USA | Industry veteran Kevin Carroll has been appointed Chief Operating Officer for rapidly growing fast-casual brand QDOBA.
QDOBA, America's rapidly growing restaurant brand in the Mexican fast-casual category, has announced that Kevin Carroll has joined the company as Chief Operating Officer.
Carroll will bring extensive restaurant leadership experience and is responsible for all aspects of QDOBA's operations strategy and execution across approximately 800 restaurants in the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada.
This appointment comes on the heels of the brand posting a 7.7 percent increase in comp sales for its fiscal year ending September 2024, on top of last year's 6.3 percent comp sales growth.
"We are thrilled with Kevin's decision to join the QDOBA family," said John Cywinski, CEO of QDOBA.
"Kevin is a truly exceptional leader and one of the most respected operators in the restaurant industry. I've worked alongside Kevin for many years, and I know first-hand the invaluable leadership and partnership he'll bring to the QDOBA brand."
Carroll joins QDOBA at a time of robust growth, accelerating momentum and unlimited potential.
"I'm fired up to be partnering with John again in support of this extraordinarily well-positioned brand," said Carroll.
"QDOBA is indeed the best-kept secret in the restaurant industry, and I'm looking forward to working alongside our talented team and franchise partners to unlock our full potential."
Cywinski added that Carroll is a deeply experienced and highly regarded executive with a well-deserved reputation for excellence.
“Beyond his character and integrity, what I value most about Kevin is his guest-first orientation and his commitment to a culture of accountability. We are very fortunate to have a leader of Kevin's calibre help guide us at this time of unprecedented growth," he said.
With four consecutive years of unprecedented growth, QDOBA plans to double the size of its current footprint to more than 1,600 restaurants over the next decade.
For the past seven years, Carroll was COO for Applebee's Grill & Bar, leaving an indelible mark on the 1,600-restaurant brand while earning the trust and respect of franchise partners and team members throughout his tenure.
Prior to Applebee's, Carroll was Senior Vice President of Operations for Chili's Grill & Bar (Brinker International), accountable for 700 company-owned restaurants, 35,000 team members and an approximate USD $2 billion portfolio. Throughout his 27-year tenure with Chili's, Carroll rose steadily through the ranks of the organisation from Restaurant General Manager to Area Director to Regional Director to Regional Vice President to Senior Vice President.
More news here.
