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Franchise owners rely on expertise from Huddle House corporate leadership

Atlanta, GA
Sep 13, 2016

The combined franchising experience of our leadership team could span at least a couple of centuries.

CEO Michael Abt helped build Arby’s into the powerhouse it is today.

CFO Tom Cossuto managed Finance and IT for brands including Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell.

And COO Ty Counts has 30 years of experience in the restaurant industry, including his work as Director of Operations for Tim Hortons USA.

That kind of leadership experience makes a difference, particularly at this point in our growth trajectory. As Christina Chambers, Vice President of Franchise Development, told the Huffington Post recently, “Huddle House is in a brand revitalization stage. We are a 52-year-old franchise company that began an entire system remodeling effort 4 years ago. There were definitely growth pains and challenges with franchise owners who could not see the benefit of spending money to remodel their restaurants to an updated design. However, this effort has also turned into a highlight for us, as the owners who did remodel their stores enjoy double digit sales growth and boosted profits. I call that a win-win. The franchisees are making more money, they’re happier, and we get the benefit of their validation for potential owners that Huddle House is a strong brand worthy of investment.

Christina Chambers, VP of Franchise Development

“Another highlight for me is that I get the chance to work with an amazing executive leadership team comprised of really smart people who each have 30+ years of industry experience. We meet once a week to discuss our departmental issues and strategy plans, with everyone providing very open and honest feedback and suggestions. It’s intense and a lot of fun at the same time.”

Experience that matters

Of course, having such a pedigreed Huddle House franchise team wouldn’t mean much if they weren’t so accessible to our franchise owners. Mike Lokhandwala, an experienced food franchise owner, found a striking difference between the responsiveness of our management team compared to other brands.

“From Day One, it was about servant leadership,” Lokhandwala says. “I was able to pick up the phone and talk to Michael, Ty and Tom any time I needed them. They bring in a lot of experience, so I had a list of questions — and they were always available. Besides that, we had several meetings one-on-one, and the access to information was seamless.”

Sean Fatzinger, Director of Food Operations for CEFCO Convenience Stores, which owns several locations in Texas, understands the challenges faced by our team and is impressed with how they respond.

“I have been on the franchisor side before and I understand the need, love and attention that the franchise community needs,” he says. “The leadership team at Huddle House now is very much able to provide that and they really do keep it all top of mind…They have been there for support any time we have asked and they also respect our business savvy and history enough to not push in where they are not needed.”

No matter what the daypart, Huddle House serves any meal, any time to our guests.

More information about Huddle House and its franchise opportunities is available at huddlehousefranchising.com or by calling 1-800-640-7125.

Published on HuddleHouseFranchising.com

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