Quiznos and Taco del Mar have a new CEO, but he’s sort of staying in the family.
The Denver-based Rego Restaurant Group, parent of both brands, has named Neel Patel CEO, the company announced Thursday.
Patel is the former senior vice president, strategy & growth at Church’s Texas Chicken, where the company said he played a key role in that brand’s transformation and recent transactional growth, leading commercial strategy, revenue management and global expansion.
Quiznos and Taco del Mar, as well as Church’s Chicken, are all part of the portfolio of investment firm High Bluff Capital Partners, based in San Diego.
“Both Quiznos and Taco del Mar are well positioned for expansion and accelerated growth, and we are confident that Neel is the ideal leader to drive that momentum,” said Coady Smith, a board member of Rego Restaurant Group and principal at High Bluff, in a statement. “His deep expertise in driving unit-level profitability, optimizing operations and delivering data-driven business transformations will be instrumental as we continue to expand our brands and deliver exceptional value to our customers and franchisee partners.”
Before joining Church’s, Patel was with McKinsey & Company, advising businesses across industries on enterprise strategy, commercial optimization, data and analytics and value creation.
Rego manages nearly 450 restaurants in 11 countries, including nine Dairy Queen franchise units, as well as Mesa Verde Grill, Blue Sky Bar and a Lavazza coffee outlet in Denver International Airport.
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