VP, Franchisee Relations
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Job Description
VP managing franchise transfers, distressed-operator workouts, and lease negotiations for FAT Brands’ U.S. restaurant portfolio. Protecting units and royalty base across 12 franchised concepts.
Responsibilities:
- Own the end-to-end transfer process for franchisee sales to other franchisees or qualified outside buyers
- Broker matches between exiting operators and qualified acquirers to retain units in the network
- Manage ownership changes, including partner buyouts, entity restructures, estate and succession transfers, and changes of control
- Coordinate transfer consents, releases, guaranty assignments, and agreement renewals with Franchise Counsel
- Lead negotiations and structure workouts with financially distressed franchisees
- Develop royalty deferrals or abatements, arrears payment plans, remodel or development deferrals, fee waivers, and time-limited support
- Evaluate closure, transfer, and company-assumption alternatives and recommend the best economic outcome
- Negotiate orderly wind-downs when closure is unavoidable
- Advise franchisees on landlord negotiations and negotiate directly with landlords where the company has lease exposure
- Drive lease assignments and landlord consent in transfer transactions
- Track lease expirations and renewal risks across the franchised portfolio
- Negotiate Area Development Agreement restructures, remodel and reimage deferrals, and contested renewals
- Maintain a watch list of at-risk U.S. franchisees and establish early-warning triggers
- Report units at risk, arrears, transfers in process, closures avoided, and other outcome metrics to the Head of Franchising
- Coordinate franchisee matters across Operations, Finance, Legal, Construction, Supply Chain, and Marketing
- Partner with Finance and Accounts Receivable on arrears, collections, credit holds, and concession modeling
- Route defaults, cure notices, terminations, and litigation to Franchise Counsel while owning pre-default intervention
- Approve transfers, workout terms, fee waivers, and concessions within authority thresholds
- Document approvals and recommendations with supporting economics and alternatives considered
- Maintain consistent concession decisions and the approval framework
- Maintain lender relationships and connect qualified franchisees to capital
- Engage on franchisee group M&A and multi-unit operator consolidation
- Ensure Item 20 transfer, closure, and termination data integrity
- Maintain active personal-guaranty records and documentation of releases
- Support post-transaction stabilization before handing matters back to the field organization
Requirements:
- 10+ years in franchising, multi-unit restaurant or retail operations, or franchise development, with substantial transaction exposure
- Demonstrated experience negotiating and closing commercial transactions — business transfers, lease restructures, workout arrangements, or comparable deal work — with documented outcomes
- Strong financial acumen: reads franchisee financial statements, models concession scenarios, and independently assesses whether a workout beats the alternative
- Working knowledge of franchise agreements, area development agreements, transfer and consent provisions, personal guarantees, and default and cure mechanics
- Commercial lease literacy — lease structures, assignment and consent provisions, guaranty positions, and landlord negotiation practice
- Proven ability to hold a firm negotiating position while preserving a long-term commercial relationship
- Multi-brand or multi-concept franchise portfolio experience strongly preferred
- Proven cross-functional coordination without direct authority
- Excellent judgment on when to escalate; comfortable with ambiguity and real financial consequence
- Excellent written and verbal communication, including recommendation materials for senior leadership
- Bachelor's degree required
- MBA, JD, or equivalent transactional background a plus
Benefits:
- Fully remote work arrangement
- Regular travel required
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