Continued Same-Store Sales Growth and Guest-Embraced New Product Introductions Highlight Past Year
Wetzel’s Pretzels, the innovator in the fresh-baked pretzel category, today announced highlights and financial results for its fiscal year ending December 27, 2015, along with its outlook for fiscal year 2016. With a variety of multi-unit agreements in place and the opening of the company’s first Manhattan location, Wetzel’s Pretzels will push its domestic store count past 300 by end the end of 2016.
2015 Highlights:
- Achieved comparable same-store sales increases of 5.2%
- Q4 marked the eighth straight consecutive quarter of same-store sales growth
- Continued non-traditional unit growth, including the opening of Wetzel’s at multiple Walmart locations, and transit stations, building on the success of the company’s location at Los Angeles’ Union Station
- Opened 21 units, expanding its national footprint to 28 states
- Launched Pizza Bitz, one of the most successful new product introductions in company history, which accounted for up to 10% of net sales system-wide
- Lowered cost of goods sold (COGS) by nearly 2 percentage points
2016 Outlook:
- The opening of the Wetzel’s first Manhattan location in Fulton Center, near Wall Street. Daily foot traffic is expected to average 300,000 people
- The opening of four additional Walmart locations
- Expansion across Texas, Illinois, Tampa and Orlando via multi-unit developer programs
“Wetzel’s Pretzels continues to be a leading player in the quick service restaurant category thanks to our focus on franchise profitability, securing of great real estate and creation of fresh products which our guests love,” said Bill Phelps, co-founder and CEO of Wetzel’s Pretzels. “We’re looking forward to building on the success of 2015 and continuing to provide the best-tasting fresh pretzels to guests across the country.”
Armed with a vision and a tasty recipe for soft pretzel perfection, Bill Phelps and Rick Wetzel opened the first Wetzel’s Pretzels bakery in Redondo Beach, Calif., in 1994. Long lines of hungry customers soon formed, attracted by mouth-watering soft pretzels that were hand-rolled, baked fresh and served hot from the oven. As word spread about these golden-on-the-outside pretzels, the company added additional offerings to its menu. Today, Wetzel’s Pretzels has grown to more than 300 fresh bakeries across the United States and around the world, including premier locations at Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort. Every Wetzel’s Pretzels bakery adheres to the original vision of its founders; that each super-premium pretzel will be crafted from fresh dough and baked in-store consistently throughout the day, to ensure a delicious offering for each consumer, regardless of when the craving for a pretzel strikes. For additional information on Wetzel’s Pretzels or franchise opportunities, please visit the website, call (626) 432-6900, “Like” them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter and Instagram.
