VANCOUVER, Dec. 10, 2015 /CNW/ - A&W Food Services of Canada Inc. (A&W) is pleased to announce that they have been awarded the Pinnacle Award for Company of the Year by Canada's hospitality business magazine, Foodservice and Hospitality. A&W was recognized at an award ceremony hosted by Kostuch Publications Ltd., publishers of the magazine.
"The Pinnacle Award is highly prestigious and we are honoured to be named as Company of the Year" said Paul Hollands, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of A&W. "We are pleased that our strategy to reposition and differentiate the A&W brand with better ingredients has been recognized in this way."
Two years ago, A&W embarked on a journey to source simple, great-tasting ingredients, farmed with care. "We conducted a great deal of research and discovered the beginning of a "fast foodie" movement" said Susan Senecal, President and Chief Operating Officer. In 2013, A&W became the first major QSR chain to use only beef raised without the use of hormones and steroids. In 2014, A&W began to serve only chicken raised without the use of antibiotics and eggs from hens fed only a vegetarian diet without animal by-products. In 2015, A&W introduced organic and Fair Trade coffee.
A&W's 2015 same store sales growth was 8.8% for the first three quarters of the year and system sales growth for all A&W restaurants across Canada was 12.2% for the same period. "These strong sales results reflect the continued positive guest response to A&W's ingredients guarantee" said Hollands. "We are proud to have high standards when it comes to our food and we are committed to continuing to serve good food to our guests."
Opening new restaurants is also a key focus for A&W. In the last two fiscal years A&W has opened 74 new restaurants which makes it the fastest growing chain in the sector by a significant margin. This rapid expansion is continuing as A&W seeks significant growth particularly in Ontario and Quebec.
A&W is Canada's second largest hamburger chain with over 850 restaurants operating coast to coast and annualized sales of over $1 Billion. A&W restaurants feature famous trade-marked menu items such as The Burger Family®, Chubby Chicken® and A&W Root Beer®.
The Pinnacle Awards are sponsored by Kostuch Publications Ltd. who publish Foodservice and Hospitality magazine. A&W is featured in the December issue along with other Pinnacle Award winners for 2015.
SOURCE A&W Restaurants
Image with caption: "A&W Restaurants (CNW Group/A&W Restaurants)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151210_C7222_PHOTO_EN_562476.jpg
contact Don Leslie, Chief Financial Officer at (604) 988-2141 or [email protected]. Follow A&W on Facebook (www.facebook.com/AWCanada) and Twitter @AWCanada or visit www.aw.ca.
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