Wendy’s is excited about a new line of cheeseburgers, but its largest franchisee isn’t buying in.
Wendy’s International Inc. is suing franchisees Lewis Topper and Jeffrey Coghlan and several affiliates in their WendPartners Franchise Group, alleging breach of contract and claiming they missed deadlines to buy and install bun toasters seen as essential to the fast-food chain’s improved line of cheeseburgers.
Topper and Coghlan’s group owns 329 Wendy’s stores in 20 states – more than 7 percent of the Dublin-based company’s 4,609 franchised U.S. restaurants, according to the lawsuit.