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Don Fox

Editor’s note: Don Fox is chief executive of Firehouse of America LLC, the Jacksonville, Fla.-based parent company of the 475-unit Firehouse Subs chain. Fox received a Golden Chain Award from Nation’s Restaurant News in 2011 and was voted that year’s Operator of the Year by his industry peers. 


With 2012 gathering momentum, there is reason for great optimism and joy in the restaurant industry. 


2011 was a year when our industry rebounded from the losses suffered during the recession. We are blessed as an industry to enjoy a resiliency that is the envy of most other businesses in America. Did the rising tide lift all boats? Certainly not. But when does it ever? Not during my 37 years in the restaurant business. The “haves” are succ...