More than a dozen Wendy’s restaurants were marked for permanent closure this weekend as one of its largest franchisees continues a weeks-long effort to shutter loss-making locations in the wake of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Lawyers for the franchisee, Meritage Hospitality Group, told a bankruptcy court that 13 additional Wendy’s stores would be closed as of Friday, marking the fourth weekend in a row that the embattled fast food operator has instituted rounds of restaurant closures.
The 13 stores slated for closure are located in Florida, Georgia, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Michigan, Massachusetts, and Texas. They add to 20 restaurants that Meritage has closed on previous Fridays since September 25.
At the time of its bankruptcy petition, Michigan-based Meritage operated 314 stores, making it one of the biggest restaurant owners in the Wendy’s system. The company, originally a hotelier, has operated Wendy’s stores since the late 1990s.
Court documents show The Wendy’s Company had moved to terminate Meritage’s franchise agreement before the bankruptcy process began and has since been seeking to exert more control over which locations ultimately remain open.
Reached for comment by Fast Company, a spokesperson for Wendy’s said that it works on a “case-by-case basis” with struggling franchise operators to help determine the best way forward.
“While restaurant decisions occur from time-to-time, our goal is to preserve operations, improve restaurant performance and position the Wendy’s system for sustainable long-term growth,” Wendy’s said via email.
Meritage Hospitality Group has not replied to requests for comment.
Which Wendy’s stores are closing?
According to a new court document, the following locations in seven states were scheduled to be closed on Friday, October 16:
Oklahoma
- 3101 Territory Lane El Reno, OK 73036
- 7716 NW Expressway Oklahoma City, OK 73132
- 200 Shawnee Mall Drive Shawnee, OK 74804
Georgia
- 8455 Roswell Rd. Atlanta, GA 30350
- 165 Scenic Hwy Lawrenceville, GA 30046
- 4234 Highway 29 Lilburn, GA 30047
Michigan
- 1492 US 31 So. Manistee, MI 49960
Texas
- 212 University Ave Lubbock, TX 79415
Florida
- 13928 Bartram Run Drive Jacksonville, FL 32258
Massachusetts
- 1340 Springfield Street Feeding Hills, MA 01030
North Carolina
- 2735 Reynolda Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27106
- 3527 Hillsborough Rd Durham, NC 27705
- 1429 Lewisville-Clemons Rd Clemmons, NC 27012
Since filing for bankruptcy on September 17, Meritage has closed 33 locations. In addition to the 13 stores above, it closed the following locations earlier:
Meritage has described the locations as operating at a loss. The closures were initiated as part of cash collateral agreements with Meritage’s lenders.
The company, which employees around 9,000 people, has not said how many jobs have been impacted by the dramatic reduction of its footprint, which spans 15 states.
Worth noting is that these closures are in addition to roughly 60 restaurants that were shuttered by Meritage before the bankruptcy process began.
Will more Wendy’s stores close?
Additional Wendy’s closures are almost certain to happen.
A court filing last week indicated that Meritage could close as many as 60 underperforming stores in exchange for the use of cash collateral, with rounds of store closures continuing over the next few Fridays through November 13.
This story is developing…