Wendy's Celebrates Anniversary of "Own Your Opportunity" Franchise Recruiting Initiative

Company Continues Supercharging Recruiting and New Restaurant Development Across the Globe

DUBLIN, Ohio, March 21, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- This Women's History Month, Wendy's® celebrates the one-year anniversary of its Own Your Opportunity franchise recruiting initiative, which creates pathways for all entrepreneurs who want to grow with the Wendy's family through franchising. Through the initiative, Wendy's has received significant interest from prospective franchisees and nearly doubled the number of new franchisees entering the system in 2022 compared to the prior year. The number of approved franchisees in 2022 represents approximately 10% of Wendy's total franchise base. 

Wendy's has aggressive plans to grow globally, and recently announced its intention to recruit new franchisees to build and operate restaurants in Australia, Ireland, Mexico, and Spain. The brand's expansion will be largely driven by the recruitment of growth-minded franchisees and traditional new restaurant builds. To fuel development efforts in the U.S. and Canada, the Company created a $100 million Build-to-Suit development fund where Wendy's secures and builds restaurants in underdeveloped trade areas and hands over turnkey solutions to franchisees.

"2022 was marked by the highest accelerated global growth for the Wendy's brand in nearly 20 years," said Wendy's President, International & Chief Development Officer Abigail Pringle. "This year, guided by our strategic priorities and a clear roadmap, we continue to aggressively increase our global restaurant footprint, supercharge franchise recruiting, and lean into our innovative restaurant designs to accelerate growth."

Wendy's new unit growth will be supported by Global Next Gen, the brand's recently unveiled global restaurant design standard for enhanced customer, crew and digital experiences. Starting this year, Wendy's new restaurant builds will feature a sleek and modern design with an optimized layout and next-generation technology to deliver more Wendy's to more people with an emphasis on convenience, speed, and accuracy. This year, the Company and its franchisees will open new Global Next Gen restaurants across the globe, from Ohio to British Columbia to the Philippines and more.

"There's never been a better time to join the Wendy's family," said Pringle. "We are committed to significantly growing our restaurant footprint globally, and we have strong momentum fueling our progress towards becoming the world's most thriving and beloved restaurant brand."

Wendy's is seeking new single-unit and multi-unit operators who share our vision to help us grow our restaurant presence in the U.S. and worldwide. For more information on Wendy's franchise opportunities, please visit www.wendys.com/franchising.

About Wendy's
Wendy's® was founded in 1969 by Dave Thomas in Columbus, Ohio. Dave built his business on the premise, "Quality is our Recipe®," which remains the guidepost of the Wendy's system. Wendy's is best known for its made-to-order square hamburgers, using fresh, never frozen beef*, freshly-prepared salads, and other signature items like chili, baked potatoes and the Frosty® dessert. The Wendy's Company (Nasdaq: WEN) is committed to doing the right thing and making a positive difference in the lives of others. This is most visible through the Company's support of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption® and its signature Wendy's Wonderful Kids® program, which seeks to find a loving, forever home for every child waiting to be adopted from the North American foster care system. Today, Wendy's and its franchisees employ hundreds of thousands of people across approximately 7,000 restaurants worldwide with a vision of becoming the world's most thriving and beloved restaurant brand. For details on franchising, connect with us at www.wendys.com/franchising. Visit www.wendys.com and www.squaredealblog.com more information and connect with us on Twitter and Instagram using @wendys, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/wendys.

*Fresh beef available in the contiguous U.S., Alaska, and Canada.

SOURCE The Wendy's Company