A&W Restaurants Names Paul Martino President; Promotion Key to Second Century Growth Strategy

By: A&W Restaurants | 6 Shares 404 Reads

January 03, 2019 // Franchising.com // LEXINGTON, Ky. - As A&W Restaurants prepares to celebrate its centennial, Chief Operating Officer Paul Martino has been given additional duties and named President and Chief Operating Officer for the brand’s U.S. business, according to Chief Executive Kevin Bazner.

Martino has spent more than 20 years with A&W, most recently as COO. He first joined the brand in 1991 and held positions including district supervisor and vice president of Operations. He returned to the brand in 2011 when a group of franchisees acquired A&W from YUM! Brands. In addition to continuing to oversee A&W’s operations, marketing, IT and restaurant support center teams, he will now be responsible for A&W’s U.S. franchise development efforts.

“Since being acquired by our franchisees, A&W has opened more than 60 new U.S. restaurants,” said Bazner. “We are preparing to enter an era of accelerated growth, and Paul’s leadership will be critical to both attracting new franchise partners as well as supporting those currently in the system.”

Late last year, A&W restructured its franchise development department, adding veteran franchise sales executive Dave Crowley as director of Franchise Recruitment.

“A&W’s future is bright. The brand has name recognition, a positive growth trajectory and a solid leadership team in place. We’ve all got a long history with A&W, and we’re committed to growing this great brand,” said Martino. “As COO, my focus has been on helping our franchise partners build profitable sales. I’m very excited to now also be working to expand the A&W system.”

America’s first chain restaurant, A&W poured its first mug of frosty root beer at a parade honoring World War 1 veterans in Lodi, California, in 1919. Today, there are nearly 1,000 restaurants worldwide, with more than 630 in the U.S.

America’s first and oldest restaurant chain, A&W Restaurants ranks #4 on Time Magazine’s 2018 list of America’s best fast-food chains. It still makes Root Beer fresh in each restaurant from real cane sugar, water and a proprietary blend of herbs, bark, spices and berries that are served in a frosty mug alongside burgers, fries, chicken tenders and other All American Food® favorites. There are nearly 1,000 locations worldwide.

SOURCE A&W Restaurants

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