LEADERSHIP
PHOTO COURTESY OF WHATABURGER
WHATABURGER ENTERS A NEW ERA
BY JONATHAN MAZE
ED NELSON GUIDED THE VENERABLE TEXAS-BASED BURGER CHAIN THROUGH ITS TRANSITION TO NEW OWNERSHIP AND THE PANDEMIC. HE NOW PREPARES TO HAND OVER CONTROL TO DEBBIE STROUD.
I n 2019, when news emerged that a Chicago-based investment firm, BDT Capital Partners, had acquired a majority stake in Whataburger, reaction from the chain’s Texas fans was swift. And generally not positive. The reaction was predictable. Texans love Whataburger. The chain had been family-owned for 69 years by the Dobson family. They clearly did not enjoy the idea that it would be owned by someone else, someone outside of Texas. It was Ed Nelson’s job to guide the San Antonio-based chain through that transition. Nelson was promoted to CEO in 2020 after 16 years with the company, the first person outside the Dobson family to take the role. “They’re telling us exactly what they want. It’s on us to deliver that,” Nelson said. “It’s on us to protect what’s made us great.” He appears to have done that just fine, despite the pandemic and its complicated aftermath. System sales increased 47% in the time he’s been the chief executive to $3.8 billion, according to data from Restaurant Business sister com- pany Technomic. The chain now has more than 1,000 locations in 16 states and is the country’s sixth largest fast-food burger chain. Average unit volumes are now over $4 million, one of the quick-service sector’s best. Whataburger is now preparing another transition. Nelson is retiring as CEO at the end of the year. In his place, the company’s chief operating officer for the last year and a half, Debbie Stroud, will take over.
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OCTOBER 2024 RESTAURANT BUSINESS
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