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1,008-unit group would tap top franchisee
ATLANTA - The new Arby's Restaurant Group, which is expected to kick off operations from its headquarters here this fall upon the completion of a merger of Arby's LLC and its largest franchisee, 775-unit RTM Restaurant Group, could propel the fortunes of Arby's brand owner and franchisor, Triarc Cos. Inc.
Based on the latest figures for Atlanta-based RTM's outlets and the 233 units of Triarc's Fort Lauderdale, FIa.-based Arby's LLC, average-unit sales at the franchisee's restaurants are 16.7-percent higher, or $1.03 million a year, compared with the $882,000 annual per-location average of Arby's LLC.
Creation of a 1,008-unit Arby's powerhouse in the form of a publicly traded Arby's Restaurant Group, or ARG, also stands to attract new franchisees and enhance overall growth for the roast-beef sandwich brand.
In fact, the number of Arby's restaurants opened in 2004 - the chain now has a total of 3,327 outlets - declined significantly from the figures for the previous three years, according to Triarc's most recent 10K annual report.
While franchisees launched a net 50 Arby's each year between 2001 and 2003, they added only 11 branches to the system last year. Furthermore, international franchisees closed a net six Arby's units last year, chiefly in Canada, where the Arby's unit total declined from 130 to 125 outlets, Triarc reported.
"I see the merging of Arby's and RTM's cultures like two branches of the same family coming together," said Douglas Benham, RTM's former chief financial officer, who thoroughly realigned...