 2020. Chicken Salad Chick has plans to open additional Houston area restaurants, including Birnham Woods in Spring, TX later this year. (full story)
- Boot Barn Holdings, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter Fiscal Year 2020 Financial Results
(oaoa.com - 5/20/2020) The company opened 8 new stores during the quarter... (full story)
- Jeremiah's Italian Ice Awards One Hundred Stores in Under 12 Months
(prnewswire.com - 5/20/2020) "Since that time, we have added trusted franchise partners in our home state of Florida, and are eager to be expanding our presence in markets across the South, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Texas, and Arizona, to name a few." (full story)
- TravelCenters of America Accelerates Network Expansion
(cspdailynews.com - 5/20/2020) It is also engaged in later stages of discussions with operators of another six locations, and has more than 80 other potential franchisees in the pipeline across states including California, Texas, Nevada and Missouri. (full story)
- Pier 1 wants to close all its stores for good
(cnn.com - 5/19/2020) Pier 1 has cut its store count in half since last year. It announced in February that it was closing around 450 stores, including all its locations in Canada. The company currently has more than 500 stores — down from 1,000 last year. (full story)
- Bankrupt JCPenney Is Closing Nearly One-Third of Its Stores
(footwearnews.com - 5/19/2020) In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, the retailer stated that it plans to close 242 doors, or about 29% of its 846-store fleet. (full story)
- How Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers Survived The Pandemic
(restaurantbusinessonline.com - 5/18/2020) Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers opened three locations in recent weeks, which in and of itself is not notable except for the fact that we’ve been in a pandemic-induced shutdown. (full story)
- End of an Era: Nordstrom Permanently Closes Jeffrey Stores After 30 Years in Business
(footwearnews.com - 5/18/2020) Founder Jeffrey Kalinsky made the announcement on Instagram today that his boutique business, comprised of three stores in partnership with Nordstrom, are shuttering for good. (full story)
- Captain D’s Reignites Growth with Opening of Restaurant in Bonham, Texas
(qsrmagazine.com - 5/18/2020) In addition to its Southeast development, Captain D’s is continuing its expansion across the Midwest with locations in Champaign, Illinois and Clinton Township, Michigan projected to open by this summer, as well as open its first restaurant in Utah by 2021.
(full story)
- Specialty's Café & Bakery, headquartered in Pleasanton, going out of business
(pleasantonweekly.com - 5/17/2020) Specialty's operated more than 50 shops operating in California, Washington and Illinois. (full story)
- Bonfire Restaurants Announce They Will Not Reopen
(minnesota.cbslocal.com - 5/16/2020) Bonfire Restaurants closed on March 17 due to the coronavirus pandemic. On Friday, the restaurant’s management decided that that close will be permanent. (full story)
- Costco Eyes Several New Locations as Growth Plans Advance
(andnowuknow.com - 5/15/2020) The big-box retailer will continue capturing the hearts of shoppers across the continent as it makes plans for its latest facilities in Idaho Falls, Idaho; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and Belleville, Canada. (full story)
- Ikea parent company planning to expand with new malls in the US
(usatoday.com - 5/15/2020) Ingka Centres managing director Gerard Groener told Reuters the company is currently negotiating downtown real estate locations. Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco are key locations for Ingka Centres' strategy, he said. (full story)
- Leader in “Better Chicken” Segment Continues National Expansion with Six Unit Franchise Agreement
(franchising.com - 5/15/2020) Slim Chickens, announced today that its first location in Cleveland will open in Q1 of 2021. The forthcoming restaurant comes out of the brand’s recent six unit franchise agreement in the Cleveland market. This will mark the brand’s first location in the Cleveland market and second location in Ohio. (full story)
- Bankrupt Krystal Is Being Sold To One Of Its Lenders
(restaurantbusinessonline.com - 5/14/2020) Fortress Investment Group, which controlled some of the burger chain’s debt, acquired the company with a $27 million credit bid and is assuming $21 million worth of liabilities.
(full story)
- Batteries Plus Announces Hiring of Joe Malmuth as Managing Director of Franchise Development
(finance.yahoo.com - 5/13/2020) The brand opened 14 new franchise stores and four new corporate-owned stores in 2019 and plans to open an additional 12 units in 2020. Despite COVID-19, Batteries Plus already signed two new deals in March for three units, one of which for the brand's first location in Vermont. (full story)
- Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux names franchisees for Starkville, Tupelo
(bizbuzz.djournal.com - 5/13/2020) Earlier this week, company co-founder Brandon Landry tweeted that Eddie and Allen Gant became franchisees for Starkville, Tupelo and Meridian. Currently, the Hattiesburg store is the only Mississippi location. The company’s website also says it has sold franchise locations in Jackson, Biloxi/Gulfport, Southaven and Oxford. (full story)
- BBQ Holdings, Inc. Reports Results For First Quarter Of Fiscal Year 2020
(franchising.com - 5/13/2020) The increase in year-over-year restaurant net sales for the quarter ended March 29, 2020 was driven primarily by the addition of 13 Company-owned Famous Dave’s restaurants, 18 Granite City restaurants and a Clark Crew BBQ and Real Urban Barbecue restaurant... (full story)
- Popeyes opening two new West Michigan locations
(grbj.com - 5/13/2020) “We are excited to help continue to grow the Popeyes brand,” Prins said. “Colliers worked closely with Anthony to find the right locations for these two restaurants, and these were selected because of their high traffic and visibility. Due to its success in the region, Popeyes looks forward to continuing to expand in West Michigan.” (full story)
- Now is the Time to Diversify With This Breakthrough Better-Chicken Franchise
(qsrmagazine.com - 5/13/2020) Sartwell is so sold on Slim Chickens that he signed a franchise agreement for the rights to several cities in Montana. Those five agreements include a total of 33 new units the brand will be adding to the more than 370 restaurants currently in development. (full story)
- Discovery Days Go Virtual as Brands Keep Up Development
(franchisetimes.com - 5/12/2020) But while it’s lost some opening momentum, the 50-unit company is still in development mode, quickly adjusting to host a virtual discovery day in April that yielded two multi-unit deals: a five-pack in Detroit and a three-pack in Sacramento, California, both new markets. (full story)
- Crisis Drives New Suppliers—and New Shoppers—to Grocery Outlet
(winsightgrocerybusiness.com - 5/12/2020) Sheedy said such opportunities were limited only by the number of stores it has: 355 as of March 28, with plans to grow its store base by 10% annually. (full story)
- 10 Common Pitfalls in Restaurant Build-Outs
(modernrestaurantmanagement.com - 5/12/2020) Opening a new restaurant is an exciting adventure, but as with other adventures, there are a lot of ways you could be subjecting yourself and your new business to high risk and liability situations. (full story)
- Art Van stores rebranding, reopening as Loves Furniture
(furnituretoday.com - 5/12/2020) The new owner of 27 Art Van, Levin and Wolf Furniture locations confirmed Tuesday it will reopen the stores as Loves Furniture in the initial rollout of a new furniture store brand. (full story)
- Peter Cancro's High-Touch Approach To Growth
(restaurantbusinessonline.com - 5/12/2020) “We added 181 stores last year,” Cancro says. “This year, it might be 225.” All but about 75 of the units currently open are franchised. “We’re just starting to grow,” he continues. “We could get up to 300 new stores a year.” (full story)
- CPR Cell Phone Repair Announces 4-Store Expansion
(finance.yahoo.com - 5/11/2020) The CPR Cell Phone Repair network is pleased to welcome three new franchise locations throughout Nevada and one in Utah. (full story)
- Nike, Skechers and Adidas Owed Millions By Bankrupt Retailer Stage Stores
(footwearnews.com - 5/11/2020) In its filing, Stage Stores listed estimated liabilities of between $500 million and $1 billion — the same range as its estimated assets. (full story)
- Steak n Shake permanently closes 57 restaurants amid dismal first quarter
(ibj.com - 5/11/2020) Fifty-one of the Steak n Shake closures were company-owned restaurants and six were franchised. The closings reduced the number of franchised stores to 247 and total restaurants to 553, down from 624 a year ago. (full story)
- Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Q2 2020 Earnings Call Transcript
(fool.com - 5/9/2020) During the quarter, we opened two new stores compared to opening one new store and relocating one store in the second quarter of fiscal 2019... (full story)
- Checkers & Rally's Focused On Resiliency, Growth, and Greater Good
(franchising.com - 5/8/2020) “We have been able to continue operating our stores without having to worry about losing a large aspect of our business, as so many other brands have to deal with dine-in closures.” More than 80 new restaurants opened during the last 24 months. (full story)
- Your Best Innovators Right Now Could Be Your Franchisees
(qsrmagazine.com - 5/8/2020) He says there have been 11 Chicken Salad Chick grand openings so far in 2020, bringing the store total to 155. (full story)
- Umami Burger Continues Global Expansion With First Middle East Location in Doha, Qatar
(restaurantnewsresource.com - 5/8/2020) Umami Burger Doha marks the 28th location for the brand with plans to open 100 more locations worldwide in the next five years.
(full story)
- Souplantation restaurant chain, founded in San Diego, closing for good
(10news.com - 5/8/2020) The company is closing its 97 buffet-style restaurants, 44 of them in California, which will put 4,400 employees out of work, the San Diego Union- Tribune reported Thursday. (full story)
- The Joint Corp. Reports First Quarter 2020 Financial Results
(franchising.com - 5/8/2020) “Strong growth momentum continued for first two- and one-half months of 2020. As a result, we increased gross system-wide sales, grew revenue, opened 17 clinics and sold 24 franchise licenses during the first quarter of 2020. (full story)
- Rent Obligations on Retail Space in the Midst of a Pandemic: A Path Forward for Landlords and Tenant
(natlawreview.com - 5/8/2020) It would be economic suicide for landlords and their tenants to simply retreat to their corners and take intractable positions. (full story)
- Neiman Marcus Files for Bankruptcy. Can It Survive?
(businessoffashion.com - 5/7/2020) The retailer plans to exit bankruptcy in the fall and does not intend to conduct liquidation sales or mass closures among its 40-plus stores. (full story)
- John Varvatos files for bankruptcy
(fashionunited.com - 5/7/2020) “We have taken decisive action to respond to the challenges that all retailers face in the present environment and we remain extremely confident that our brand, celebrating its 20th year in business, will emerge even stronger,” Zorda said in the filings. (full story)
- Aldo Files for Bankruptcy Protection, Cites Deep Coronavirus Impact
(footwearnews.com - 5/7/2020) “We firmly believe that we will emerge from the restructuring process and from the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. We will come out stronger and well-positioned to continue leading the way in fashion retail,” Bensadoun said. (full story)
- Sprouts Farmers Market Reports First Quarter 2020 Results, Maps Out New Brick-and-Mortar Strategy
(delimarketnews.com - 5/7/2020) For the first quarter, we opened four new stores, ending the quarter with 344 stores in 23 states... (full story)
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