The Top 500 chain brands grew combined sales 4.9% in 2015, up from 4.2% growth in 2014, reports Technomic Inc., as chains across the concept spectrum reported improved results. Again last year, fast-casual chains recorded robust growth of 11.4%, helping push overall limited-service chain sales to a 5.5% gain. In contrast, full-service concepts posted combined…

Structural problems at several companies, slowing growth in most major international markets and a surprise negative quarter from Middleby Corp. impeded growth at the eight publicly reporting equipment and supplies companies in 2015. The companies’ combined sales rose 3.3% for the year, significantly below 2014’s 5.5% growth and the four-quarter average growth of 4.9% in…

A slight slowdown in growth of the British economy, a somewhat more cautious consumer, and the uncertainties surrounding the referendum on the United Kingdom’s continued membership in the European Union are among the “stones in the road” impacting the foodservice market in the U.K. These factors and others led London-based foodservice research firm Horizons to…

TGI Fridays is seeking millennials (and customers with a millennial-mindset). Earlier this month, the 51-year-old chain opened the doors of a new prototype in Corpus Christi, Texas. Instead of candy-stripe awnings and dark booths, the10,000-sq.-ft. restaurant delivers a brighter, more vibrant interior, with flexible “fluid social zones” where guests can adapt seating and spaces to…

Thomas Moseley, 58, died suddenly March 16 while traveling for business in Saudi Arabia. Moseley was founder and president of The Moseley Group, a Franklin, Mass.-based strategy and design consultancy to multiunit chains. He was a leader in transforming the way restaurants operate today. In the early 1980s, he was among the first to move…

Danu Investment Partners, an Irish company, has acquired Boston-based Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group, which include the upscale steakhouse chain and the 2-year-old Wollensky’s Grill concept. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. New owners Dublin-based Danu first licensed the Smith & Wollensky name for a London restaurant in June 2015. Now, with the acquisition,…

Franke Foodservice Systems has engaged Luciano Delpozzo as Vice President and General Manager of its Solutions business. He will report directly to CEO Thomas Campion and work to accelerate growth opportunities for Franke’s general market products in the foodservice industry, including the Smyrna, Tenn., company’s products in the beverage, sanitation, automation and facilities management categories.…

The Association for Healthcare Foodservice has named David Reeves, Director-Hospitality Services for Edward-Elmhurst Health, as President-Elect of its board of directors.  His term as President-Elect begins in August; he will assume the presidency of the McLean, Va., group in August 2017.  Reeves, who co-chaired last year’s annual conference, has previously served as AHF’s treasurer-elect, and…

A deal to raise California’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022 was reached Monday by Gov. Jerry Brown and state legislators. The deal makes the nation’s largest state the first to lift base earnings to that level. The increase will boost the wages of about 6.5 million California residents, or 43% of the state’s workforce, who earn less than…