Taco Del Mar Co-Founder Steps Down, New President Appointed
SEATTLE (Blue MauMau) - Taco Del Mar's co-founder has stepped down as the company's chief executive officer and chairman. Kevin Hansen, chief operations officer, will lead the company in the position of president and chief operating officer.
Insiders hint that the the firm's board of directors may be looking for a new CEO. James Schmidt, who will retain an advisory role with the firm, seems to hint that this might be the case. He states simply, "There is no CEO position at this time."
Mr. Hansen has served as a franchise consultant for Papa Murphy’s International and was an area director for Calny, a multi-concept food company. He was also a Seattle-area Taco Bell franchise owner for five years.
A major change in leadership took place late last year when David Huether resigned as president. James Schmidt stepped into the role of president. And Kevin Hansen was promoted from vice president of franchise development to chief operating officer.
What a Difference Two Years Makes
These past two years have been challenging for the taco chain. Food prices have escalated. Papers and trade journals have published complaints from franchise owners about Taco Del Mar. Growth rates in franchise sales have slowed for the firm. And the franchisor has struggled with profitability.
According to David Weltz, franchise sales manager for Taco Del Mar, the chain has grown almost 4% to 275 units in total from September of last year until today, one year later. Such increases are a pittance compared to the high-velocity growth rates that approached a hundred percent in years past.
Compliments from franchise owners nowadays also seem few. That's in stark contrast to just two to three years ago in which almost 80% of franchise owners cast anonymous votes through FranSurvey, a firm that surveys the satisfaction of franchisees, that they would recommend the franchise to others.
One large franchise owner expressed that the network was spread thinly across the United States and that a more regional strategy may have been better supported by their franchisor to weather a troubled economy.
Earlier this year in British Columbia, one distressed franchise owner, who investigators think set fire to her own Taco Del Mar shop, committed suicide a few days later.
All of these factors have gone into a caustic mix. But the new president thinks such news is behind him. He plans to strengthen profits and increase sales.
Concerning the leadership change, Mr. Hansen states, "We [Mr. Kevin Hansen and Mr. James Schmidt] have outlined a course for brand revitalization that will reposition us and strengthen the franchising product. James [Schmidt] feels that the company is in good hands and it is a good time for him to move on to pursue some of his other business interests to include an Irish pub concept that he and a partner developed in Seattle."
Ex-CEO Schmidt agrees. He explains the recent move. "After getting the company back to profitability on an EBITDA bases, and the end of the fiscal year, and a total of 16 years, I felt this would be a good time to promote Kevin Hansen to the president position. Kevin is a trusted member of the TDM management for over 11 years," he states. Schmidt declares, "I will be leaving the day-to-day operations in his hands and help him where he would like. I am remaining the largest shareholder."
"I will be focusing my time on family," Mr. Schmidt states. He continues, "I have always enjoyed real-estate development and will continue to work in that area."
Email Informing Franchise Owners of the Change
Mr. Hansen says that the following email has been sent to Taco Del Mar master franchisees and franchise owners. An area developer confirmed he had received this email last week.
At our recent shareholders meeting on August 29th, 2008 concluding the end of our 2008 fiscal year, James Schmidt, our co-founder and CEO announced his resignation as Chairman and CEO of Taco Del Mar Franchising Corp. James has been the tireless leader of this company since its inception in 1992 and has overseen our growth from a start up concept on the Seattle waterfront to one of the fastest growing concepts in QSR. After more then 16 years and our recent return to profitability of the company, James feels this is a good time to start something new and will focus on his other entrepreneurial interests. We can count on his continued enthusiastic support of the Taco Del Mar brand and its management.
With this announcement, I have assumed the title and role of President and Chief Operating Officer for the company and will continue our focus on sales and profit performance.
We wish James, Nicole and their family the very best that the future holds.
