Sharon Moeller
Sharon Moeller spent most of her career in franchise lending. She credited the experiences over her 16-plus years for setting her up for success as chief financial officer for franchise operator WKS Restaurant Group.
Moeller began her new role in March after serving in various leadership roles at GE Capital and Wintrust Financial. She’s no stranger to WKS, having worked with the group for more than a decade during her time in franchise lending.
“I really got to know them very well,” Moeller said. “I’ve had experience lending in all the different brands, several acquisitions and developments and had done several deals with them, so I had a good relationship with the company, in particular, Paul Tanner.”
Moeller said Tanner, who was the group’s CFO, approached her about the role and gauged her interest in WKS. Tanner has since moved into the role of chief investment officer for WKS.
The Cypress, California-based group operates more than 400 units across 20 states, with a portfolio including Wendy’s, Denny’s, El Pollo Loco and Krispy Kreme. It’s No. 9 on the Franchise Times Restaurant 200 list of largest franchisees and did $792 million in sales last year.
“We’re really focused on operations. While there’s some economic uncertainty, I think we’re glad to be in a diverse portfolio of restaurants, have good relationships with the franchisors and be in strong brands,” Moeller said. “We’re really trying to control the things we can control.”
Moeller believes the career change allows her to take what she’s learned from her years in lending and apply it toward a fresh, new job opportunity.
“One of the most fun pieces of my job prior to this was helping customers grow and being involved in acquisitions,” she said. “It’s fun now to be in that from a different angle. I think having really had experience with the brands, having experience with the kind of transactions they do and raising capital are really the skillsets that transfer the most.”
Working on the franchisee side of the equation has come with eye-opening experiences, Moeller said, including learning about aspects of franchising she wasn’t privy to prior to March. Top of mind for her is getting to see and interact with more of the operations group.
“I think, as a lender, you kind of know that exists,” she said. “But here, seeing that up close and personal … You’re seeing that’s really the engine that runs the company. It’s really those people out in the restaurants doing that work every day.”
Executive Ladder
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Matthew Zappone
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Jill Marchant
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Send promotions and new hire news in franchising to Alyssa Huglen, [email protected]