facebook pixal

Arby's, Buffalo Wild Wings to merge

buffalo wild wings

Roark Capital has agreed to acquire Buffalo Wild Wings for $2.9 billion and merge it into Arby’s Restaurant Group, forming a two-chain operation headed by Arby’s chief Paul Brown.

The deal has already been approved by the boards of Arby’s and BWW, and the financing is already in place, Arby’s said this morning in announcing the deal. The statement noted that Marcato Capital Management, which had used its 6.4% stake in BWW to push for changes in the full-service chain’s management and strategic direction, had agreed to support the deal.

The deal also gives Wendy’s, a sister brand to Arby’s when both were owned by Nelson Peltz’s Triarc Cos., an indirect stake in BWW. Wendy’s owns 18.5% of Arby’s.

Roark accepted offer amounts to a payment of $157 a share, a 38% premium over the average trading price for BWW shares for the preceding month.

BWW CEO Sally Smith is expected to resign after the deal is consummated. She had announced on the day of BWW’s shareholder meeting, where Marcato sought to gain a foothold on the board, that she would step down by the first of the year.

Brown, who will become CEO of the two-concept group, had already relinquished some of his day-to-day responsibilities for Arby’s in August with the promotion of Rob Lynch to president, from CMO.

Brown was Restaurant Business’2017 Restaurant Leader of the Year.

Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.

Multimedia

Exclusive Content

Financing

A tweet comes between Grubhub and McDonald's franchisees

The Bottom Line: The fast-food burger chain’s former top U.S. corporate relations officer said, “cry me a river” in a now-deleted tweet about McDonald’s franchisees. It didn’t go over well, either with them or his new employer, Grubhub.

Food

Burger King borrows preps from fine dining to innovate the menu

The burger chain’s new culinary focus reflects head chef Chad Brauze’s experience and passion gained in Michelin-starred restaurants.

Financing

Why the 2021 restaurant buying spree may come back to haunt some operators

The Bottom Line: Franchisees in particular jumped at the chance to scoop up restaurants in 2021, often paying sky-high multiples in the process. And then inflation hit.

Trending

More from our partners