So first off, apologies for the sensational subject line.....but now that we have your attention, anyone REALLY think this is possible? This showed up in my news feed today and I was interested enough to scan through it, despite the clear lack of hard facts. https://explore.simpli.com/these-restaurant-chains-are-on-the-brink-of-disappearing-entirely Bojangles' Bojangles' was once one of the most popular restaurant chains in the country. Today, they remain mostly in North and South Carolina as there is where chicken and biscuit love remains strong. The chain closed most of its locations in Virginia, Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Photo Courtesy: @Bojangles/Twitter They are currently owned by the Jordan Company and Durational Capital Management, who are trying to implement changes to bring in new patrons. Sadly, even with the changes, it looks like they are going to be forced to shut the whole thing down. If this does come to pass, I'd like to go on the record that it won't be due to my lack of support over the years!
I agree, but if they go I hope more Popeye's come along. Hopefully this covid mess will be done by 2022.
The individual stores do not reflect the financial status of the parent company or even the division of that store.
From 2018: https://www.qsrmagazine.com/fast-food/bojangles-could-close-stores-turnaround-efforts Bojangles’ Could Close Stores in Turnaround Efforts The chicken chain is investing in tech and value differentiation in 2018—under a new (old) CEO. FAST FOOD | MARCH 2018 | TREVOR LENZMEIER BOJANGLES' The brand's BojAngler promotion featuring the brand’s Alaskan Pollock fish fillet was a hit. It’s been a rollercoaster week for Charlotte, North Carolina–based Bojangles’. The popular, 764-unit Southern brand, known for its chicken and biscuits—and ranked No. 28 on the QSR Top 50—released earnings for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017 this week. Stocks tumbled Tuesday, only to bounce back Wednesday and continue the rally midday Thursday to the chain’s highest value this calendar year at $14.35. And there was also the news that CEO Clifton Rutledge abruptly left the company on Monday for personal reasons. Former CEO and current board member James “Randy” Kibler was named interim CEO and led the company’s earnings call on Tuesday, recounting a somewhat turbulent year for Bojangles’. Like many American restaurants reporting earnings for the fourth quarter, income statistics were obscured by recent tax legislation. Bojangles’ received a deferred income tax benefit of $40.1 million, or $1.04 per diluted share, related to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Beyond a tax bump, the numbers weren’t forgiving. System-wide sales were down in both franchised and company-ran units, totaling a 3.1 percent decrease in same-store sales compared to the final quarter in 2016. Year-over-year, comparable sales slumped 2.1 percent compared to 2016. Adjusted net income was $8.7 million during the quarter, nearly $2 million less than the final quarter in 2016. The brand’s adjusted diluted net income per share figure was down a nickel as well to 23 cents. Bojangles’ added 15 locations during the fourth quarter, bringing the year’s total to 52 new restaurants system-wide, split evenly between franchised and company-operated stores. Four company-operated restaurants closed last year, although three were relocation efforts. An additional six units were refranchised by Bojangles’. These latest stores were designed to test a new, sleeker prototype for Bojangles’ stores aimed at modernizing the classic restaurant. Since 2016, some Bojangles’ have undergone remodeling efforts to equip the units with WiFi and phone-charging stations, plus tables designed for communal dining. Unfortunately, sales don’t seem to be responding to the remodeled locations. In the earnings call on Tuesday, CFO John Jordan laid out the company’s four-pronged plan for progress heading into the 2018 fiscal year.
https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article216756960.html Bojangles’ is closing restaurants and dropping some menu items. Is a sale next? BY KATHERINE PERALTA AUGUST 17, 2018 02:23 PM, UPDATED AUGUST 21, 2018 07:50 AM An ownership change at Bojangles’ would come as the local chain is still looking to replace its CEO. Clifton Rutledge, a former executive at Texas-based Whataburger, stepped down abruptly in March after about four years as Bojangles’ CEO. Earlier this month, Bojangles’ reported that its quarterly profit had slumped over 71 percent. In an effort to improve the chain’s financial health, executives laid out a number of initiatives, including closing underperforming restaurants, eliminating unpopular menu items and re-examining the company’s expansion plans.
https://www.investors.com/news/merger-news-restaurant-stocks-bojangles-buyout/ This Buyout Wave Continues Unabated Amid Tough Competition 04:03 PM ET 11/06/2018 Southern-themed restaurant chain Bojangles (BOJA) on Tuesday said it had agreed to be taken private for $16.10 a share, the latest merger news to hit a restaurant industry facing stiff competition. Bojangles said it would be bought in an all-cash transaction, which would total about $594 million, by the investment firms Durational Capital Management and the Jordan Co. The chain's board of directors has approved the acquisition. The deal awaits shareholder approval. Bojangles expects the deal to close in the first quarter of next year. Bojangles, whose menu is heavy on biscuits and Cajun spice, has struggled to keep up in a fast-food restaurant industry that has bombarded customers with value deals. Stephens analyst Will Slabaugh, in a research report on Monday, noted that Bojangles' has reported six straight quarters of same-store sales declines. In September, Reuters reported that Bojangles was exploring "strategic alternatives," among them a potential sale. "We are confident that this agreement offers a promising opportunity to realize the highest value for our stockholders while providing a strong path forward for the Bojangles' brand, its employees, franchisees, and loyal customers," William Kussell, Bojangles' nonexecutive chairman, said in a statement.
Pre-Covid Bojangles was in trouble, shutting stores and selling itself, which means it was not in good shape going into the Covid impact and a candidate for total collapse as a result.
SMH....never would have guessed this by the traffic I see at local locations. Wonder if their sales might have actually picked up due to COVID forcing dining business to drive thru access rather than in dining rooms.
The major fast food companies have fared better, but who knows since they were suffering same store losses before the pandemic. Depending on how the money was raised for the purchase it might be possible to contract farther into the better business areas, but the corporate overhead is a big factor.
One thing, the margins for the food industry are thin, so it does take a pretty substantial number of sales to cover the base overhead. I know this from the franchise and individual food business owners I have known, but I do not know how that margin applies to the corporate levels.
Depending on location, some fast food places have 20-30+ cars waiting at the drive thrus at lunchtime. McD's and Bojangles are definitely the highest at 40/42 and 70/shotwell/amelia church areas. And don't even try to go to Chic-fil-a at White Oak at lunch time.
someone keeps posting company info from 2018. where is current company info? all bo locations have lines out on the highway around here. customers are not returning to inside dining. i wish they would add a good fish and chips item to my bo location. ps i miss the old 40/42 discussion board.
The purchase discussed at the end of 2018 took the company private, so there are no data since. Private companies do not make public statements on earnings, etc., because no public stock is being traded. The fact they were in such bad shape as a company when they were sold before the pandemic does not bode well. The investment of large amounts of money requires a reasonable return, which is overhead for the entire company regardless of the business of the particular locations. Although the same store sales dropped for six consecutive quarters (1.5 years) before the sale some locations may not have dropped, but the company as a whole was losing sales.
A couple of closing notices from last year .... Economic hits: Bojangles’, Speedway close in Radcliff JEFF D’ALESSIO The News-Enterprise Nov 20, 2019 Updated Nov 20, 2019 Bojangles' to close Kanawha, Cabell stores By Fred Pace The Herald-Dispatch Aug 12, 2019 Four Bojangles' restaurants in West Virginia will close, according to a company spokesperson.
You do realize that "your" Bo location is strongly connected to what happens to the parent company, right? If the parent company shuts down because it is not profitable all of the locations are affected even if they are not a company owned franchise.
Client canceled at last minute so I decided to eat at the original Nashville Hot Chicken joint while in Nashville area, the original Prince's Hot Chicken location closed, but the chicken is still as HOT snd tasty as it was 20 years ago!
