Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRGI) the parent-owner of the Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana brands, has named industry veteran John Todd as its Chief Development Officer. Todd, who will report to Fiesta Restaurant CEO Tim Taft, will be responsible for all facets of Fiesta’s real estate and development, including site selection, design and construction of new restaurants and the upgrading and re-imaging of existing facilities. In addition, he will work with Taft on various franchise initiatives.
“The addition of John to this management team demonstrates our commitment to grow these two brands. John brings a track record of successfully executing national development strategies and is well prepared to lead this critical part of our business as we accelerate the pace of our development and venture into new market areas. His skill set, work ethic and enthusiasm make him a perfect fit for our organization and he will bring a new level of real estate and development discipline to Fiesta,” Taft said.
Todd has spent nearly 20 years in real estate and development with RTM Restaurant Group and later its parent company, Arby’s, where he most recently served as that brand’s Chief Development Officer. He has been responsible for market planning & penetration, franchise recruitment & development, construction, real estate acquisition, brand image design, remodels and capital investment planning. Taft emphasized that the refined site selection criteria developed for Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana is intended to position both as more general market brands. “The brands are operating from a position of strength. We are experiencing solid comparable store sales gains and we have proven that our concepts translate outside our traditional operating footprint as evidenced by the success of our new Pollo Tropical restaurants in Atlanta and Jacksonville,” he said.
“John has a strong reputation for partnering business development with operations and finance to develop productive cross-enterprise alliances. As we move forward with our new development strategy, John will be charged with examining all elements of our development processes so we can maximize profitability and expand both efficiently and strategically,” Taft concluded.
Commenting on his appointment, Todd said, “I’m excited to be a part of this dynamic team that is being assembled. What attracted me to Fiesta was the unique differentiation of these brands and their enormous upside potential. I look forward to being a part of their future.”
Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. owns and operates the Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana restaurant brands with 243 company-owned and operated restaurants and 38 franchised restaurants in the U.S., Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Cost Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Trinidad and Venezuela. The brands specialize in the operation of fast-casual, ethnic restaurant brands that offer distinct and unique flavors with a broad appeal at a compelling value. Both brands feature made-from-scratch cooking, fresh salsa bars, and drive-thru service and catering. Fiesta common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol FRGI. For more information about Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. visit the company’s website at www.frgi.com.
