Former pro-basketball star Junior Bridgeman is selling his extensive restaurant holdings to enter the soft drink business as a Coca-Cola bottler.
Bridgeman and his family operate about 240 Wendy’s restaurants and about 124 Chili’s branches. The operations made him one of the largest restaurant franchisees in the country.
Bridgeman retired from the National Basketball Association in 1987 after a successful run. He had opened three Wendy’s units while still playing basketball as his day job.
Bridgeman had run his restaurants in collaboration with his sister, Eden, and his sons, Justin and Ryan, the latter of whom has several Taco Bell franchises of his own.
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