Good, Bad, and Other News! – November 2021

Welcome back to our monthly franchise news roundup. Here comes winter and the holiday season. But with many people spending more time indoors in the coming months, fears of a new wave of Covid may be right around the corner, “just when you thought it was safe.” Yet, with booster shots and increased awareness, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself – and the anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers. But as we always say, and history has proven: franchising carries on with growth and expansion, despite all.

Here’s your chance to follow the leaders, every third Tuesday of the month! And if you’re not doing it already, send us your good (and other) news here!

POST-COVID – REOPENING & RECOVERY

Study Finds NYC’s Vaccine Mandate Has Been a Disaster for Restaurants

Proof of Vaccination Mandates Begins for Restaurants & Bars in Los Angeles 

5 Key Retail Trends for 2022 (Forrester)

National Retail Federation Predicts Highest Holiday Sales on Record

Is Co-Branding Making a Comeback in Restaurant Franchising?

Drive-Thru Continues To Pace QSR Recovery

Sweetgreen’s Newest NYC Location Will Have No Indoor Dining

Legendary Restaurant Brands Partners with Franklin Junction To Accelerate Asia-Pacific Growth

HIRING & EMPLOYMENT

MFHA Seeks Participants for Online Labor Shortage Survey

Nearly 2 in 3 Women Who Left the Workforce During Covid Plan To Return, But Differently

Starbucks Boosts Rewards for Patrons, Workers in Tight Labor Market

Raising Cane’s Raise Hourly Wages to an Average of $14

DOL Reinstates Limits on Use of Tip Credit, Starting Dec. 28

FINANCE/M&A

RBI To Acquire Firehouse Subs for $1 Billion Cash

Panera Brands To Go Public & Merge with Danny Meyer SPAC

250+ Unit Taco Bell Franchisee Pacific Bells Acquired by Orangewood Partners

A Look Inside Fat Brands’ $130 Million Fazoli’s Acquisition

INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION

Church’s Texas Chicken To Open 40 More Restaurants in Canada in 2022

Nathan’s Famous Expands to Saudi Arabia

Subway Inks Massive10-Year, 2,000-Unit Deal in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh

LEADERSHIP

Spanx CEO Surprises Employees with 2 First-Class Plane Tickets and $10,000

LEGAL

NLRB General Counsel Signals Stronger Enforcement Actions Against Employers

OPERATIONS

McDonald’s Is Renegotiating Its Deals with Delivery Providers

Drive-Thru Continues To Pace QSR Recovery

FRANCHISING CARES

Papa John’s Shaq-a-Roni Pizza with a Purpose Raises More than $3 Million

MARKETING/CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Kroger’s Supermarkets New Service Offers Its First-Party Data to Advertisers

B2C Brands Are Investing in Social Commerce – and Succeeding (Study)

Loyalty Members’ Checks in 2020 Were 6% More than Non-Members’ (Paytronix)

Instagram Adds New Data Analytics To Provide More Performance Insight for Marketers

TECHNOLOGY

Digital Sales Grow at Yum Brands, Accounting for Nearly 40% of Q3 Sales

C3 Launches Robot Delivery in Los Angeles Using Bots from Coco

REAL ESTATE

East Coast Wings + Grill Develops Fast Casual Model for New Market Franchise Expansion

$21.31: Average Retail Asking Rent Rises for 3rd Consecutive Quarter

PEOPLE & MILESTONES

Dave’s Hot Chicken Promotes Jim Bitticks to President and COO

Zaxby’s Names Bernard Acoca CEO; CEO & Co-Founder Zach McLeroy Moves to Chairman