Wingstop Restaurants Inc. (NASDAQ:WING), the award-winning wing concept with more than 1,100 locations globally, today announced that Maurice Cooper has been appointed to the role of Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. Maurice will be responsible for overseeing the chain’s global marketing strategy and execution, and will report to Charlie Morrison, Chairman and CEO of Wingstop.
With more than 15 years of experience, Maurice joins Wingstop as a consumer marketing veteran, and proven leader of some of the world’s most admired brands. Most recently, he served as global vice president of the $12B Holiday Inn Brand Family.
Maurice’s previous background in building brands extends to The Coca-Cola Company where he was a Venture Leader, driving the development and scale of emerging brands such as Honest Tea, Illy Coffee and Zico. He led the Coke Zero brand through one of its most substantial periods of growth, and also served as brand manager for several of the company’s multi-billion dollar, flagship brands including Coca-Cola and Sprite.
“Maurice has a strong track record of success as an award-winning marketer, as well as a business leader dedicated to consumer and franchisee satisfaction,” said Mr. Morrison. “As we continue to rapidly expand our footprint, Maurice will have an instrumental role in building and promoting the Wingstop brand globally.”
“I am thrilled to be joining the Wingstop team at a pivotal time in the company’s growth and to focus on a brand that is well respected for quality, service and flavor around the world,” said Mr. Cooper. “I look forward to collaborating with our leadership, partners and dedicated customer base to help Wingstop become a top ten global restaurant brand.”
Maurice holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Morehouse College and an MBA from the Darden School at the University of Virginia.
Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) operates and franchises more than 1,100 locations across the United States, Mexico, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Colombia. The Wing Experts’ menu features classic and boneless wings with 11 bold, distinctive flavors including Original Hot, Cajun, Atomic, Mild, Spicy Korean Q, Lemon Pepper, Hawaiian, Garlic Parmesan, Hickory Smoked BBQ, Louisiana Rub, and Mango Habanero. Wingstop’s wings are always cooked to order, hand-sauced and tossed and served with a variety of house-made sides including fresh-cut, seasoned fries. Having grown its domestic same store sales for 14 consecutive years, the Company has been ranked #3 on the “Top 100 Fastest Growing Restaurant Chains” by Nation’s Restaurant News (2016), #7 on the “Top 40 Fast Casual Chains” by Restaurant Business (2016), and was named “Best Franchise Deal in North America” by QSR magazine (2014). Wingstop was ranked #88 on Fortune’s 100 Best Medium Workplaces list in October 2016.
