CHICAGO — One of America's largest sandwich chains is significantly expanding its footprint in western Washington.
Potbelly, with over 425 locations in the U.S., announced plans to open 13 new locations across King, Pierce and Thurston counties. The locations would bring Potbelly's total to 22 in the region, adding to nine currently existing stores.
“We’re thrilled to put the Potbelly experience within the reach of more people in the Seattle-Tacoma region,” said Bob Wright, president and CEO of Potbelly. “This is a market that performs well but is significantly underpenetrated right now. We see tremendous whitespace for our brand and look forward to supporting our franchisee as they open the doors to new shops in the years ahead.”
Potbelly has three Seattle locations currently open along with two Bellevue locations, in addition to shops in Issaquah, Renton, Redmond and Bothell.
Sound Sandwich LLC is the franchisee that will be taking over control of Potbelly's stores in western Washington. The company is buying the nine existing stores from Potbelly and will own the 13 new stores that will be built over the next eight years.
Potbelly said its long-term goal is to have 2,000 locations, with at least 85% of those being franchised.
No specific locations within the three counties mentioned were listed in the release, but all of Potbelly's current shops are within King County limits.
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