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Smashburger appoints former Corner Bakery exec as CDO

Smashburger has appointed Michael J. Nolan EVP and CDO.

February 1, 2016

Smashburger has appointed Michael J. Nolan, who was previously overseeing franchising and development at Corner Bakery, as its EVP and CDO. Nolan will oversee the company's development (real estate, construction, design, facilities), franchise sales and IT departments effective immediately, according to a company press release.

"Michael's extensive experience in successfully growing national and international brands will be invaluable to Smashburger as we continue to grow our footprint across the country and internationally," said Scott Crane, Smashburger president and CEO. "Having served on the Smashburger Board of Advisors for the prior four years Mike already possesses a keen understanding of the tremendous opportunity and challenges facing this great brand. We're confident he will be an integral member of Smashburger's core executive team and will be instrumental in advancing Smashburger's operating platform, franchising program, restaurant development processes and enhanced information technology services that will be critical to the brand's success as we continue our rapid expansion across the globe."

Nolan has more than 25 years of experience in restaurant development strategy and executive level management. Before working at Corner Bakery, he held executive level management positions at Bloomin' Brands, where he oversaw the restaurant development strategy for more than 1,500 locations across 26 countries. He also held several executive positions at Panera Bread Company where he led the growth strategies for 12 years, taking the brand from 250 units to more than 1,500, according to the release.

"The Smashburger brand has seen incredible growth over the past several years. They have clearly proven themselves to be the leader in the Better Burger category," said Nolan. "I'm incredibly excited to bring my background and expertise to partner with this proven team."

Smashburger has over 350 restaurants worldwide and expects to grow its unit count by approximately 20 to 25 percent in 2016. In 2015, the company sold more than 187 franchise units, making it the biggest year in the company's history of franchise sales, according to the release.