Wendy’s new CEO is fed up with the No.3 burger chain being portrayed as the fallen star of the fast-food industry. In his first interview since being named chief executive last month, Emil Brolick speaks candidly with USA TODAY marketing reporter Bruce Horovitz about his plans to once again make Wendy’s an industry innovator.
Brolick, 63, faces a daunting task: fixing a company with 6,600 locations worldwide that has been rudderless in an ocean of competition since its iconic founder, Dave Thomas, died nearly a decade ago. Wendy’s is hoping its new “Dave’s Hot ‘N Juicy” burger line will help turn things around.
But many say Wendy’s can’t hold a candle to McDonald’s, which grabbed the new-product creativity mantle from Wendy’s years ago. And after churning through a handful of CEOs over the past dozen years, the burning question is: Will this one stick? Brolick, who worked at Wendy’s before leaving years ago to become president at rival Taco Bell and then COO at Taco Bell parent Yum Brands, must stand today before 3,000 Wendy’s franchisees gathered in Las Vegas for their annual convention, and convince them that he’s the right guy.