Wendy’s Plans To Open 1,000 New Restaurants, Hit $18 Billion in Sales by 2028

Wendy’s has big plans, according to the latest buzz coming out of its Investor Day presentation led by CEO Kirk Tanner.

According to Restaurant Business, the fast-food chain wants to open 1,000 locations across the globe by the end of 2028, as Wendy’s seeks to increase its international presence. The company aims to have somewhere between 8,100 and 8,300 restaurants in operation globally by 2028, as well as system sales of up to $18 billion.

That figure would, as TipRanks pointed out, be an effective doubling of the chain’s current global sales growth rate (from 2%-3% annually to 5%-6% annually).

“The Wendy’s brand has tremendous strength, and we will unlock its full potential, scaling our system to match the power of the brand,” Tanner said in a statement. The CEO gestured toward “upcoming innovation and collaborations that will build on our high-quality menu with fresh ingredients.”

“Our relentless pursuit of excellence in our food and our restaurants will position Wendy’s for long-term success as we win across our global markets,” he added.

Wendy’s Switches to New Algorithm for More Aggressive Growth

Per TipRanks, Wendy’s has signed on to a new algorithm to guide its path forward in the coming years. Said algorithm sets a pace of annual net unit growth of 3%-4%, annual sales growth of 5%-6%, and annual adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) growth of 7%-8%.

The company projects global sales growth of between 2% and 3% this year, and adjusted EPS (earnings per share) of between $0.98 and $1.02.

Wendy’s has exhibited slower growth, both domestically and internationally, in terms of its footprint when compared to larger competitors such as McDonald’s or Burger King. Company execs signaled that there was a great opportunity for expansion, citing figures that indicate that Wendy’s currently operates one restaurant per 56,000 people, as opposed to competitors having one restaurant per 36,000 people.

And restaurants aren’t the only focus in terms of greater growth potential. The fast-food chain stated that it was pursuing a plan that would zero in on “globalizing its supply chain to build stronghold positions to fuel growth.”

“Our objective is to create value for our customers, our franchisees and our shareholders,” Wendy’s CFO Ken Cook said.