Huddle House announced the promotion of Melissa Rothring to Executive Vice President, General Counsel and the appointment of Trevor O’Connor as Director of Real Estate.
“We are excited to further utilize the expertise of Melissa and Trevor on our team,” says Michael Abt, CEO of Huddle House. “With Melissa’s promotion and the addition of Trevor to their new respective roles, we are strengthening our ability to provide our franchise owners with the solutions and support needed to have a positive, meaningful impact in their communities. We look forward to leveraging the skills and experience of Trevor and Melissa to drive growth for Huddle House in the months and years to come.”
In her new role as Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Rothring, who joined Huddle House in 2013 as General Counsel and a member of the Executive Leadership Team, is responsible for all legal activity for the brand, leading a team responsible for mergers and acquisitions, legal affairs, franchise filings and business strategy. Rothring brings more than 20 years of experience in franchising business analysis and management, focusing on financial and legal management initiatives with a concentration on effective branding and operational strategies.
As Huddle House’s new Director of Real Estate, O’Connor will be responsible for assisting franchisees in identifying potential franchise locations that will allow for maximum profitability and brand recognition. Prior to joining Huddle House, O’Connor served as a real estate manager for Tropical Smoothie Café, where he supported franchise owners and large area developers with lease negotiation and property purchases.
O’Connor joins Huddle House as the company looks to build on the momentum it has achieved in recent months, including 24 months of same-store sales increases and an 88 percent growth in units from February 2014 to February 2016. New restaurants are in place to open in Fort Worth, Texas, Ocala, Florida, East Orange, New Jersey, and Jackson, Tennessee, with an additional 34 locations in development.
Huddle House has plans in place to open an additional 100 restaurants over the next 5 years, expanding its warmth, friendly atmosphere and charm into key markets throughout the eastern U.S., and into attractive DMAs such as Dallas, Charlotte, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Nashville, and Cincinnati. The growth represents a 25 percent increase in unit count.
