Former Potbelly CEO Returns as Multi-Unit Operator

Bryant Keil has signed a multi-unit deal with Potbelly that will see him takeover and develop a combination of more than two dozen stores in Maryland. He’s returning to the sandwich shop brand that he founded and where he served as CEO during its early years.

Keil and his son Hampden are set to refranchise 12 existing Potbelly restaurant locations and have exclusive territory rights to seven Maryland counties where they will open 15 new Potbelly shops over the next eight years.

“For nearly three decades, I’ve believed in the strength of the Potbelly brand and the company’s growth potential,” said Keil. “I’m thrilled for this new partnership and the opportunity to open and operate additional shops on the East Coast. I’m especially excited to partner with my son Hampden to develop the market and our family business. He grew up in Potbelly and has significant restaurant experience. We are both very excited to join the system.”

Keil first purchased Potbelly in 1996, when it was a single antique shop serving sandwiches in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. As CEO, he successfully expanded the company to 250 locations by 2008. Today, there are more than 425 Potbelly locations throughout the U.S.