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Tag: Quiznos

  • Quiznos Bankruptcy Filed Days After Sbarro

    Quiznos announced Friday the restaurant chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, five days after Sbarro pizza chain did the same.

    The company, known for its toasted sandwiches,  said it agreed to a restructuring plan that will reduce its debt by more than $400 million. It listed liabilities of between $500 million and $1 billion in its bankruptcy petition.

    The Denver-based company also said in a statement that it has lined up $15 million in funding from investors to help keep the business running during bankruptcy.

    The company only owns and operates seven of Quiznos’ 2,100 restaurant locations in the United States and 30 other countries. Most locations are independently owned franchises and will remain open and remain unaffected by the filing, the company said.

    Quiznos CEO Stuart Mathis said the company will take steps to help increase sales and profits for its franchise owners. It will look to reduce food costs, invest in local advertising and, under certain circumstances, offer loans for improvements to its restaurants.

    Quiznos is the second nationwide food outlet to file for bankruptcy protection in a week. Sbarro pizza restaurants filed for its second bankruptcy in three years on Monday.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Quiznos Goes Bankrupt. Is This Really Surprising?

    Fast food chain Quiznos announced on Friday that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware. The news comes within a week of pizza chain Sbarro’s filing bankruptcy papers in Manhattan, N.Y.

    With fast food chains filing for bankruptcy in quick succession, it makes you wonder, “Who’s next?”

    As for Quiznos, their woes are blamed on two separate but not too surprising factors. First is the heavy competition between fast food restaurants in recent years, especially coming out of the recession.

    “It’s survival of the fittest,” said Bob Goldin, executive vice president at Chicago-based restaurant researcher Technomic Inc. “The market is not growing, or it’s barely growing, so the weak players are getting weeded out.”

    Some fast food chains, such as McDonald’s, brilliantly met the challenge of getting customers into their fast food joints through the offering of cheaper food, such as a “dollar menu”.

    Quiznos? Well, their subs weren’t exactly the least expensive fast food items around.

    The Denver-based Quiznos is also have thought to have expanded to at an alarming rate.

    Said Goldin, They had a weak franchisee network.” Goldin also blames the sandwich chain’s woes on having to compete with the “Paneras of the world”.

    Goldin also references the restaurant chain’s main competition in the sandwich and sub realm: Subway. Goldin said that the rival, “came in on the lower end and aggressively promoted themselves as fresh.”

    Being unable to compete with the newer, hungrier companies for younger customers or make itself attractive to more financially cautious, post-recession customers seems to have led to Ouiznos downfall.

    The toasted-sub pioneer must now hope that restructuring itself and the elimination of $400 million of its $500 million debt can help the restaurant chain find a way back. The company says their plan has the support of lenders.

    Quiznos is hoping that a loan for $15 million will enable it to make the restructuring process happen. If this doesn’t work out, the company will likely fade away in a few years time.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Potbelly Sandwiches: Shares Soar After NASDAQ IPO, As Hungry Investors Scramble

    Today was one of the most delicious and mouth watering days for NASDAQ, the world’s second largest stock exchange.

    The NASDAQ OMX Group announced the commencement of stock trading of Potbelly Corporation (ticker symbol:PBPB), a rapidly expanding fast food and sandwich company.

    Potbelly Corporation’s journey began in 1977 on Chicago’s North Side when a young couple who owned an antique shop started serving hot meals to their prospective customers with live music to match. The sandwich business was such a hit that its fame spread far and wide and eventually caught the attention of Bryant Keil, a maverick businessman. Keil bought the original store on Lincoln Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, and began replicating the success across the United States.

    Potbelly’s business has now grown into more than 288 shops (including 7 franchises) across 18 states and even District of Columbia where your local Congressman or Senator can enjoy the warm, delicious sandwiches during government shutdown. In addition, Potbelly is spreading the love with 12 outlets across Middle-East, where American bombs may not be very popular but American sandwiches are a sure hit.

    At 9.15 a.m. today Potbelly’s CEO, Aylwin Lewis, rang the bell in celebration of its IPO at 4 Times Square on 43rd & Broadway in New York. Immediately following the IPO, cash rich and profit hungry investors caused Potbelly’s stock price to more than double, closing at $30.77.

    The IPO raised $105 million — beyond company expectations. In the IPO, 7.5 million shares priced at $14 each were released from the company, while early investors sold about 150,000 shares. In 2012, Potbelly’s net profit was $13.6 million on revenue of $274.9 million.

    “We are pleased to welcome Potbelly Corporation to the NASDAQ OMX family, and we are looking forward to celebrating many milestones with the company and its shareholders,” said Nelson Griggs, Senior Vice President, Corporate Client Group, NASDAQ OMX.

    NASDAQ OMX boasts listing of as many as two-thirds of all public restaurant companies on U.S. exchanges, including Potbelly’s larger competitors such as Noodles & Company [NDLS], Bloomin’ Brands [BLMN] and Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group [DFRG].

    Potbelly wants to be known as that quintessential neighborhood sandwich shop, where mouth watering menu, attractive locally-themed décor and live, local music combine to create a warm, inviting, social atmosphere. Potbelly’s menu includes toasted sandwiches, soups and salads, shakes, malts and smoothies, as well as fresh baked cookies and ice-cream sandwiches prepared daily.

    [images from twitter and yahoo finance]