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MOOYAH announces staff changes to fuel growth

October 8, 2013

After awarding more than 50 restaurants in the last 24 months, MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes, has announced two executive moves to support the brand's strong growth, according to a company press release. Michael Mabry, who formerly served as director of franchise sales, will now spearhead MOOYAH's franchise development and operations as VP of operations/franchise development. Additionally, Carrie Evans, who most recently spent a 7-year tenure at CiCi's Pizza, has joined the team as franchise development manager.

"We initiated an adjustment to our team that will provide a greater focus on supporting our franchise partners through an improved operations focus, stronger marketing initiatives, greater leverage on technology and reduced costs through a new and far more robust procurement program," said Bill Spae, CEO and president of MOOYAH. "Over the last 24 months, Michael's performance in leading our franchise development growth has led to great success. With the depth of his operations experience, we wanted to utilize his skills in the best way possible. In addition to overseeing our continued growth, he will support our new franchise partners by helping ensure strong operations across the system."

Mabry's first venture into the restaurant industry was a catering business he developed in 1989. In 1992, he joined Brinker International as executive chef for Romano's Macaroni Grill, where he was instrumental in establishing systems that remain a stable foundation of the business. While at Brinker, he advanced to general manager and to director of franchise. Throughout his 11 years at Brinker, he created and implemented the global franchise strategy, process, initiatives and standards for Macaroni Grill. He then served as VP of Tin Star followed by leading franchise development for Boston's The Gourmet Pizza before joining MOOYAH.

"Over the last 24 months, we worked diligently to recruit the right franchisees to our system. I wanted to guarantee they received the proper support and systems to help them scale their unit size with sound operations and unit-level economics," Mabry said.

To expand Mabry's role, MOOYAH recruited Evans, who most recently served as senior manager of franchise development for CiCi's Pizza, and will now be charged with handling the day-to-day process of franchise development.

"We are thrilled to have Carrie join our team. Her experience and knowledge will be essential to our ability to establish strong relationships with top-tier multi-unit/multi-brand operators," Spae said.

For Evans, MOOYAH's previous growth, coupled with a strong product, territory availability, and current franchise partners made the brand change ideal and her decision simple.

"This is a brand that is growing and has tremendous potential to be seen as the leader in the category," she said. "The extensive experience of the leadership team perfectly positions MOOYAH for growth. I look forward to contributing to the recruitment of great franchisees."

MOOYAH experienced tremendous growth in the last several years, expanding from a Texas brand into 11 states and has nearly doubled its number of restaurants from 25 to 48 in 2012. In 2013, MOOYAH is continuing its expansion, with one restaurant open in Dubai and additional plans to grow internationally and total nearly 65 restaurants.

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