Huddle House, the family restaurant concept, has named Blain Shortreed as brand president, the company announced Monday.
Huddle House is owned by Atlanta-based Ascent Hospitality Management, which also has the Perkins Restaurant & Bakery brand. Shortreed most recently served as CEO of Louisville, Ky.-based Long John Silver’s, a position he was named to in January 2021, and he succeeds Troy Tracy in the Huddle House role, a spokesperson said.
At Huddle House, Shortreed will oversee company operations, the franchise system, marketing, and culinary innovation, the company said in a press release.
"We are thrilled to welcome Blain to the Ascent Hospitality Management senior executive team as he assumes leadership of the Huddle House system,” said James O'Reilly, Ascent CEO, said in a statement. “He brings extensive restaurant operations and finance experience that will be incredibly valuable to the brand. He's demonstrated throughout his career the ability to grow brands and will be vital as we continue to expand and evolve our organization."
Prior to joining Huddle House, Shortreed served as CEO for Long John Silver's, the quick-service seafood chain with nearly 600 restaurants. He initially joined the company as its chief operating officer before assuming the CEO role.
Before Long John Silver's, Shortreed served as Pizza Hut's vice president of operations. He also served as vice president of operations for Yum! Restaurants Canada, where he oversaw operations for the company and franchised KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell locations.
Shortreed said: "Huddle House is an iconic brand that boasts decades of success in the breakfast space and continues to innovate to drive growth opportunities. I am honored to join the organization and guide the team during such an exciting time.”
O’Reilly was named CEO of Ascent in June.
Ascent has nearly 600 restaurants nationwide, with 268 of those Huddle House.
Update Dec. 4, 2023 This story has been edited to include predecessor information.
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