At a Glance
- Founded: 1972
- Locations: 6,541
- Initial Investment: $ 845K - 1,600K
- Headquarters: Dublin, OH
- Category: Burgers Fast Food Food and Restaurant
Wendy’s is the third biggest fast food restaurant chain in the world with close to 7,000 locations, although its sales puts the brand at number two in the world. Wendy’s main draw is its “old fashioned” hamburgers, which are square in shape and made of fresh ground beef (unlike the frozen patties of Wendy’s main competitors). The restaurant’s most popular ad campaign “Where’s the Beef?” originated in the 1980s and has resurfaced in the past year to emphasize the quality and size of the meat. In addition to burgers, Wendy’s also offers up chicken sandwiches, French fries, salads, and desserts like the ice cream-based Frosty.
In 1969, Dave Thomas founded Wendy’s with a vision of owning the best restaurant in the world. He built Wendy’s with a focus on quality: fresh, never frozen beef, fresh ingredients, a friendly and inviting atmosphere, and delicious food at an affordable price. By partnering with the best suppliers in the business, we can serve fresh food every day that provides a unique restaurant experience for our customers. We are proud that nearly 50 years later, we are still guided by Dave’s vision and core values and continue to run the company like a family business.
It’s an exciting time to join and grow with The Wendy’s Company. Dave Thomas opened the first Wendy’s® restaurant in 1969 and we continue to follow his sound principles to ensure we build upon our position as a quality leader in the Quick Service Restaurant (“QSR”) industry.
Wendy’s strength is due to our:
Wendy's is actively pursuing prospective franchisees who:
Operations
Franchisees receive on-going direct support from our skilled operators at the field level. We strive for A-level operations at every restaurant and provide the tools, resources and training to achieve superior customer service levels while maintaining restaurant level profit margins.
Training
Initial and on-going manager and crew level training programs focus on what is needed to provide Wendy’s “A Cut Above” total customer experience as well as providing management training on various business skills.
Marketing
We engage in multiple national media platforms throughout the year combined with local field marketing programs to provide a balanced marketing strategy that supports your market’s needs.
Engineering & Real Estate
Varying levels from coaching to ‘hands on’ support options are available from our professional real estate and engineering teams who can assist with restaurant development including site selection, site layout, designs and initial and on-going construction services.
Supply Chain Co-op
As a franchisee you will become a member of the Wendy’s independent Quality Supply Chain Cooperative who works with leading suppliers to provide Wendy’s restaurants with products and services that offer quality, consistency and value.
Quality Assurance
The quality assurance department ensures that Wendy’s maintains a high level of food safety and quality standards through a rigorous on-going product and restaurant inspection process.
Information Technology
Wendy’s seeks to provide an innovative customer experience through the use of the latest technology such as digital services and mobile ordering/ payment options as well as assistance for the franchisee with ordering and reporting programs through a restaurant back office system.
Franchise Development
A highly dedicated franchise team fosters strong relationships working closely with franchisees on the administrative side of various contract matters such as the development of new restaurants, reimaging of existing restaurants, renewals, contract compliance and financial issues.
Government Relations
The government relations team identifies issues of importance to Wendy’s and then works to communicate our point of view to Members of Congress and other government officials to ensure our issues are clearly understood. Wendy’s PAC (Political Action Committee) is among one on the largest and most active in our industry.
Franchise Advisory Council
Wendy’s senior leadership team values their relationship with the Franchise Advisory Council, elected by the franchisees, working closely with them on new initiatives as well as addressing concerns from the franchise community.