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Greg Cutchall
CEO, Cutchall Management Co.; Famous Dave's, Sonic, Paradise Bakery, Tin Star, Burger Star, Rock Bottom Gold Medal Tap Franchisee
Greg Cutchall is President and CEO of Cutchall Management Company (CMC) in Omaha. CMC currently owns and operates 6 different franchise concepts of 42 locations in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Utah and Texas. Since 1989, CMC has acquired or developed more than 60 restaurants including Popeyes, Julio's, Rib Ranch, Bum Steer, 3 Cheers, Sonic Drive-In, The Exchange, Austin's, Famous Dave's, Tin Star, Paradise Bakery & Cafe, Burger Star and Rock Bottom. CMC got its start in 1986 with the opening of Progressive Park and 18-acre company picnic facility on the Missouri River in Council Bluffs, Iowa. CMC was one of only 13 companies to make the Inc. 500 list of the Fastest Growing Private Companies in America 4 years in a row. During the past year, CMC has opened the first franchised Rock Bottom Restaurant in Omaha, Nebraska CMC has also acquired the development rights and management contract for Paradise Bakery in Salt Lake City, Utah, bringing CMC's stable of Paradise Bakery restaurants to 12.
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Rocco Fiorentino
President, Eagle Tax Services and Row Zone, Former Franchisee, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts
Rocco Fiorentino is president of Eagle Tax Services. Previously, he was CEO of United Financial Services Group, a financial services franchisor with nearly 200 offices operating nationwide. Prior to United Financial Services Group, he served as president and CEO of Freedom Rings LLC, an area developer and multiunit franchisee of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts for Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Before that he was president of Specialty Bakeries Inc. a subsidiary of New World Restaurant Group, franchisor of Manhattan Bagel, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Chesapeake Bagels, New World Coffee, and Willoughby’s Coffee. He serves on the boards of Swiss Farm Stores, the IFA’s Franchisor Forum, and has chaired the Multi-Unit Franchising National Development Conference & Expo sponsored by Franchise Update and Area Developer magazines. He is the founder and chair of The Little Rock Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving children and young adults who are visually impaired and blind, and is currently Pennsylvania District Governor of Unico National, a nonprofit organization dedicated to children with developmental disabilities.
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Gary Grace
2009 Conference Chair, Franchisee, Supercuts
Gary Grace has been a Supercuts franchisee for 30 years and has opened more than 125 units. He currently owns 37 stores. He is serving his 11th consecutive year as President of the Supercuts Franchisee Association and as the Franchisee Chair of the Supercuts Advisory Council. In 1989, he was named the Top Franchisee in America by Inc. magazine. Prior to Supercuts he was a partner in Growth Strategies, a franchise consulting firm.
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Bill Hall
2008 Conference Chair, Entrepreneur, William G. Hall & Company, Dairy Queen
Bill Hall has a career of over thirty years as an entrepreneur and investor. Bill is CPA, has an accounting degree from the University of Texas and began his career with the national public accounting firm of Ernst & Young. Bill has been a multi-unit franchisee of Dairy Queen, Church’s Chicken and Mr. Jim’s Pizza of over eighty units at one time. In addition to Bill’s franchisee experience, he has owned and operated community banks in Texas, independent restaurant concepts, a nationwide transportation company and real estate investments. Bill has served as the President for multiple terms of the Texas Dairy Queen Operators’ Council, representing over eight-hundred Dairy Queen Restaurants in Texas.
He is a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE), Past Chairman of the Franchisee Forum of the International Franchise Association, a member of the IFA Board of Directors, serves as the Co - Chairman of the National Franchise Mediation Program and is a member of the Small Business Advisory Council to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Bill is active in his Fort Worth, Texas community where he lives with his wife of twenty-eight years and their four children.
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Ellen Hui
President & CEO, EBR Investments
Ellen Hui is a multi-unit franchisee for Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits. Ellen launched her business with a single unit and grew it to 12 restaurants.
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Hank Huth
Blockbuster, Palm Beach Tan, Dunkin Donuts
Hank Huth was the first Boston Chicken franchisee in 1993, eventually building 75 units. In 1997, he opened his first Einstein Bros Bagels, building that group to 40 stores. He took on Corners Custom Framing in 1999, reaching 40 units. With his partner Tim Nolan, he has now overseen the development and growth of 5 different franchise concepts over the past 20 years. At one point, he operated 60 Blockbuster Video franchises in Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York. His company concentrated on its Blockbuster stores until signing on with Palm Beach Tan in 2005. In early 2008, he inked a deal with Dunkin’ Donuts to develop the territories of Milwaukee and Phoenix. His schedule calls for him to open 20 to 30 Dunkin’ units a year over the next six years, 50 in Milwaukee and 72 in Phoenix. He currently has 5 Dunkin’ stores open in Phoenix and 5 under construction.
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Lyndon Johnson
2010 Conference Chair; President, Reciprocity Restaurant Group; Franchisee, Church's Chicken
Lyndon S. Johnson is President of Reciprocity Restaurant Group LLC, an area developer of 11 Church’s Chicken restaurants in Oklahoma. Lyndon has over 20 years of general management experience with several national brands such as KFC, Church’s Chicken and Burger King Corporation. He has used his extensive brand management background as the foundation for building a solid relationship with his franchisor, advocating for his fellow franchise partners and establishing the foundation for the operating principles for his emerging company.
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John Metz
Denny's, Dairy Queen, Hurricane Wings
John Cameron Metz is Chair and CEO of Hurricane AMT, franchisor of Hurricane Grill and Wings. The company has 30 Hurricane Wings restaurants operating in Florida, and 6 more in the pipeline. He also is Founder of RREMC, a company composed of a restaurant group, a hotel group, and a real estate group. The restaurant group consists of 29 Denny’s restaurants with more than 1,000 employees. He also is involved in a new joint venture for Capone’s Trattoria restaurants. He has been a Bennigan’s franchisee, and was President of Roadhouse Grill and Hops Grillhouse and Brewery. He also is franchisee of Dairy Queen with one unit under construction, and a franchisee of Old Chicago restaurants. The hotel group consists of a Marriott Fairfield Inn & Suites. The real estate group includes 36 single-tenant retail properties. He is a licensed general contractor and real estate salesperson.
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Ron Millard
Partner, Redstone Capital Partners
Ron Millard is a Partner and member of the Investment Committee of Redstone Capital Partners, the private equity division of The Redstone Companies, a diversified management company with expertise on private equity, real estate, business development, and hospitality. Before joining Redstone in 2005, he was a principal in the Private Equity Division of Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) where he worked in the CSFB and the Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) merchant banking funds, including the $2.7 billion CSFB Equity Partners Fund; the $600 million CSFB International Equity Partners Fund; the $5.3 billion DLJ Merchant Banking Partners III Fund; and the $175 million DLJ Growth Capital Partners Fund. He earned a BBA in Finance with honors from the University of Texas, and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
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Stan Novack
2007 Conference Chair, President, Novack Consulting LLC, Consultant, HMSHost Corporation
Stanley R. Novack is President, Novack Consulting LLC, and a consultant to HMSHost Corporation. For over 30 years Stan has acted as Vice President, Concept Development for HMSHost, the leading provider of food, beverage and retail concessions in over 200 travel and entertainment venues in eight countries. The company is best known for its innovative concession planning and operating expertise that couples international brands with regional favorites in unique settings. Stan was responsible for the creation, development, and implementation of the "Cheers" branded theme restaurant concept based on the television series. He oversees the Casual Dining, Themed Restaurants, and Entertainment concepts that HMSHost has placed in its venues. He has also been recognized as one of "The Marketing 100" by Advertising Age. Stan was 2007 Conference Chair of Franchise Update Media Group's Multi-Unit Franchising Conference.
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David Ostrowe
President, O & M Restaurant Group, Franchisee, Burger King
David Ostrowe has over 18 years of Senior Executive experience in operations and consulting. His extensive experience in all phases of business development, through years of field and corporate level, multi-unit managerial positions has provided him with a diversified practical business experience based strongly upon people and financial development. Current and Past holdings include: Personalized Management Associates, a national executive search firm, Ostrowe and Associates, a candidate marketing service, O&M Restaurant Group, a multi-unit franchise of several national restaurant chains, and 180 Business Solutions, a Consulting and Acquisition Group. David Ostrowe’s focus is providing leadership and incite both employers and affiliates. He is completely focused on leading the industry in development, quality and service. Listed as a top 50 Growth Company in Oklahoma, Ostrowe Companies has grown through acquisitions and through the development of original concepts.
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Gary Robins
President, G&C Robins Co., Franchisee, Supercuts
Gary Robins is a multi-unit franchisee with 20 Supercuts Hair Salons in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Gary currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Supercuts Franchise Association, the Board of Directors of the American Association of Franchise Dealers and is President of the Philadelphia Chapter of the World Entrepreneurs Organization.
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Charles Smithgall
Chairman CEO SEI/Aaron's Inc., Franchisee, Aaron Rents Inc.
Charles Smithgall, founded SEI/Aaron’s on April 1, 1995 and currently is the chairman and CEO. SEI opened their first Aaron’s store on November 29, 1995 and subsequently developed eight stores in the Kentucky/Indiana area before expanding to New England in 1999. SEI/Aaron’s has continued to open stores in the New England states as well as acquiring stores from other Aaron’s franchisees and Aaron Rents, Inc., and currently operates 54 stores in seven states. SEI/Aaron’s is the largest Aaron’s franchise company.
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Roland Spongberg
El Pollo Loco, Denny's
Roland C. Spongberg co-founded WKS Restaurant Corp. in 1987. WKS currently owns 55 El Pollo Loco restaurants in Southern California, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado, making it El Pollo Loco’s largest franchisee. In 2006, he signed an exclusive development agreement with El Pollo Loco to expand the brand in Arizona and has opened 11 restaurants under that agreement. His success in Arizona led him to sign an agreement to open 15 restaurants in Utah. The first, which opened in June 2008, was the largest opening in the history of El Pollo Loco, with first-week sales of $120,000. WKS also acquired and developed four restaurants under the Denny’s brand in Southern California, which he operates through a subsidiary. In January 2008, through WKS Bakery Café, another subsidiary, he signed a development agreement with Corner Bakery Café to open 15 restaurants in the next 7 years in the Greater Phoenix area. The first opened March 2, 2009.
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Ted Torres
President/CEO, International Hospitality Development Alliances, Franchisee, Hilton Garden Inn, Microtel Inn & Suites, Hampton Inn & Suites
Ted Torres was literally born into the hospitality industry. Thanks to his family legacy, Mr. Torres’ 20 plus years of professional experience equates to a more traditional 35 years in the industry. After having spent the majority of his professional career working with his mentor and partner, Mr. Torres founded IHDA in 2003 to take advantage of strategic opportunities in the worldwide hospitality industry. His responsibilities encompass managing the asset performance and strategic direction of each hospitality property in the IHDA portfolio. This includes renovating and expanding existing properties; managing the strategic direction of the company and its properties; recommending capital improvements; ensuring operational efficiencies; and building hotels, condo-hotels, conference centers and spa developments. Mr. Torres also is actively involved with selecting future hospitality projects, of which there is a current heavy concentration of Microtel Inn and Suites hotel properties in the southwest United States. He also has excellent relationships with key industry partners such as: American Hotel Register, Hilton Hotels, Starwood Hotels, Marriott Hotels, Wyndham Worldwide and Intercontinental Hotels. Mr. Torres has served as the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of International Hospitality Development Alliances, and as the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Wharf Enterprises. Both are independently owned hotel management, development and investment firms located in Scottsdale that work with multiple hotel brands. He is a Certified Hospitality Administrator – the hospitality industry’s highest professional designation – and a member of the American Hotel Lodging Association.
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Anil Yadav
Franchisee, Jack in the Box, Denny's
Anil Yadav operates 78 Jack in the Box and 16 Denny’s restaurants in Northern California and Houston. He emigrated to the U.S. from India at the age of 17 with his parents, and in 1984 took a part-time job as a fry cook with Jack in the Box to put himself through college. He became a manager within 18 months, and after 5 years owned his first restaurant. Based in Northern California, where he grew up, he has expanded his Jack in the Box holdings to become the brand’s largest franchisee. In 2006, he expanded geographically as well, buying 30 Jack in the Box restaurants in the Houston area. In 2008, he diversified his portfolio as well, buying 16 Denny’s in the Sacramento area, adding a family dining concept to his QSR holdings. True to his own path, he looks to promote from within, offering his best employees the opportunity to move ahead as he did.
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