Baja Fresh Mexican Grill Names New CEO

Wendy’s International, Inc. today announced that Brion Grube has been named chief executive officer and president of its Baja Fresh Mexican Grill subsidiary. The appointment is effective immediately.

Grube, a 15-year veteran of the Wendy’s organization, was most recently CEO of the Company’s Cafe Express fast-casual restaurant business. Grube was also executive vice president of Wendy’s International division, where he engineered a turnaround and posted a profit for four consecutive years. Previously, Grube was senior vice president for Wendy’s of Canada, where he grew the division from 150 to more than 320 restaurants and produced significant improvements in the business. He was also a Wendy’s division vice president in the U.S.

“Brion is an excellent operator and has a stellar track record of building sales and profits in several important leadership roles,” says Wendy’s International, Inc. chairman and CEO Jack Schuessler.

Grube replaces outgoing Baja Fresh CEO Bill Moreton, who is leaving to join a Chicago-based restaurant chain. “We appreciate the excellent job Bill did improving the brand and we wish him well in the future. There will be a seamless transition period as Brion and Bill work together with the management team and franchisees at Baja Fresh,” says Schuessler. “We are making good progress on several key initiatives to improve Baja’s profitability.”

At Café Express, Bob Wright has been named president. Wright is a seven-year veteran of the Wendy’s system and was most recently a director of area operations. Previously he was a franchise area director for Wendy’s and worked for Domino’s Pizza in a number of roles including senior franchise consultant, corporate operations director and regional training director