Long John Silver’s recently announced James O’Reilly would assume the role of CEO, taking over for outgoing Mike Kern.
O’Reilly brings with him a long career in the food industry, and a lengthy resume in the fast-casual and quick-service restaurant segments in particular.
In his last two roles, he served as chief marketing officer for Kentucky Fried Chicken and Sonic, a US burger chain. With that experience under his belt, O’Reilly says he’s ready to jump into the world of seafood.
"Becoming CEO of a company that competes for a protein that accounts for 10 percent of all the protein consumers eat is a tremendous opportunity,” O’Reilly told Seafood International.
“To be in the company that s the leader in the quick service application of seafood in the United States makes it even better, so I'm tremendously excited about not only the seafood industry but the potential that Long John Silver's has to grow for many years to come.”
Long John Silver’s can use a new outlook. The chain has struggled with low foot traffic and increasing competition from fish taco chains and. Forbes called the restaurant one of the most troubled restaurant brands in America, and in 2013, the company was on the receiving end of a scathing review from the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which called its Big Catch meal the “worst restaurant meal in America” for its high fat and sodium content.
O’Reilly doesn’t want to radically change the restaurant menu – yet. His goal at this stage is information-gathering.
Click here to read the full story on Seafood International Digital.
