Latest news with #JerseyMike's
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
CT restaurant group expands its reach. Goal is to serve good food while helping the community.
The Meraki Restaurant Group, founded by Connecticut husband and wife Ken Schanke and Audrey Poynton, is widening its portfolio with another restaurant opening this week. The Somers couple is set to open the doors at Teriyaki Madness, a fast-casual Asian restaurant concept, on Prospect Avenue in West Hartford on Friday. 'I love this location, and we first saw it about two-and a half years ago,' Schanke said. 'I started nosing around and I reached out to my broker. It's a great location.' The West Hartford restaurant will be the ninth business owned by Meraki Restaurant Group, which employs more than 150 people in the state. It all started with four Jersey Mike's franchises starting with Manchester in 2018, followed by Middletown (November 2020), Rocky Hill (October 2021) and Enfield (November 2021). 'We were one of the pioneers of Jersey Mike's in the state,' Schanke said. 'At the time we opened our first location, there was one in Meriden. It's a household name now but back then there was just one in Connecticut and the next one was in Boston. We rolled the dice on a great brand.' Meraki Restaurant Group also has a partnership with the Hartford Yard Goats and Southern Connecticut State University and are scheduled to meet with Quinnipiac University about a potential partnership. Poynton is originally from Naugatuck. Schanke was born in Iowa, grew up in New Jersey and ended up in Connecticut in 2000 after several stops around the country. The couple worked for The Real Yellow Pages and spent 25 years in the corporate world with AT&T Advertising Solutions before they pivoted to business ownership with the Meraki Restaurant Group. 'We try to run our business in a place where people can build a career like my wife and I did with the phone company,' Schanke said. 'We offer health benefits and a 401K with a company match up to 4%. We are about product, people and passion.' Meraki is a Greek word meaning to do something with heart and soul. 'Not only do we want to serve a good product, but we want to help the community as well,' Schanke said. 'We do community fundraising at Jersey Mike's for anyone that signs up.' Schanke said the restaurant group is proud to have partnered with Where Angels Play Foundation to raise funds in support of a playground being built in memory of the four Koropatkin children who lost their lives in a multi-family house fire in Somers in 2024. Where Angels Play Foundation had previously built 26 playgrounds honoring the Sandy Hook School shooting victims. Schanke and Poynton live about a half mile from the Koropatkin household where 11-year-old Lukas, 9-year-old Genevieve, 7-year-old Benjamin and 5-year-old Archer were killed in the blaze. 'We did a joint 'Month of Giving' with Jersey Mike's and Teriyaki Madness and we raised over $85,000 to help build a playground in Somers in the fall,' Schanke said. 'We want to give back to the community. That's the kind of culture we have at Meraki.' Schanke and Poynton opened their first Teriyaki Madness franchises in Hamden and Enfield in December 2023, followed by Manchester in June 2024, Avon in April 2025 and now West Hartford. In total, Teriyaki Madness has 160 locations across three countries. The restaurant's top seller is the spicy chicken teriyaki bowl. He said his personal favorite is the regular teriyaki chicken bowl. Orange chicken is also a popular selection. 'The portions are huge,' Schanke said. 'I can't eat a regular bowl at once. They come with white rice, brown rice, fried rice or yakisoba noodles. … The veggies are chopped fresh every day and are steamed at the time of the order. There is nothing sitting on a steam table for an hour. Everything is fresh to order, and it takes about 10 minutes to get each order together.' Schanke said its fresh healthy concept has spread throughout Connecticut. 'Teriyaki Madness has everything fresh to order with nothing pre-sliced or pre-made,' Schanke said. 'The company has great people and a great product, and they provide a lot of support as well, with support for training and a business coach who helps you through the weeds.' Teriyaki Madness, located at 259 Prospect Ave. in West Hartford, will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The BCRF Hot Pink Party Breaks Fundraising Records
A crowd bedecked in every shade of pink gathered at The Glasshouse in New York City yesterday evening for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF)'s annual Hot Pink Party, raising more than $11 million—a new record for the event. The BCRF is the largest private funder of breast cancer research worldwide, and has raised more than a billion dollars since its founding by Evelyn Lauder in 1993. The evening celebrated the immense progress made by researchers in those three-plus decades, with breast cancer death rates falling more than 40 percent. But with diagnoses increasing in young women and federal funding for science threatened, the message was clear: Private philanthropic giving to the cause has never been more important. Jersey Mike's founder and CEO Peter Cancro and his wife, Tatiana, received the Evelyn Lauder Spirit of Philanthropy Award, given to 'a visionary individual, family, or organization whose altruistic impact profoundly improves the lives of others.' In September, Jersey Mike's sponsored a national advertisement in support of BCRF and donated 20 percent of sales over the course of two days, raising $4.4 million. From the stage, the couple stunned BCRF President and CEO Donna McKay with the surprise gift of another $2 million. (Guests also went home with a free Italian sub from Jersey Mike's, in the event of any post-gala munchies.) Kate Williams, a lawyer and breast cancer survivor, was honored with the Roslyn and Leslie Goldstein Unsung Hero Award for her support of Marcella Kelson, who was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer only four months after the birth of her second child. Williams, who had been through a similar diagnosis but never met Kelson in person, provided unwavering support by phone and text as Kelson went through 16 rounds of chemotherapies, 14 rounds of immunotherapy, 20 rounds of radiation, and a lumpectomy. Both friends are now cancer-free. 'Let's not lose sight of the fact that both of us are here to raise our kids and enjoy all this beautiful life has to offer, because of research,' Williams wrote in an Instagram post about the honor. The night was hosted by actress and model Elizabeth Hurley, who attended with her son Damian, and also featured remarks from BCRF Scientific Director Larry Norton, M.D. and actress Toks Olagundoye. (The Frasier star shared her breast cancer story with ELLE last October.) Other attendees included Imaan Hammam, Vera Wang, Nia Long, Misty Copeland, Katie Thurston, Gloria Estefan, and Tokyo Rose, who manned the DJ booth. ELLE editor-in-chief Nina Garcia served as a co-chair of the event. The evening concluded with an intimate performance of songs and stories by Sting. The singer and musician spoke movingly of his mother, a nurse who died of breast cancer in 1988. 'She was only 54; she wasn't diagnosed until it was too late. At the time, there was so much fear and inexplicable sense of shame around this disease that women were paralyzed to inaction,' he said, before announcing a $250,000 BRCF endowment for research in his mother's name. 'I am so pleased, as she would be as a nurse, that something in her name would help other women avoid the tragedy that overtook her.' You Might Also Like The 15 Best Organic And Clean Shampoos For Any And All Hair Types 100 Gifts That Are $50 Or Under (And Look Way More Expensive Than They Actually Are)
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jersey Mike's Month of Giving in Bakersfield raises $79k
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Jersey Mike's said it raised $79,000 from all of its stores in Bakersfield last month during the Month of Giving fundraiser. The sandwich chain partners with more than 200 local charities each year for its nationwide fundraiser. In Bakersfield, Jersey Mike's partnered with the Ronald McDonald House, which provides a 'home away from home' for local families with critically ill children who are hospitalized. 'We've been able to work with the Ronald McDonald house in the past but we've never had this large of an amount,' franchise owner Stacy Knight said. Jersey Mike's Month of Giving is an annual fundraiser that happens every March. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
New York Post
28-04-2025
- Health
- New York Post
LI Jersey Mike's worker tests positive for hepatitis A as officials warn customers could be at risk
A Jersey Mike's worker in Nassau County who 'directly handled food' has tested positive for hepatitis A, leaving customers who ate at the sandwich shop recently at risk, health officials warned. County health officials confirmed late Friday that an employee at the Jersey Mike's in Oceanside tested positive for hepatitis A and said that anyone who ate or drank there — or visited the shop's bathroom — between April 5 and April 19 may have been exposed. Officials also revealed the worker directly handled food at the sub store, potentially contaminating all of the ingredients and tableware. And they are urging anyone who visited the location to contact their doctor immediately. An employee at a Jersey Mike's location in Nassau County tested positive for hepatitis A, according to health officials. Christopher Sadowski 'Though the risk of transmission is considered low, out of an abundance of caution, individuals who may have been exposed are advised to speak to their healthcare provider,' the Nassau County Department of Health said in a statement. It is unclear how the Jersey Mike's worker contracted the virus. Hepatitis A — a liver infection — typically spreads when an infected person doesn't wash their hands properly after using the bathroom, leaving traces of fecal matter on food, drinks or anything they touch, officials said. Antibiotics cannot treat someone once symptoms appear — generally between two to seven weeks after being exposed — although they can take up to a month to show up. Symptoms may include the yellowing of your skin and eyes, nausea, stomach pain, joint pain or even dark urine and pale stools, according to the CDC. The virus is typically mild and short-term, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — but can be deadly in rare circumstances, especially for people over 50 and those with preexisting conditions or compromised immune systems. Anyone who's already had hepatitis A or received both doses of the vaccine is protected, according to the health department, although a single vaccine dose may help prevent infection if given within two weeks of exposure.
CNN
24-04-2025
- Business
- CNN
For the first time in about 50 years, Jersey Mike's has a new CEO
Peter Cancro, the founder and CEO of Jersey Mike's Subs, is stepping back from the leadership position following an $8 billion sale that made him a multibillionaire. The fast-growing sub chain announced Thursday that Cancro will be replaced by Charlie Morrison, the former CEO of Wingstop, beginning on April 28. A press release said that Morrison will be tasked with building on Jersey Mike's 'strong momentum and continue to accelerate its expansion in the US and international markets.' Cancro, however, isn't disappearing entirety from the chain which has grown to 3,000 locations under his 50-year purview. He will remain as the chairman of the board and be a 'significant minority shareholder,' the company said. Cancro said in a release that Morrison is the 'ideal' candidate to replace him as CEO and credited him with the growth of Wingstop. The company's stock quadrupled in value under his decade-long leadership before he left the company in 2022. 'Having led Wingstop through a monumental period of growth and a successful IPO, he knows what it takes to lead a first-of-its-kind, category-defining brand, and I am confident he will bring that same energy and vision to Jersey Mike's,' Cancro said. Jersey Mike's sold a significant stake to private equity giant Blackstone in an $8 billion deal last year, ending its nearly seven-decade run as an independently owned business that transformed into a major competitor against well-entrenched brands like Subway. Cancro, 66, started working at its original location in New Jersey in 1971 when he was a high-school student. He bought the store, then called Mike's Subs, in 1975 when he was just 17. He tweaked the name in the 1980s and started franchising the brand with locations currently in the US and Canada and plans to expand to Europe and the UK. As the chain's sole owner, he also cashed in on the deal. The Bloomberg Billionaire Index now values his net worth at $7.5 billion. Jersey Mike's is the second-largest sandwich chain behind Subway in sales. Data from QSR Magazine reveals Jersey Mike's locations pull in about $1.35 million per unit, with an average Subway location raking in less than $500,000. Blackstone's transaction was the largest deal in the fast food space since Subway sold itself to private equity firm Roark Capital last year for about $9.6 billion.
