Thanks to a tumultuous economy and weak consumer confidence, most brands merely survived the 2009 fiscal year. However, there were a select few who managed to buck the trend and grow sales despite the gloomy economic climate.
Below are the top 50 chains in the quick-service and fast-casual industries ranked by sales increases. At the top is emerging burger concept Five Guys with 70 percent sales growth over the year before. That’s more than double its closest competitor Jimmy John, which comes in at No. 2 with 21 percent sales growth.
Brands unable to meet their previous year’s sales included White Castle, Sbarro, KFC, and Arby’s, all reporting negative growth in 2009. Long John Silver’s posted the worst growth with -12.5 percent sales growth in fiscal 2009.
| Sales Growth Ranking | 2010 QSR 50 Rank | Chain | Segment | Change in Systemwide Sales | U.S. Systemwide Sales ’09 (millions) | U.S. Systemwide Sales ’08 (millions) |
| 1 | 42 | Five Guys Burgers & Fries | burger | 70.31% | $499.0 | $293.0 |
| 2 | 34 | Jimmy John’s* | sandwich | 21.22% | $602.0 | $496.6 |
| 3 | 49 | Tim Hortons1 | snack | 18.84% | $410.0 | $345.0 |
| 4 | 21 | Chipotle | mexican | 15.38% | $1,500.0 | $1,300.0 |
| 5 | 46 | Qdoba | mexican | 8.92% | $434.8 | $399.2 |
| 6 | 45 | In-N-Out Burger* | burger | 8.81% | $457.0 | $420.0 |
| 7 | 12 | Chick-fil-A* | chicken | 8.60% | $3,217.0 | $2,962.3 |
| 8 | 31 | Bojangles’ | chicken | 8.49% | $659.5 | $607.9 |
| 9 | 28 | Zaxby’s | chicken | 8.13% | $718.0 | $664.0 |
| 10 | 33 | Papa Murphy’s | pizza/pasta | 7.69% | $630.0 | $585.0 |
| 11 | 25 | Little Caesars* | pizza/pasta | 7.11% | $1,130.0 | $1,055.0 |
| 12 | 15 | Panera Bread* | sandwich | 7.05% | $2,796.5 | $2,612.3 |
| 13 | 27 | Steak 'n Shake* | burger | 5.49% | $753.8 | $714.6 |
| 14 | 23 | Panda Express | asian | 4.18% | $1,245.0 | $1,195.0 |
| 15 | 2 | Subway* | sandwich | 4.17% | $10,000.0 | $9,600.0 |
| 16 | 1 | McDonald’s | burger | 3.68% | $31,000.0 | $29,900.0 |
| 17 | 7 | Dunkin’ Donuts* | snack | 3.64% | $5,700.0 | $5,500.0 |
| 18 | 50 | Einstein Bros. Bagels* | sandwich | 2.97% | $378.4 | $367.5 |
| 19 | 32 | Culver’s | burger | 1.94% | $656.0 | $643.5 |
| 20 | 26 | Church’s Chicken* | chicken | 1.58% | $835.0 | $822.0 |
| 21 | 16 | Dairy Queen* | burger | 1.54% | $2,640.0 | $2,600.0 |
| 22 | 6 | Taco Bell2 | mexican | 1.49% | $6,800.0 | $6,700.0 |
| 23 | 17 | Papa John’s | pizza/pasta | 1.13% | $2,057.0 | $2,034.0 |
| 24 | 43 | Jason’s Deli | sandwich | 0.96% | $471.6 | $467.1 |
| 25 | 37 | Del Taco | mexican | 0.85% | $568.0 | $563.2 |
| 26 | 13 | Jack in the Box | burger | 0.78% | $3,072.1 | $3,048.3 |
| 27 | 10 | Sonic | burger | 0.69% | $3,837.4 | $3,811.2 |
| 28 | 30 | Checkers/Rally’s | burger | 0.58% | $663.5 | $659.7 |
| 29 | 24 | Whataburger | burger | 0.51% | $1,178.9 | $1,172.9 |
| 30 | 20 | Popeyes* | chicken | 0.25% | $1,597.0 | $1,593.0 |
| 31 | 47 | Cold Stone Creamery | snack | 0.02% | $429.9 | $429.8 |
| 32 | 3 | Burger King | burger | 0.00% | $9,000.0 | $9,000.0 |
| 33 | 14 | Domino’s* | pizza/pasta | -0.23% | $3,030.8 | $3,037.7 |
| 34 | 19 | Hardee’s* | burger | -1.19% | $1,660.0 | $1,680.0 |
| 35 | 22 | Carl’s Jr.* | burger | -2.49% | $1,370.0 | $1,405.0 |
| 36 | 36 | Baskin-Robbins* | snack | -2.56% | $570.0 | $585.0 |
| 37 | 4 | Wendy’s* | burger | -2.62% | $8,388.0 | $8,614.0 |
| 38 | 38 | CiCi’s Pizza | pizza/pasta | -2.79% | $563.6 | $579.8 |
| 39 | 44 | Captain D’s | seafood | -3.19% | $461.2 | $476.4 |
| 40 | 5 | Starbucks Coffee* | snack | -3.45% | $8,347.2 | $8,645.7 |
| 41 | 48 | Krystal | burger | -3.50% | $413.8 | $428.8 |
| 42 | 40 | White Castle | burger | -4.14% | $544.4 | $567.9 |
| 43 | 41 | Sbarro* | pizza/pasta | -5.17% | $517.1 | $545.3 |
| 44 | 9 | KFC2 | chicken | -5.77% | $4,900.0 | $5,200.0 |
| 45 | 18 | Quiznos Subs* | sandwich | -5.83% | $1,776.5 | $1,886.5 |
| 46 | 11 | Arby’s* | sandwich | -6.61% | $3,228.8 | $3,457.5 |
| 47 | 35 | El Pollo Loco | chicken | -7.18% | $582.0 | $627.0 |
| 48 | 39 | Boston Market* | chicken | -8.40% | $545.0 | $595.0 |
| 49 | 8 | Pizza Hut2 | pizza/pasta | -9.09% | $5,000.0 | $5,500.0 |
| 50 | 29 | Long John Silver’s*2 | seafood | -12.50% | $700.0 | $800.0 |
