QDI Marks Major Milestone With Florida BURGER KINGs

What does brand commitment mean to you? Is it a clean restaurant? Crisp uniforms? Believing in the product you sell? Fast and accurate service? Superior landscaping? Any successful franchisee will likely tell you brand commitment, in the BURGER KING® world, is all those things and a lot more.

Quality Dining Inc. (QDI) has embodied its commitment to the brand as the company completed its 100th remodel or new store build project in Florida with the opening of BURGER KING No. 29690 in Lake City.

In late 2012, Quality Dining acquired 55 BK® restaurants in the greater Tampa/St. Petersburg market from Burger King Corp. This market was ripe for a major turnaround in performance. Leveraging the strength of its legacy BURGER KING restaurant portfolio as well as the significant resources of its headquarters team, QDI charted a course to dramatically improve the acquired restaurants with operational and image improvements and the significant building of new units.

Along the way, QDI purchased other franchisees’ units in Gainesville, Cocoa Beach and in the southeast market near Fort Myers and Naples, Florida. QDI now operates 111 BK restaurants in Florida.

“It’s likely obvious, but we made a substantial bet on our Florida business and the brand. The rationale and formula were relatively straightforward – remodel the existing units at a high level, install double drive-thru and change the culture to entirely be guest-centric,” said Dan Fitzpatrick, chairman and CEO of QDI. “The bet has certainly paid off. Our AUVs are more than 25% above national average, and in every one of the 100 projects we have completed, our image is not only competitive, but equal to or better than all the other players in the respective trade area.”

It is obvious that it takes a sizeable team and resources to deliver on QDI’s commitment.

“Although it is my job to lead our team of great operators, I am benefitted by having abundant resources throughout our organization. Our development and construction team are first-rate professionals. Our internal support groups in marketing, information technology, human resources, accounting and finance are all plugged into what I call our Florida machine,” said CJ Fitzpatrick, senior vice president and director of operations.

QDI isn’t finished yet, as it has approximately 18 projects scheduled for completion over the next 18 to 24 months.

“Internally we often say, ‘The best is yet to come,’” CJ Fitzpatrick said. “A few years ago, we elected to exclusively scrape and rebuild all restaurants going forward as the returns have been so substantial. We expect minimum sales upticks of 30% while our recent results have delivered a 50% positive sales impact.”

“One thing is clear; the underlying strength of the BURGER KING brand is real,” added Jen Tyler, vice president of development and construction at QDI. “Our guests appreciate great facilities which, along with our in-store teams, deliver a great experience for our guests.”

One hundred major remodels and new restaurants in less than 10 years is a noteworthy achievement anywhere within the BK system. “What our team has done has been gratifying and a source of pride for everyone at QDI,” said Dan Fitzpatrick. “Personally, I could not be more proud of what my team has done and what they do every single day.”

By the way, project No. 101 is BURGER KING No. 7519 in Naples, Florida – a freshly scraped and rebuilt restaurant that opened in mid-February.