Yum Brands will become a “branded restaurant services” company over the next decade, providing its franchisees with the best suppliers of technology, loyalty and more.
So says Yum CEO Greg Creed, who told attendees of the 2019 Restaurant Leadership Conference (RLC) on Tuesday in Phoenix that partnering with companies to offer “world-class quality” to its more than 2,000 global franchisees is “the model we’re chasing.”
To that end, Yum Brands last year invested $200 million in food ordering company Grubhub and also invested in software business QuikOrder.
Yum, the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut, will “absolutely” acquire another brand one day, Creed said.
“In the future, other brands will want to become part of the Yum family,” he said. “We’ll do it because these brands want to join us more than I want to pay some huge multiple.”
Creed on Tuesday accepted the Restaurant Leader of the Year award at RLC. The award, whose presentation was sponsored by PepsiCo Foodservice, recognizes Creed’s transformation of Yum and his focus on the company’s culture. The award, given annually for the past five years, honors a foodservice visionary who has steered a restaurant brand to success.
True to his culture-focused nature, Creed accepted the honor on behalf of the employees of Yum’s 46,000 restaurants in 140 countries, as well as the company’s strategic partners.
“Everybody in this room should be proud of being in this industry,” Creed said. “We feed the mind and feed the soul.”
Culture is the most important growth driver for Yum, he said. Allowing individuals to be their best, recognizing excellence and emphasizing collaboration are key.
“Culture fuels results,” he said. “I truly believe we are delivering better results because of the culture.”
2019 Restaurant Leader of the Year - Final from Winsight, LLC on Vimeo.
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