The addition of 15 net new restaurants brings the total number of A&W eateries in the Royalty Pool to 715. Since 2002, the number of restaurants for which royalties are paid to the Fund has increased by 130 restaurants, from 585 to 715.
“We are delighted with the growth of new A&W restaurants across Canada and, in particular in Ontario, our most important growth market in the country,” says Paul Hollands, president and CEO of A&W Food Services. “Our new restaurants further strengthen our position as Canada’s second-largest burger chain.”
The estimated annualized sales of the 20 new A&W restaurants being added to the Royalty Pool on Jan. 5 are $20,160,000 and annual sales for the five permanently closed restaurants were $1,673,000. The net sales of $18,487,000 from the 15 net new restaurants translates into estimated additional annual royalty payments to the Fund of $555,000 on the basis of the royalty of three per cent of sales.