Fast-food chain Wendy’s is closing 140 stores worldwide by the end of 2024, company executives said on a third-quarter earnings call Thursday.
The closed locations are spread out across the U.S. and abroad, executives indicated.
“I think when you think about strengthening our system, you look at a brand that’s 55 years old and some of those restaurants are quite out of date. And that’s really kind of the punch line on that one. It’s not one particular area,” Wendy’s CEO Kirk Tanner said on the call, as transcribed by financial advice website The Motley Fool.
Net unit growth for 2024 for the fast-food chain will remain flat as a result of the additional closures, Mr. Tanner said. The company has opened about 500 stores over the past two years.
Since some of the closures were “moved up” from 2025, 2026 and 2027, the chain expects an increased rate of unit growth next year, about 3% to 4%.
U.S. sales for Wendy’s have gone up by 1.4% thus far in 2024 to more than $9.3 billion, the company said in a Thursday release of its third-quarter data. International sales have increased by 2.1% to more than $1.4 billion.
In the U.S., the company has added a net total of 19 stores thus far in 2024. There are currently 7,292 Wendy’s locations worldwide, 6,011 of which are located in the U.S.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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