Executive Search Success Story: Rebuilding the Executive Team of a 1,400-Unit Restaurant Franchisor to Restore Same-Store Sales Growth

How JRG Partners executed a confidential, multi-role North American executive search strategy that equipped a national quick-service restaurant franchisor with the operating, marketing, development, digital, and supply chain leadership required to reverse declining same-store sales, repair franchisee relationships, and relaunch unit growth.

The Challenge

A national quick-service franchisor had posted eight consecutive quarters of negative same-store sales. Franchisee profitability had fallen, closures outpaced openings, the brand had lost relevance with younger consumers, its digital and loyalty platform lagged competitors, and the franchisee advisory council had publicly expressed no confidence in the executive team. The private equity owner replaced the CEO and mandated a rebuild of the team beneath him. Executive leadership and the sponsor identified several critical vulnerabilities threatening the brand:

• Eight consecutive quarters of negative same-store sales
• Declining franchisee profitability and net unit closures
• A franchisee advisory council with no confidence in the executive team
• Brand marketing that had lost relevance with core and younger consumers
• A digital ordering and loyalty platform well behind category leaders
• Supply chain costs rising faster than franchisees could pass through in pricing

Recognizing that the turnaround required a new executive team the franchisee community would trust, the new CEO and sponsor engaged JRG Partners to recruit a Chief Operating Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Development Officer, Chief Digital Officer, and VP of Supply Chain. The company required an executive search partner with deep restaurant franchising expertise and access to leaders who had led brand turnarounds.

Why They Chose JRG Partners

Restaurant, Hospitality & Foodservice Focus

JRG Partners maintains a dedicated practice serving restaurant, hospitality, and foodservice companies, with deep recruiting expertise across franchisors, multi-unit operators, hotels and resorts, and foodservice distributors and contractors. This focus ensured an immediate understanding of franchisee economics, same-store sales drivers, and the leadership profiles that restore brand momentum.

Brand Turnaround Experience

Our firm has extensive experience recruiting executives who have reversed same-store sales declines and rebuilt franchisee trust at national restaurant brands.

Multi-Role Execution

Our team specializes in running coordinated operations, marketing, development, digital, and supply chain searches in parallel, ensuring leaders are selected as a complementary unit aligned to a single turnaround plan.

Our Executive Search Strategy

Phase 1 — Turnaround Plan Alignment

Our consultants partnered directly with the CEO, sponsor, and franchisee advisory council leadership to review sales trends, franchisee economics, brand research, digital performance, and development pipeline, defining five executive profiles aligned with the turnaround plan.

Phase 2 — Talent Identification & Mapping

Our research team performed an extensive talent mapping initiative targeting operations, marketing, development, digital, and supply chain executives at restaurant franchisors, multi-unit operators, and consumer brands who had led documented turnarounds and growth relaunches. Over 440 executives were systematically assessed across these sectors.

Phase 3 — Candidate Engagement

Priority during outreach was given to leaders with a documented history of restoring same-store sales growth, rebuilding franchisee profitability and trust, modernizing brand marketing, launching competitive digital and loyalty platforms, and reducing system supply chain costs. Only candidates meeting these strict performance baselines advanced.

Phase 4 — Selection Process

Finalists presented turnaround plans to the CEO and sponsor, met with franchisee advisory council leaders, completed structured leadership assessments, and underwent reference verification focused on quantified sales, franchisee, and growth outcomes.

Key Outcomes

• 440+ restaurant and multi-unit executive profiles mapped across North America.
• Successfully placed a synchronized executive tier spanning operations, marketing, development, digital, and supply chain within seven months.
• Returned same-store sales to positive growth within three quarters.
• Grew digital sales from 12% to 29% of system sales.
• Returned the system to net unit growth with 85 openings.
• Saved the system $40M annually in supply chain costs.