Company type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Restaurant |
Founded | November 15, 1969 Columbus, Ohio, U.S. |
Founder | Dave Thomas |
Headquarters | 1 Dave Thomas Boulevard, , U.S. |
Number of locations | 7,166 (3Q23) |
Area served | United States (incl. Puerto Rico and Guam), Canada, Argentina, Aruba, the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Chile, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Panama, Qatar, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan |
Key people | Kirk Tanner (President, CEO) Carl Loredo (CMO) |
Products | |
Parent | The Wendy's Company |
Website | www |
Footnotes /references [1] [2] [3] |
Wendy's is an American international fast food restaurant chain founded by Dave Thomas on November 15, 1969, in Columbus, Ohio. Its headquarters moved to Dublin, Ohio, on January 29, 2006. As of December 31, 2018, Wendy's was the world's third-largest hamburger fast-food chain with 6,711 locations, following McDonald’s and Burger King. On September 29, 2008, the company merged with Triarc Companies Inc., the publicly traded parent company of Arby's.
As of November 2, 2023, there were 7,166 Wendy's outlets, of which 415 are company-owned and 6,751 franchised, 83% of which are in the United States. [4] The company specifies stores' standards; owners control opening hours, decor, and staff uniforms and pay.
The chain serves square hamburger patties on circular buns, sea salt fries, and the Frosty, soft ice cream mixed with starches. The food menu consists primarily of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, and French fries. The company discontinued its Big Classic signature sandwich.
Wendy's hamburgers are based on those of Kewpee Hamburgers in Dave Thomas's home town, Kalamazoo, Michigan; Kewpee sold square hamburgers and thick malt shakes. Thomas founded Wendy's in Columbus, Ohio, in 1969, selling square patties with corners that stuck out of the circular bun, giving the impression of plentiful meat. [5] The Columbus location later added a Tim Hortons. It was closed on March 2, 2007, after 38 years of business, due to declining sales. [6] [7] Basketball star John Havlicek, an Ohio State University alumnus, was one of Thomas's earliest investors, which allowed him to retire comfortably. [8]
Thomas named the restaurant after his fourth child Melinda Lou "Wendy" Thomas. [9] Photographs of her were on display at the original Wendy's restaurant until it closed.[ citation needed ] Thomas wrote that he regretted naming the restaurant after his daughter because once it became a fast food empire she "lost some of her privacy" with many people assuming she was the official company spokesperson. [10] In August 1972, the first Wendy's franchisee, L.S. Hartzog, signed an agreement for Indianapolis, Indiana. [11] Also in 1972 Wendy's broadcast its first TV commercials, locally in Ohio, portraying an animated Wendy and dancing hamburgers.
The first Canadian restaurant opened in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1976. [12] In December 1976, Wendy's opened its 500th restaurant, located in Toronto. In March 1978, Wendy's opened its 1000th restaurant in Springfield, Tennessee. [13]
Wendy's founded the fried chicken chain Sisters Chicken & Biscuits in 1978 and sold it to its largest franchisee in 1987. [14] In the 1970s Wendy's opened in Australia, but by 1986 almost all of their Australian stores had been purchased by Hungry Jack's, the Australian franchisee of Burger King. On May 13, 2021, Wendy's opened a pop-up store in The Rocks in Sydney's city centre for a day. [15] In 1979, the first European Wendy's opened in Munich, West Germany. [16] Wendy's entered the Asian market by opening its first restaurants in Japan in 1980, in Hong Kong in 1982, and in the Philippines and Singapore in 1983. [17] [18] [19] [20] In 1984, Wendy's opened its first restaurant in South Korea. [21]
The chain opened locations in West Germany in the 1980s in Mannheim, Heidelberg and Munich and other areas where the US maintained Army bases. When the troops were removed after German reunification in the early 1990s, these Wendy's stores were closed.
In response to a 1986 slowdown in the chain's performance, Wendy's took steps to ensure that stores met the required standards. [22] Wendy's closed all its outlets in Hong Kong in 1986 and in Singapore in the following year. [18] [20]
From 1988 to 1990, Wendy's expanded operations globally to Mexico, New Zealand, Indonesia, Greece, Turkey, Guatemala, as well as the U.S. Naval Base in Naples, Italy. [23] [24] In 1988, Wendy's expanded its bar to a full-blown buffet called the Superbar for $2.99; while popular it was difficult to maintain and was discontinued in 1998. [25]
In 1989, Wendy's opened its first restaurant in Greece at Syntagma Square, Athens, the first foreign fast-food chain in the country. After opening 12 restaurants in 3 cities, the company abandoned the Greek market in 2002 due to differences with the local franchisee, although it was a very successful and profitable business at the time. [26] [27] In 1996, the chain expanded in Argentina by opening 18 local restaurants. However, all of them closed only four years later due to the economic crisis in the country. [28] In 1998, Wendy's pulled out of South Korea by closing all its 15 restaurants and in 2000 exited from the UK, Argentina, and Hong Kong. [16] [21] [29]
In 2001, Wendy's created Vermont-based Scioto Insurance Company to furnish insurance to Wendy's and other affiliates. [30] [31] Scioto owns a subsidiary, Oldemark LLC, which holds Wendy's intellectual property and licenses it back to Wendy's for royalties. [32]
Garden Sensations salads were added in 2002. [33] Wendy's signed a franchise agreement to re-enter the Singapore market in 2009, [20] though that agreement was short-lived; in April 2015, Wendy's once again ceased operation in the country and closed all the restaurants. [34]
On September 29, 2008, the company merged with Triarc Companies Inc., the publicly traded parent company of Arby's; [35] [36] Wendy's headquarters remained in Dublin. Triarc then became known as Wendy's/Arby's Group, and later as the Wendy's Company following the sale of Arby's to Roark Capital Group.
In 2011, Wendy's returned to Japan and Argentina announcing a development agreement for 50 restaurants in the country. [37] [38] It also entered the Russian market for the first time with plans to open 180 restaurants over a 10-year period. However, only three years later, in 2014, Wendy's closed all its restaurants in the country. [39]
In 2013, Wendy's opened the first restaurant in Georgia and made a deal to open 25 restaurants in Georgia and the Republic of Azerbaijan. [40] In September 2014, several pork-based products were introduced to be on sale until early November. These included a standard pulled pork sandwich with slaw and three sauce options, a BBQ Pulled Pork Cheeseburger and cheese fries with pulled pork, cheddar cheese sauce, onions, and barbecue sauce. [41] In May 2015, Wendy's announced they would be expanding into India, with its first outlet located in Gurgaon. [42]
In September 2016, JAE Restaurant Group acquired 97 Wendy's restaurants throughout the South Florida region. [43] JAE Restaurant Group is one of the country's largest franchisee owners. The Group owns 177 Wendy's Restaurants.
Wendy's Co. has been looking to remodel existing stores and upgrade the curb appeal of its locations. They have been doing this by adding fireplaces, more seating options, adding WiFi and flat-screen TVs, and digital menus. [43]
In 2017, the company sold 540 of its restaurants. The divesture was the second step in a three-step action plan to improve the brand. Other steps include new openings and remodeling of existing stores. In 2015, the brand opened 80 new restaurants and remodeled 450 of its existing locations. The brand's goal is to remodel at least 60% of its North American locations by year-end 2020. [44]
In December 2017, Wendy's announced a partnership with DoorDash for food delivery in the U.S. [45]
In October 2019, Wendy's announced that it was returning to the UK market, which it had served from 1980 to 1986, then again from 1992 to 2000. The first of 20 planned restaurants was due to open in 2020 in Stoke-on-Trent, [46] but it was later announced that the first location would be Reading, Berkshire. [47] The Reading restaurant opened on June 2, 2021. [48] Wendy's would open its first drive-thru location in the UK in Colchester in July 2023. [49]
In January 2021, Wendy's announced that after the bankruptcy of franchisee NPC Quality Burgers Inc., half of NPC's outlets would be bought by Flynn Restaurant. [50]
In 2023, Wendy's announced that they would be returning to Australia, with hundreds of locations set to open across the country. The chain previously operated in Australia from the 1970s until it was closed in 1986. However, the US Burger giant has already run into a potential issue with the trademark to Wendy's name already owned by a different fast food outlet named Wendy's Milk Bar, which opened in 1979 and has been operating in the country for over 40 years. [51]
In July 2024, Wendy's announced that they had signed an agreement with franchisees in the Republic of Ireland and would begin opening restaurants there beginning in early 2025, with the agreement stipulating that 30 new restaurants would open across the country over the following 10 years. [52] A few days later, they announced that they will enter the Romanian market, opening 5 restaurants in 2025. [53]
Wendy's offers two different hamburger patties, a "Junior" 1.78-ounce (50 g) patty and a "Single" 4-ounce (110 g) patty. The 4-ounce patties are sold in single, double, and triple configurations, and the 1.78-ounce ones in single and double. The previous size of 2 ounces (57 g) per junior patty was reduced in 2007 to save money. The chain's patties are known for being square instead of round; as more square patties can fit onto a single grill over round. [90] Originally, Wendy's had only two kinds of chicken sandwiches, fried and grilled. The spicy chicken sandwich started out as a promotion. It was later put on the menu full-time in 1996 because of its popularity and its ease of preparation; it used the same condiments as the standard fried chicken sandwich.
The Frescata line of sandwiches also went from being promotional items to main menu items; after going through several revisions, the Turkey and Swiss and the Ham and Swiss were put on the menu full-time. They were discontinued in mid-December 2007. Occasionally, some Wendy's restaurants offer a fried fish sandwich.
In 1988, Wendy's was the first fast-food chain to create a single-price-point "value menu" where all items listed on that menu were priced exclusively at 99¢. That menu was modified in 2007, with prices ranging from 99¢ to $2.00.
Wendy's served breakfast beginning in 1985, but that endeavor proved unsuccessful. [91] In mid-2007, Wendy's started serving breakfast again in its U.S. and some Canadian locations. [92] While approximately 12 Wendy's restaurants in the U.S. and its territories had been serving breakfast since 2006, Wendy's did not have a company-wide breakfast offering until 2020. [92] [93]
The 2007 breakfast menu is different from the ones featured in 1985 and is structured similarly to the lunch/dinner menu, with "value meals" and various sides like blended fruit. [93] Menu items include several breakfast sandwiches served on biscuits, "frescuits", and Kaiser rolls, breakfast burritos, and side orders of hash browns, muffins, and cinnamon sticks. [94] To avoid problems encountered with the 1985 breakfast, the 2007 menu was designed for ease of operation, lower cost, and reduced preparation time. [92]
In January 2016, Wendy's announced a transition plan to serve only cage-free eggs by 2020 in all U.S. and Canadian locations that serve breakfast. [95] [96]
In September 2019, Wendy's announced it would launch a nationwide breakfast menu in March 2020, including a breakfast version of its Baconator, a Frosty-inspired coffee drink, and a honey butter chicken biscuit. [97] That menu includes 19 items. [98] It began offering new a cinnamon roll-like baked good via a partnership with Cinnabon in February 2024, and this came on top of other recent additions like a breakfast burrito that resembled something from Taco Bell and or a sandwich similar to the McMuffin from McDonalds, as CNN reported. [99]
In February 2024, the company announced a plan to explore dynamic pricing, or surge pricing, where the cost of menu items would change throughout the day depending on timing of purchases and restaurant activity, in early 2025. Similar moves have been attempted by AMC Entertainment and Uber. Despite not receiving much attention when first discussed on the company's earnings call, the reaction was largely negative. The company decided against the move later that month and emphasized discounts it offers customers. [100]
In 2015, Wendy's had two food safety incidents involving foreign objects in food at their restaurants in Gurgaon, India. [125]
In late August 2022, 97 people reported getting sick after eating sandwiches containing romaine lettuce at Wendy's restaurants in the U.S. states of Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Kentucky. [126] The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention never could officially identify the specific source of the E. coli outbreak, but Wendy's removed romaine lettuce from the affected restaurants. [127] [128] In October 2022, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared the E. coli outbreak was over, stating that at least 109 people had been impacted. Of those cases, 52 people had been admitted to hospitals and 13 had developed hemolytic uremic syndrome. [129]
This section needs to be updated.(July 2013) |
After successful early growth of the chain, sales flattened as the company struggled to achieve brand differentiation in the highly competitive fast-food market. This situation would turn around in the mid-1980s. Starting on January 9, 1984, elderly actress Clara Peller was featured in the successful "Where's the beef?" North American commercial campaign written by Cliff Freeman. Her famous line quickly entered the American pop culture (it was even used by Walter Mondale in a debate with Gary Hart in the Democratic primary election) and served to promote Wendy's hamburgers. Peller, age 83, was dropped from the campaign in 1985 because she performed in a commercial for Prego spaghetti sauce, saying "I found it, I really found it", [130] a phrase alluding to the beef in the listener's mind.
Peller was soon after replaced by Wendy's founder Dave Thomas himself. Soft-spoken and bashful, the "Dave" ads generally focused on Thomas praising his products and offering a commitment to quality service, although there would occasionally be "wackier" ads as well. Thomas ultimately appeared in more than 800 commercials, more than any other company founder in television history. [131]
After Dave Thomas' death in 2002, Wendy's struggled to find a new advertising campaign. After a round of conventional ads describing the food they serve, in 2004 they tried using a character they made called "Mr. Wendy" who claimed to be the unofficial spokesperson for the chain. These proved to be extremely unsuccessful. After seven months, Wendy's returned to an animated campaign focusing on the difference between Wendy's square hamburgers and the round hamburgers of competitors.
Wendy's marketing arm engages in product placement in films and television and is sometimes seen on ABC's reality show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition , serving food to the more than 100 construction workers.
A 2007 Wendy's commercial featured the tune from the Violent Femmes song "Blister in the Sun". The inclusion of the song in the commercial provoked an internal conflict between members of the Violent Femmes, which resulted in a lawsuit between bassist Brian Ritchie and lead singer Gordon Gano that ultimately led to the band disbanding in 2009 (however, they would reunite in 2013). [132] [133]
With their "That's right" ad campaign, not a success, Wendy's unveiled a new ad campaign, featuring the animated version of their mascot voiced by Luci Christian highlighting certain menu items. The new ad campaign made its debut in late January 2008, with slogans: in the US: "It's waaaay better than fast food. It's Wendy's." and in Canada, "It's waaaay delicious. It's Wendy's." [134] The company's slogan, "you know when it's real", was introduced in 2010.
In November 2010, a series of commercials aired featuring the company's namesake, Wendy Thomas, which marked the first time she had appeared in a Wendy's advertisement. [135] [136] In April 2012, Morgan Smith Goodwin began appearing as the redhead in ads with the slogan "Now that's better." [137] [138] In 2013, social media advertising featuring Nick Lachey directed at millennials promoted the Pretzel Bacon Cheeseburger. [139]
A 2014 campaign to promote the Tuscan Chicken on Ciabatta sandwich entitled L'Estrella de la Toscana (or "Star of Tuscany" in English) was launched on television and social media. [140]
Wendy's has been the target of protests and boycotts by advocates of the Fair Food Program (FFP) in the US due to corporate refusal to join the agricultural worker protection partnership, [149] established in 2011. [150] In 2016, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers began a US-wide boycott of Wendy's to pressure the company to join the FFP, [151] supported by the Student/Farmworker Alliance. [152] A key component of the predecessors to the FFP was commitment by buyers of agricultural products like tomatoes to pay growers a small amount more (such as one penny per pound), to be passed on to their field workers. [153] The FFP provides protections against exploitation to agricultural workers. [150] [a]
In response, Wendy's reported that it began to purchase tomatoes in 2019 solely from growers who use hydroponics and greenhouses to cultivate tomatoes, subject to Wendy's corporate code of conduct for its supply chain. Wendy's policy requires third-party reviews of farm labor practices. [158] [159]
On March 23, 2018, Wendy's released an EP titled We Beefin? , a reference to their 1984 slogan Where's the beef? [160]
On October 3, 2019, Wendy's released a tabletop role-playing game titled Feast of Legends: Rise From the Deep Freeze, [161] [162] in the style of Dungeons & Dragons . A short multi-part adventure was included, pitting Wendy's kingdom against the Ice Jester, a parody of Ronald McDonald, the clown mascot of Wendy's competitor, McDonald's. Critical Role was sponsored for a special event live stream of the game. [163] [164]
A hamburger, or simply a burger, is a dish consisting of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. The patties are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, bacon, or chilis with condiments such as ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish or a "special sauce", often a variation of Thousand Island dressing, and are frequently placed on sesame seed buns. A hamburger patty topped with cheese is called a cheeseburger. Under some definitions, and in some cultures, a burger is considered a sandwich.
A cheeseburger is a hamburger with a slice of melted cheese on top of the meat patty, added near the end of the cooking time. Cheeseburgers can include variations in structure, ingredients and composition. As with other hamburgers, a cheeseburger may include various condiments and other toppings such as lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, bacon, avocado, mushrooms, mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard.
Jack in the Box, Inc. is an American fast-food restaurant chain founded in 1951, by Robert O. Peterson in San Diego, California, where it is headquartered. The chain has over 2,200 locations, primarily serving the West Coast of the United States. Restaurants are also found in large urban areas outside the West Coast, as well as two in Guam. The company also formerly operated the Qdoba Mexican Grill chain until Apollo Global Management bought the chain in December 2017.
The Big King sandwich is one of the major hamburger products sold by the international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King, and was part of its menu for more than twenty years. As of March 2019, it is sold in the United States under its 1997 Big King XL formulation. During its testing phase in 1996–1997, it was originally called the Double Supreme and was configured similarly to the McDonald's Big Mac—including a three-piece roll. It was later reformulated as a more standard double burger during the latter part of product testing in 1997. It was given its current name when the product was formally introduced in September 1997, but maintained the more conventional double cheeseburger format.
Jack's Family Restaurants, LP is an American fast food restaurant chain, headquartered and based in Birmingham. Restaurants feature sit-down dining, drive-thrus and takeout service. The menu features primarily burgers, fried chicken, breakfast and various other fast food items including french fries and soft drinks.
A&W is a fast-food restaurant chain in Canada, franchised by A&W Food Services of Canada, Inc.
The BK Stacker sandwiches are a family of cheeseburgers sold by the international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King.
The Burger King Specialty Burgers are a line of burgers developed by the international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King in 1978 and introduced in 1979 as part of a new product line designed to expand Burger King's menu with more sophisticated, adult oriented fare beyond hamburgers. Additionally, the new line was intended to differentiate the company from other fast food hamburger restaurants at the time. Since the line's introduction, the other burgers have been discontinued, leaving the chicken offering, the Original Chicken Burger, as the primary product left. Additionally, other burgers that utilize the same roll as the chicken burger have been introduced to the company's menu both domestically and internationally since the original product line was introduced.
As far back as the 1970s, international fast food restaurant chain Burger King has attempted to introduce a premium line of burgers. These sandwiches are part of a system which eventually became known as the barbell strategy; a plan designed to expand Burger King's menu with both more sophisticated, adult-oriented fare along with products that are more value-oriented. This program is intended to bring in a larger, more affluent adult audience who will be willing to spend more on the better quality products on one side while maintaining a lower cost value menu dedicated to a more cost-conscious audience on the other. The hope is that the customers would be drawn in initially for the lower prices of the value-menu and upgrade to the more expensive products, upping overall sales.
The Baconator sandwich is a cheeseburger sold by the international fast-food restaurant chain Wendy's.
The Big Classic sandwich was a hamburger sold by the international fast-food restaurant chain Wendy's. The sandwich was intended to present a larger burger that appealed to the 18- to 36-year-old male demographic that desired a "heartier" product. It is one of only two named hamburger products sold by the company and was designed to compete against the Burger King Whopper sandwich.
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of fast food restaurants, serving around 68 million customers daily in 119 countries. McDonald's traces its origins to a 1940 restaurant in San Bernardino, California, United States. After expanding within the United States, McDonald's became an international corporation in 1967, when it opened a location in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. By the end of the 1970s, McDonald's restaurants existed in five of the Earth's seven continents; an African location came in 1992 in Casablanca, Morocco.
A hamburger is a specific type of burger. It is a sandwich that consists of a cooked ground beef meat patty, placed between halves of a sliced bun. Hamburgers are often served with various condiments, such as dill relish (condiment), mayonnaise, and other options including lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and cheese.
Burger King sliders, comprising several varieties of mini-sandwiches, are a series of sandwiches that have been sold by international fast-food restaurant chain Burger King since the 1980s. Burger Bundles was the first iteration, a set of three small hamburgers or cheeseburgers. These sandwiches were eventually replaced with a reformulated product called Burger Buddies that was sold in pairs. After a change in management in 2004, Burger Buddies were re-released as BK Burger Shots. The company has also sold several chicken and breakfast sandwich versions of these products.
The Bacon Deluxe is a bacon-topped hamburger offered at international fast food chain Wendy's. It is Wendy's entry into the premium sandwich category, "something other hamburger chains have used to compete with fast-casual restaurants." Burger King offers the Steakhouse XT Burger and McDonald's has had an Angus Third Pounder. The Bacon Deluxe was launched with an extensive media campaign and priced at $3.99 for a single, $4.99 for a double and $5.99 for a triple, and is being launched alongside another Wendy's bacon sandwich: the Baconator.
The McDouble is a hamburger sold by the fast-food restaurant chain McDonald's. It is a variation on the double cheeseburger, with only one slice of cheese placed between the two beef patties. It was introduced in 1997. It is one of the cheapest products sold by the company, and for this reason is often included in the chain's budget menus. The burger is almost identical to a Double Cheeseburger, except for the extra slice of cheese in the cheeseburger.
The Ciabatta Bacon Cheeseburger is a sandwich marketed and sold by Wendy's at its restaurants in the United States and Canada.
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Wendy's has already tried its luck in Israel. It entered activities in Israel nine years ago through the Blue Square supermarket chain, then managed by Benny Gaon. The chain was operated by the franchise method and reached six branches. [People] in the industry say that the chain failed due to managerial problems and a poor marketing plan. In addition, [Israelis] simply didn't like the product.
The group has a song Fresh that fits in well with the Wendy's theme, Choose fresh. Choose Wendy's.
Earlier this month, Wendy's released a new advertising tagline, "It's Better Here," as part of a campaign that purports to showcase Dublin, Ohio, where it has its headquarters.