Hardee's at risk of closing more locations
A major Hardee's operator is at risk of losing all 76 of its restaurants after the fast food giant accused it of repeatedly breaking the rules. Paradigm Investment Group, which runs Hardee's locations across Alabama , Florida , Mississippi , and Tennessee , filed a lawsuit after the company threatened to terminate its franchise agreement.
Hardee's claims Paradigm refused to follow key brand standards — like offering third-party delivery, joining loyalty programs, and keeping locations open from 6am to 10pm. Some stores reportedly closed at 2pm, skipping dinner hours entirely. The franchisee also allegedly failed to pay tech fees, racking up more than $230,000 in unpaid charges, according to court documents.
In its defense, Paradigm says Hardee's knew about and accepted the changes, which it claims were necessary to keep the restaurants afloat. If Hardee's prevails, Paradigm could lose all its restaurants and be forced to pay $13 million in damages in damages. Hardee's, which has 1,800 restaurants in the US, has struggled for years, amid a sales slump, restaurant closures and franchisee bankruptcies . The company has closed 200 over the past decade, and 150 since 2021.
Hardee's is the 10th largest fast-food burger chain in the US in terms of total sales. Each Hardee's store generates much less revenue than the likes of McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King. Paradigm has been a franchisee since 2000 and calls itself 'one of the most profitable and successful operators in the Hardee's brand.' However, its business practices have been a red flag in Hardee's eyes since 2021.
Each Hardee's restaurant make less than $1.2 million a year, with worldwide sales being just under $2 billion, according to Restaurant Business . Another major franchisee, Summit Restaurant Holdings, closed 39 of 108 restaurants after filing for bankruptcy protection in 2023.
While Hardee's has continued to crumple, its competition has also been sinking. McDonald's sales dropped 3.6 percent in its first quarter , while Burger King suffered a 1.3 percent North America sales dip after its franchisee Consolidated Burger Holdings filed for bankruptcy protection . Other fast food chains that have fallen victim to inflation and restaurant closures include Subway and Jack in the Box.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
14 minutes ago
- The Sun
Trump admits he's ‘disappointed' in Musk for slamming ‘big beautiful bill' as Tesla boss hits back with flurry of posts
Former president Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk's relationship started rocky, but the pair have since reconciled, with Musk fully endorsing Trump and interviewing him on X Spaces on August 12. In 2022, Elon Musk and Donald Trump publicly feuded on X, then still known as Twitter. Trump called Musk a liar and "bulls**t artist" during a rally in Alaska. "Elon is not going to buy Twitter," Trump said at the time. "You know, he said the other day, 'I've never voted for a Republican.' I said, 'I didn't know that - you told me you voted for me. So he's another bulls**t artist, but he's not going to be buying it." In response to Trump's critiques, the SpaceX founder clapped back. "I don't hate the man, but it's time for Trump to hang up his hat & sail into the sunset," Musk posted. Musk also went on to buy X months later. The X owner said he had previously voted mostly for Democrats since becoming a United States citizen in 2002. Musk initially backed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to be the Republican Party's presidential nominee. "My preference for the 2024 presidency is someone sensible and centrist," Musk wrote on X in 2022. "I had hoped that would [be] the case for the Biden administration, but have been disappointed so far." His shift in political parties might be attributed to his plummeting relationship with President Joe Biden who didn't invite Musk to the 2021 White House electric vehicle summit. Despite their past issues, Trump and Musk's relationship took a turn in March after they met at Mar-a-Lago. Trump was also previously against electric vehicles but has since changed his stance. "I'm for electric cars," he said at a rally earlier this month. "I have to be, because Elon endorsed me very strongly. So I have no choice." Following the assassination attempt at Trump's rally in July, Musk announced his support for the former president. "I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery," Musk wrote on X after the shooting. During a recent press conference, Trump spoke highly of Musk. "I respect Elon a lot. He respects me," he said. "Elon, more than almost anybody I know, he loves this country. He loves the concept of this country, but like me, he says this country is in big trouble, it's in tremendous danger." Musk has been pictured at events at Mar-a-Lago and the UFC, buddying up with Trump. Trump selected Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency - a taskforce aimed at cutting bureaucracy.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Hooters restaurants slashed by a quarter as dozens more locations axed
Hooters has abruptly shuttered at least 30 locations in the US months after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The restaurant chain suddenly closed the company-owned restaurants across multiple states on Wednesday. There are now 305 Hooters restaurants across the US, down from around 420 at its peak. The recent closures were in states including Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas. The brand revealed it was a 'difficult decision' but insisted it was 'here to stay' despite suffering from longtime financial troubles. 'Hooters will be well-positioned to continue our iconic legacy under a pure franchise business model,' a Hooters spokesperson told 'We are committed to supporting our impacted team members throughout this process and are incredibly grateful to our valued customers for their loyalty and dedication to the Hooters brand.' The 42-year-old chain known for its chicken wings and its waitresses has shuttered dozens of restaurants in the last year. Of the 305 Hooters restaurants still open, 151 are company owned and 154 are franchise-operated locations. Created by six businessmen, a noticeable feature at all restaurants is scantily- dressed servers. Co-founder Ed Droste selected Lynne Austin to be the original Hooters girl, and the number of women representing the chain grew from there. The restaurant chain reached its peak in popularity in the 1990s and steadily expanded its number of locations during that time. It also introduced a variety of bathing-suit-required events, including the annual Miss Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant. These events and scandalous advertisements were not enough to stop its downfall, which became noticeable in 2017 due to declining US sales. Around 40 locations shuttered in 2024, and the chain closed one of its Hoots Wings spin-off restaurants earlier this year. Once its bankruptcy filing plans were set in motion, the chain began a restructuring plan, which included axing its famous 'bikini nights.' The chain, which has $376 million in debt, is expected to close more restaurants, and its intellectual property could potentially be bought by Hulk Hogan's Real American Beer brand. Hooters is not the only restaurant chain to have filed for bankruptcy protection this year. On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina announced it would close 76 restaurants after filing for bankruptcy weeks before Hooters. Bar Louie filed a few days before Hooters for the second time in five years, and closed locations in Ohio, Michigan, and New Jersey before doing so. Small chains like Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries and Planta have also sparked mass closure fears.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Supreme Court slaps down foreign government's attempt to blame America for its out-of-control violence
The United States Supreme Court has blocked a $10 billion lawsuit filed by the Mexican government claiming U.S. firearm manufacturers are responsible for the out-of-control cartel violence and bloodshed that has ravaged the country. The lawsuit was filed in 2021 against 11 companies with Smith & Wesson appealing a lower court decision that had allowed the case to proceed. The unanimous ruling tossed out the case under U.S. laws that largely protect gunmakers from liability when their firearms are used in crime. The court found that Mexico had not shown that the companies had knowingly allowed weapons to be trafficked across the US's southern border. 'It does not pinpoint, as most aiding-and-abetting claims do, any specific criminal transactions that the defendants (allegedly) assisted,' Justice Elena Kagan wrote in the court's opinion. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has yet to comment on the landmark decision about the case, which her government had wanted to proceed under an exception for situations in which the companies themselves are accused of violating the law. Mexico had said the case was still in its early stages and wanted the lawsuit to continue against some of the US's biggest gun companies, including Beretta USA, Barrett Firearms Manufacturing, Colt's Manufacturing Co. and Glock Inc. Mexico has strict gun laws and just one store where people can legally buy firearms. But thousands of guns are smuggled in by the country´s powerful drug cartels every year. The Mexican government says at least 70% of those weapons come from the United States and claims that companies knew weapons were being sold to traffickers who smuggled them into Mexico and decided to cash in on that market. It has alleged that more than 500,000 guns are smuggled annually from the United States into Mexico and that more than 68 percent are produced by the gun manufacturing companies it sued. Weapons manufactured by the 11 Massachusetts-based gun makers were allegedly used in at least 17,000 homicides in 2019. 'They know how criminals are getting their guns,' Jonathan Lowy, a lawyer for Mexico, argued during virtual hearing in April 2022. 'They could stop and they choose to be willfully blind to the facts. Mexican security forces confiscated a semi-automatic Barrett M82A1 .50 caliber rifle during a raid in July 2022 in Mexico City that led to the arrest of 14 alleged members of Los Chapitos, the Sinaloa Cartel faction that is operated by the sons of notorious drug lord Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán. The same rifle abandoned by Jalisco New Generation Cartel members in the failed assassination of Mexico City police chief Omar García Harfuch on June 26, 2020. The companies have rejected Mexico's allegations, arguing the country's lawsuit comes nowhere close to showing they're responsible for a relatively few people using their products to commit violence. A federal judge tossed out the lawsuit under a 2005 law that protects gun companies from most civil lawsuits, but an appeals court revived it. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston found it fell under an exception to the shield law for situations in which firearm companies are accused of knowingly breaking laws in their business practices. That exception has come up in other cases, including in lawsuits stemming from mass shootings. Families of victims of the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, for example, argued it applied to their lawsuit because the gunmaker had violated state law in the marketing of the AR-15 rifle used in the shooting, in which 20 first graders and six educators were killed. The families eventually secured a landmark $73 million settlement with Remington, the maker of the rifle.
