51 stories · last 7 days by relevance
Loyalty programs alone are insufficient to boost visit frequency at QSRs; making loyalty interactions more relevant to individual customers is needed to drive repeat visits.
KFC Global appointed Amy Ellis Durini as Chief Brand Officer in a newly created role, reporting to CEO Scott Mezvinsky starting November 2026, to lead global brand strategy and loyalty initiatives.
McDonald's divested from a majority stake in a restaurant chain, a decision the source characterizes as potentially costly to the company.
Yum Brands completed the sale of Pizza Hut to private equity firm LongRange Capital and Yum China in two separate transactions valued at $2.7 billion total.
7 Brew has made a $143 million offer to acquire 73 Salad and Go locations in bankruptcy, outbidding Dutch Bros for the assets.
Chipotle opened its first Asian location in Seoul through a joint venture with Sangmidang Holdings, signaling a strategic test market for potential further regional expansion.
Red Lobster closed 160 restaurants following its bankruptcy filing, signaling continued consolidation pressure in the casual dining segment as operators navigate cost and debt challenges.
PAR Technology launched Guest360, a guest data platform that tracks restaurant customers across transactions regardless of loyalty program enrollment, designed to work with its existing Punchh loyalty
McDonald's loyalty program collects granular customer data including visit frequency predictions and churn scores, illustrating how QSR operators now build detailed behavioral profiles that extend wel
Burger King is running a weeklong promotional series for Royal Perks members from September 14–20, anchored around National Cheeseburger Day with daily deals including a free Rodeo Burger and buy-one-
Minor Food and Serruya Private Equity have completed their acquisition of Bonchon, the Korean fried chicken chain.
Denny's launched a Fall Fest Menu nationwide featuring autumn-themed dishes with apple and pumpkin offerings.
Panera modified its rewards program structure, signaling an effort to deepen customer retention through revised earning mechanics.
Yum Brands has acquired Pizza King, a 1980s-era pizza chain, signaling a shift toward building a leaner, faster-growing portfolio.
Jollibee listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange, expanding its capital-raising options as the Philippine chain pursues international growth.
Canadian Tire and Tim Hortons have launched a partnership to enhance their loyalty programs.
SURMOUNT advised Pulse Restaurant Group on its acquisition of 50 Popeyes locations, expanding Pulse's footprint in the chicken-sandwich segment.
Haidilao has adopted Infobip's data-driven personalization platform to enhance its global loyalty program, suggesting the chain is investing in customer retention tools as it expands internationally.
Fast Casual Executive Summit (Oct. 4-6 in Arlington, Texas) will explore how integrating fragmented tech systems into a unified customer view can improve returns for fast casual brands.
McDonald's is testing whether international markets can sustain growth through value deals, menu innovation, and loyalty initiatives despite ongoing consumer pressure.
Farmer Boys is discounting its Big Cheese cheeseburger to $3.99 for rewards members on National Cheeseburger Day, a promotional move that signals chains are using calendar-driven occasions to drive lo
Loyalty programs are increasingly serving as data collection tools rather than purely transactional offers, enabling restaurants to build first-party customer insights.
Pizza Hut closed hundreds of locations last year amid a transition in ownership.
Major QSR's first-ever loyalty program represents a late-to-market entrant entering a table-stakes competitive battleground with 100+ units expected.
A Stamford-based equity firm has completed a $1.5 billion acquisition of a major pizza restaurant chain.
Capriotti's is running a month-long promotional campaign in September offering weekly deals to rewards members, part of its 50th anniversary marketing push.
Wendy's promoted a new CMO, Pizza Hut separated from Yum Brands, and independent restaurants have seen sales growth, according to a debate between industry analysts.
Over half of Americans support rounding up purchases for charity, signaling potential for QSRs to mobilize customer bases for fundraising tied to education, hunger, and disaster relief causes.
Yum! Brands completed the sale of Pizza Hut U.S. to LongRange Capital for approximately $1.5 billion, marking the brand's first new ownership since 1977.
The Points Guy compared loyalty programs across three major coffee chains, assessing their relative value and benefits for customers.
A pub restaurant chain is closing all 89 of its locations today.
Jersey Mike's stock price reached a new low on the NYSE, though the source provides no detail on the cause or timing of the decline.
An e-commerce risk expert has identified fraud as a significant vulnerability in restaurant loyalty programs.
QSR Magazine reports that value incentives are undermining restaurant loyalty programs, suggesting operators may need to reconsider how discounts and deals interact with program retention strategies.
Dillas Quesadillas is running loyalty-program promotions tied to National Queso Day and National Quesadilla Day across its 11 Texas and Louisiana locations.
Bloom Intelligence reports that high-frequency restaurant guests (10+ visits) represent 2.7% of typical guestbooks, suggesting modern segmentation strategies now layer behavioral signals beyond tradit
A major global pizza chain has been officially sold for $2.7 billion.
Pokeworks is running September-long promotions including tiered bonus points for loyalty members and Labor Day offers, signaling continued focus on member engagement and seasonal traffic drivers.
Restaurant operators are increasingly shifting focus from transaction-based metrics like cover counts to guest lifetime value, suggesting a broader industry move toward understanding and retaining ind
Following Salad and Go's bankruptcy, two major coffee chains are competing to acquire its vacant locations.
Smashburger renewed its Arizona State University athletics sponsorship for a third consecutive year, expanding its presence at game-day activations.
Regional pizza brand acquiring competitor locations — notable only if Riko's signals a rollup strategy relevant to larger chains.
Case study of a regional chain's loyalty marketing leadership — useful for peer benchmark, but limited to vendor audience context.
Vendor-published loyalty ROI data claims high returns, but lacks named restaurant customer case studies or implementation specifics.
Sysco is a supplier, not a restaurant operator; regulatory scrutiny of this deal affects food costs and supply chain but isn't core to brand-side marketing/loyalty strategy.
Vendor content on tier-program UX best practices — useful reference for loyalty designers, but no news about brand deployments or competitive shifts.
Vendor content marketing on share-of-wallet and frequency strategy — generic framework with no restaurant brand case study or product announcement.
CPG acquisition story (Barilla/Goodles) — not restaurant-industry relevant; audience cares about chain M&A, not packaged-goods manufacturing deals.
