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Sonic names Christina Bell Vaughan president of company restaurantsSonic names Christina Bell Vaughan president of company restaurants

Vaughan succeeds Harold Ceron in the role

Ron Ruggless, Senior Editor

January 25, 2017

1 Min Read
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Sonic Corp. has named company veteran Christina Bell Vaughan president of Sonic Restaurants Inc., its subsidiary that owns and operates 286 restaurants, the drive-in operator said Tuesday.

Vaughan, who joined Sonic in 2002, succeeds Harold Ceron, who has moved into a development position at the Oklahoma City-based company, a Sonic spokeswoman said.

“Christina is a common-sense-driven executive leader who has delivered in every position she has held with our company,” said Cliff Hudson, CEO of Sonic, in a statement.

christinabellvaughan.jpgVaughan most recently served as vice president of franchise operations, overseeing the central region of the United States. Prior to that, she was vice president of market strategies and served in various other marketing and operations roles.

Vaughan led the company’s 20/20 Drive-In initiative to convert Sonic’s 3,500-unit system to a new point-of-sale and its proprietary point-of-personalized service, or POPS, technology.

In addition to her role as president of Sonic Restaurants Inc., Vaughan will serve on the executive committee of the Sonic Franchisee Advisory Council and report directly to Hudson. 

“She is a smart strategist, and I am delighted to see her move into such a critical position with our company,” Hudson said. “Her experience working with franchisees will pay dividends as she moves to manage our owned operations, side by side with franchise owners.” 

Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected]

Follow him on Twitter: @RonRuggless

About the Author

Ron Ruggless

Senior Editor, Nation’s Restaurant News / Restaurant Hospitality

Ron Ruggless serves as a senior editor for Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News (NRN.com) and Restaurant Hospitality (Restaurant-Hospitality.com) online and print platforms. He joined NRN in 1992 after working 10 years in various roles at the Dallas Times Herald newspaper, including restaurant critic, assistant business editor, food editor and lifestyle editor. He also edited several printings of the Zagat Dining Guide for Dallas-Fort Worth, and his articles and photographs have appeared in Food & Wine, Food Network and Self magazines. 

Ron Ruggless’ areas of expertise include foodservice mergers, acquisitions, operations, supply chain, research and development and marketing. 

Ron Ruggless is a frequent moderator and panelist at industry events ranging from the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO) conference to RestaurantSpaces, the Council of Hospitality and Restaurant Trainers, the National Restaurant Association’s Marketing Executives Group, local restaurant associations and the Horeca Professional Expo in Madrid, Spain.

Ron Ruggless’ experience:

Regional and Senior Editor, Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality (1992 to present)

Features Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1989-1991)

Restaurant Critic and Food Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1987-1988)

Editing Roles – Dallas Times Herald (1982-1987)

Editing Roles – Charlotte (N.C.) Observer (1980-1982)

Editing Roles – Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald (1978-1980)

Email: [email protected]

Social media:

Twitter@RonRuggless

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ronruggless

Instagram: @RonRuggless

TikTok: @RonRuggless

 

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