James Bodenstedt

James Bodenstedt is the President and CEO of MUY! Brands, an operator of franchised restaurants, including Wendy's and the Yum! Brands of Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, and others. He and his wife are major donors to President Donald Trump's 2020 election campaign, donating more than $1 million. MUY! Brands and its subsidiaries were among the first companies to receive coronavirus relief aid by the Trump administration.[1]

James Bodenstedt
EducationUniversity of Texas at San Antonio
OccupationPresident/CEO

Early life

Bodenstedt discovered his passion for business while working for McDonalds as a teen, taking their management training program at the age of 15 and by 17, he was a general manager.[2] James would later go on to receive his Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from University of Texas at San Antonio and in 2003 founded MUY Brands.[3]

Career

Bodenstedt was Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of R&L Foods in 2010 while building MUY.[2]

MUY! Brands

MUY! Brands (also known as MUY! Companies, MUY Brands, Muy Restaurants, Muy Consulting, or Muy Cos) is based in San Antonio, Texas. Bodenstedt purchased 18 Texas locations in 2003 to start MUY!. By 2010 it had 118 locations, by 2012 it had 230 locations in Texas and New Mexico, and at least 635 locations by 2016, with annual revenue over $630 million.[4][5][6] MUY purchased 70 Dallas, Texas restaurants directly from Wendy's in 2014, and in 2016, 75 franchises from Richard Fox's Great Lakes Restaurant Management in Cleveland, Ohio and upstate New York. The latter purchase made MUY the largest Wendy's franchisee.[6]

In 2019, MUY settled a Department of Justice investigation over employment discrimination. MUY paid a $175,000 fine to the Justice Department, as well as requirements for back pay and mandatory training.[7][8][9]

In January 2020, an attempted robbery of a MUY! Wendy's in Edinboro, Pennsylvania led to the shooting death of an employee. A fundraiser was held at the store, and Bodenstedt donated all sales, doubled by Muy, from the day to the victim's family.[10][11][12][13]

Bodenstedt was part of a May 2020 White House roundtable to discuss restaurant recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Bodenstedt had donated at least $440,000 to Trump's campaign.[14][15][16]

References
  1. "Friendly skies: Jet-owning donors reap Trump-era rewards". AP NEWS. 2020-10-01. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  2. "Hunger for success - Smart Business Magazine". Smart Business Magazine. 26 June 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  3. Archives, Wendy Frost-News (2012-04-06). "Jim Bodenstedt to Present UTSA College of Business Frost Distinguished Lecture April 19". UTSA College of Business. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  4. Nicholas Upton; John Hamburger (29 June 2016). "Monitor 200 Operators Keep Growing - Restaurant Industry Insight and Analysis - June 2016". restfinance.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020. MUY! Companies (314 Pizza Huts and 172 Wendy's)
  5. Jim Harris (30 May 2012). "Muy Brands LLC - Retail and Food Best Practices". Retail and Food Best Practices. Retrieved 2 June 2020. One of the largest restaurant franchise owners in the United States has plans to continue growing throughout 2012. Founded in 2003 by President and CEO Jim Bodenstedt with the acquisition of 18 Taco Bell and KFC restaurants in Texas, San Antonio-based MUY Brands, LLC today is one of the top 10 franchisees for Yum! Brands – the owners of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC – and among the top 20 franchise companies in the nation. The company plans to open 12 additional locations this year, supplementing its existing 230 locations in Texas and New Mexico. More than half of MUY’s restaurants are Pizza Hut locations, with the rest consisting of Taco Bell, KFC, Long John Silver’s and A&W units.
  6. Nicholas Upton (18 April 2016). "Sale of 113 Wendy's Creates New Franchisee Unit Leader - Restaurant Industry Insight and Analysis - April 2016". restfinance.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020. The purchase of 75 restaurants in the Cleveland, Ohio; Buffalo, N.Y., and Rochester, N.Y., markets means MUY! Companies is now the largest operator in the Wendy’s system, according to Restaurant Finance Monitor research. At the end of 2015, the company had 314 Pizza Hut restaurants, 76 Taco Bell restaurants. After the Wendy’s transaction, it has more than 245 Wendy’s restaurants under CEO Jim Bodenstedt.
  7. "Justice Department Settles Immigration-Related Discrimination Claim Against Texas-Based National Restaurant Franchise Owner". justice.gov. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  8. "SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT". justice.gov. 2017. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  9. Salazar, Maritza (17 October 2017). "Taco Bell franchise owner discriminated against workers who are legally in US, DOJ says". KABB. Retrieved 2 June 2020. A locally-based restaurant franchise owner is paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle a federal case involving workers who are permanent residents of the United States.
  10. Leonardi, Ron (28 January 2020). "Vigil honors man fatally shot in Wendy's robbery attempt". GoErie.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020. The Wendy’s is scheduled to reopen on Wednesday at 10 a.m. The franchise will donate, and match, all proceeds from sales on Wednesday to benefit Cavanah’s family, according to the statement released by Bodenstedt.
  11. O'Neill, Madeleine (29 January 2020). "Fundraiser for shooting victim's family fills Wendy's". GoErie.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020. The franchise that operates the restaurant will donate and match all proceeds from Wednesday’s sales, the franchise owner said in a statement.
  12. "Police: Suspect In Custody In Edinboro Wendy's Attempted Robbery, Fatal Shooting". pittsburgh.cbslocal.com. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  13. Tony Licastro (27 January 2020). "Wendy's holding fundraiser in Edinboro for employee shot and killed over the weekend". News 4 Buffalo. Retrieved 2 June 2020. The restaurant is set to reopen on Wednesday, and Wendy’s will match and donate 100% of sales from the restaurant on Wednesday to benefit Cavanah’s family.
  14. Kate Taylor (18 May 2020). "The first fast-food franchisee to advise Trump on reopening restaurants has donated more than $400,000 to the president's reelection — including $200,000 in March". Business Insider. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  15. Kate Taylor (2 June 2020). "Wendy's faces backlash after a franchisee donates more than $440,0000 to Trump, as #WendysIsOverParty explodes on Twitter". Business Insider. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  16. Tim Carman (18 May 2020). "Independent and chain restaurants press Trump on relief efforts at White House meeting". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 June 2020. In addition to Guidara and Irby, participants included Texas and Tennessee restaurateur Tim Love, Jose Cil from Restaurant Brands International (Burger King, Popeyes), James Bodenstedt of Muy Restaurants (Taco Bell, Wendy’s), Niren Chaudhary of Panera Bread, Tilman Fertitta of Landry’s Inc., and chef-restaurateur Thomas Keller, who’s also a member of the White House’s economic revival industry group. When the president took part in a conference call with restaurant executives in March, none were independent operators, so Colicchio said he was glad the IRC had a seat at the table this time around. An estimated 70 percent of restaurants are independents.
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