Wendy's Roy Hook and KFC's Mike Harlamert are retiring. Their contributions have been huge.
BEVERAGE-AIR PRESTO SERIESThe Presto Series models operate much like glass-door merchandisers but without traditional doors. The series boasts Smart Flex technology—a wing-like door system that automatically opens when a customer steps close to the case to access product, and then quickly closes after the customer’s made a selection. (There are no handles to pull or…
Creative and innovative work has been recognized with awards from the Association for Healthcare Foodservice. The AHF honors facilities and foodservice directors in five categories ranging from excellent leadership to improved operations and recognition for new managers. Partnership In Leadership Award, demonstrating a strong commitment to self-operation and currently supports the foodservice director or foodservice administrative director: Angela O’Neill,…
A.J. Antunes & Co. has announced a corporate rebranding and has changed its name to Antunes. The name still honors the founder, Augie J. Antunes, while elevating the company’s family values and vision and positioning it for strategic growth. “For more than 60 years, our company has built a reputation for innovative products, industry-leading expertise…
The National Service Cooperative, the nationwide network of companies providing service, repair and maintenance for commercial foodservice equipment, has established its first Advisory Board. The new leadership team will hold its first formal meeting in Chicago on May 20. Six industry executives sit on the Advisory Board: C. Wayne Best, CEO of NSC, and President/Owner-BEST…
A March opening at the San Diego Zoo caps a string of 23 new domestic locations for Nestlé Toll House Café By Chip. The Dallas-based dessert concept recently opened a two additional stores in Canada and eight in the Middle East. Eight new units are currently under construction, with a total of 30 North American…
The artisan pizza chain has kicked off its sixth year in business with 39 new units over last year’s store count; in 2015, it recorded 62% growth, expanding from 63 to 102 units. Already with a footprint in 10 states—Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon and Texas—
Longtime member MAFSI member Joseph Byrne, founder of Byrne & Associates, has died. He was 87. Byrne founded his manufacturer’s rep firm in 1970, and remained an active member of MAFSI until his retirement from the Fairfield, Ohio, company in the late 1990s. Survivors include two sons and three stepchildren. Services have been held. In…
Roy Hook, Manager of Equipment Development at The Wendy’s Co. and a pioneer in quick-service cooking equipment engineering and design, has retired after 35 years with the chain. Over his career, Hook worked closely with a broad spectrum of foodservice equipment manufacturers and vendors. He invented the Dublin, Ohio, chain’s current hamburger cooking system and…
One of the factors that has fueled the growth of foodservice equipment and supplies purchasing during the past year has been dropping food prices at the wholesale level. The Bureau of Labor Statistics and the National Restaurant Association reported another 1.2% decline in March, based on data from the Producer Price Index. It was the…