Ecolab Inc. will acquire the U.S. operations of Swisher Hygiene for approximately $40 million in cash.Charlotte, N.C.-based Swisher Hygiene offers a range of products and services for the institutional foodservice industry, including warewashing and foodservice cleaning and sanitizing products and services. Operations included in the purchase agreement generate $176 million in annual sales and have…
David Wightman, considered one of the foodservice equipment industry’s most creative technical minds of the past 20 years, died suddenly on July 29. He was 53. Since 1999, Wightman had served as president and CEO of XDX Innovative Refrigeration, which focuses on improved refrigerant flow properties, heat transfer and thermodynamics to assist customers in driving…
In case you missed the news before we went on vacation, here’s some end-of-summer optimism: Thanks to the strongest foodservice operator market since before the Great Recession and continuing demand in all three of the key domestic markets for equipment and supplies, Foodservice Equipment Reports is forecasting E&S sales at the manufacturer level will grow…
Equipment and supplies manufacturers raised list prices an average 3.3% during the year ended June 30, according to data from AutoQuotes Inc. released during Foodservice Equipment Reports annual President’s Preview E&S Market Forecast meeting held July 28 in Rosemont, Ill. Based on data for more than 407,000 product items from more than 500 manufacturers in…
Restaurant operator concerns about mandated minimum wage increases and other factors is affecting their outlook about the future, according to data from the June Restaurant Performance Index survey fielded by the National Restaurant Association. But those concerns didn’t stop them from buying and planning to buy equipment and supplies. The overall RPI fell a moderate…
Rob Geile, Vice President-Consultant Services for Ali Group North America, has received the Daryl Van Hook Industry Award from the National Association of College & University Food Services. The award is presented annually to an individual and/or organization based on outstanding support to the association. Geile, a NACUFS board member for the 2014-15 term, was…
The combo platter of side-by-side Luby’s Cafeterias and Fuddruckers continues to drive strategic growth for the Houston-based chain, with six co-brands now in operation. Four of seven Cheeseburger in Paradise units slated for conversion to Fuddruckers this year already are completed. And among the six new Fuddruckers openings in fiscal 2015 in domestic and international…
Dallas cannot hold back the home-state ambitions of Golden Chick. The fried-chicken chain, which has 147 locations in Texas, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Georgia, is planning to develop more than 80 franchised QSR locations throughout Houston and Beaumont by 2025. Golden Chick was founded in San Marcos, Texas, in 1967.
Panera Bread Co.’s redesigned stores are paying big dividends. Same-store sales at the St. Louis chain’s company-owned locations climbed 4.7% in the first 27 days of the third quarter, nearly doubling the 2.4% gain in the second quarter. The revamped Panera 2.0 stores are helping, as is a bigger focus on natural ingredients. As of…
In a move aimed at killing parasites, New York City’s sushi restaurants are now required to freeze raw fish before serving. The new health-department regulations fall in line with U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommendations. Restaurants must freeze fish for a minimum of 15 hours before serving it raw to kill the bacteria. Certain types…