Wendy's to Be Sold to Arby's Parent Company, Nelson Peltz's Triarc

Nelson Peltz's Triarc, the parent company of Arby's restaurants, is set to buy Wendy's: In a joint press release issued by Wendy's and Triarc Companies, the franchiser of Arby's, a definitive merger agreement has been reached by both company's board of directors. The combined merger of Wendy's & Arby's by Nelson Peltz's Triarc would make the combined fast food chain the nation's third largest quick service restaurant. Together they will have approximately 10,000 restaurants with combined sales of over $12.5 billion.

"Quick Service Restaurant"

It's interesting that the official press release does not call Wendy's or Arby's, owned by Nelson Peltz's Triarc, fast food but positions them as "quick service restaurants". Wendy's has even trademarked a slogan for itself saying "It's waaaay better than fast food.™ It's Wendy's.®" Yet, really, it's not like Arby's has ever been a harbinger of fine dining. In fact, I remember back in the eighties when it was fresh news when Wendy's heavily promoted its salad bar and fresh fixings. But Arby's have never been known for producing a fine upscale roast beef sandwich, either.

What Plans Does Nelson Peltz's Triarc Have for "Warby's"

Nelson Peltz's Triarc is going to abandon the very unsexy, corporate name of Triarc and opt to assume the well branded name of Wendy's for its company name. You can expect to see more Wendy's & Arby's locations popping up across the U.S. and internationally with expansion plans in the works. In "high-cost real estate markets", Nelson Peltz's Triarc is investigating dual-concept restaurants which would possibly retain both Arby's & Wendy's in much the same way as say a Kentucky Fried Chicken and Taco Bell coexist in one location.

How About the Food in a Combine Wendy's & Arby's

The company has plans to focus on breakfast as well as snacks & late night food items which say less about their combined strengths and more about being competitive with other fast food chains. Would you like a frosty with that roast beef sandwich? In 2006, Arby's signed a contract with Pepsi to be their exclusive soft drink provider. As franchise location contracts are set to expire with Coca-cola, Arby's franchisees had been mandated to switch to Pepsi-Cola. Up till now, you could order a diet coke at Wendy's. The coca-cola contract was negotiated over 10 years ago with Wendy's and comes up for renewal this year. It is uncertain under Nelson Peltz's Triarc, which be the soft drink served across Wendy's & Arby's.

Why Cut Corners With Your Hamburger?

According to Wikipedia, "In 2006, Arby's became the first national fast food chain to claim to not use any artificial additives in its chicken products" with a corresponding ad campaign which criticized Wendy's and its competitors for having additives such as water, salt and phosphates. It will be interesting to see if Nelson Peltz's Triarc will work on doing the same for Wendy's menu items. That same year, Arby's made the ambitious claim of being the first fast food restaurant with plans to eliminate all trans-fat by May 2007. But as of December 2007, their nutritional guide did not indicate this had been achieved. The future of fast food with Nelson Peltz's Triarc will determine if many Americans will eat less trans-fat foods in their "quick serve" meals, enjoy less artificial additives in their chicken and let's hope the square hamburgers & Frosty's of Wendy's and the roast beef sandwiches of Arby's will still be a part of the Warby's of tomorrow.

SOURCES:
Wendy's Press Release
Wikipedia, "Arby's"