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Announcement October 18, 2019

Inspire Brands Completes Acquisition of Jimmy John’s

Atlanta, Ga. and Champaign, Ill.– October 18, 2019 – Inspire Brands, Inc. (“Inspire”) today announced the completion of its acquisition of Jimmy John’s Sandwiches (“Jimmy John’s”).

With the addition of Jimmy John’s, Inspire now encompasses more than 11,200 restaurants across 16 countries generating more than $14 billion annual system sales, making it the fourth-largest restaurant company in the United States. In addition to Jimmy John’s, Inspire’s restaurant portfolio includes Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, SONIC Drive-In and Rusty Taco.

“We are excited to officially welcome Jimmy John’s to our growing family of brands,” said Paul Brown, Chief Executive Officer of Inspire Brands. “The team members and franchisees at Jimmy John’s should be incredibly proud of the company they’ve helped create, and we look forward to building on their success as we continue to drive innovation and long-term growth at Jimmy John’s.”

As previously announced, James North has been named President of the Jimmy John’s brand, reporting to Paul Brown, and founder Jimmy John Liautaud is serving as an advisor to the brand.

“Jimmy John’s is thrilled to join the Inspire family,” said North. “Our guests, team members and franchisees will benefit greatly from Inspire’s significant scale and investments in industry-leading capabilities, and we look forward to working alongside the Inspire team to fuel future growth for the Jimmy John’s brand.”

About Inspire Brands
Inspire Brands is a multi-brand restaurant company whose current portfolio includes more than 11,200 Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, SONIC Drive-In, Rusty Taco, and Jimmy John’s Sandwiches locations worldwide. The company was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information, visit InspireBrands.com

About Roark
Roark focuses on investing in franchised and multi-unit businesses in the consumer and business services sectors. Since inception, affiliates of Roark have invested in 73 franchise/multi-unit brands, which collectively generate $37 billion in annual system revenues from 36,000 locations in 50 states and 81 countries.

Media Contacts

For Inspire Brands:
Christopher Fuller
Chief Communications Officer
Inspire Brands
Press@inspirebrands.com

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Nils H. Okeson serves as General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Okeson oversees the legal, corporate secretary, risk management, lease management, and administrative services functions for Inspire and its brands.

Prior to Inspire, Okeson was General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.

Okeson joined Arby’s as General Counsel in 2005 and became General Counsel of Arby’s former parent corporation, Triarc Companies in 2007. In these roles, he helped lead the organization through a number of significant M&A and financing transactions as Triarc evolved into a pure play restaurant company eventually combining with Wendy’s International, Inc. to form Wendy’s/Arby’s Group in 2008. At Wendy’s/Arby’s Group, Okeson served as General Counsel of the parent company and each of the Arby’s and Wendy’s operating companies. Following Roark Capital Group’s acquisition of Arby’s in 2011, Okeson remained with Arby’s as General Counsel while assuming additional senior management responsibilities.

Previously, Okeson was a partner at Alston & Bird LLP in Atlanta, Georgia, where he spent 15 years specializing in corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, securities regulation, and corporate finance. While at Alston & Bird, Okeson co-chaired the firm’s securities and corporate governance practice quality teams.

He was listed in Chambers USA America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, The Best Lawyers in America, and Georgia Super Lawyers. Okeson is a past member of the Advisory Board of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware. In 2005, he was named a Georgia Rising Star in Atlanta magazine and Georgia Super Lawyers – Rising Stars Edition. Okeson was named Outstanding General Counsel in 2015 and Dealmaker of the Year in 2019 by the Atlanta Business Chronicle and the Georgia chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel.

Okeson is an alumnus of the University of Virginia where he received a Bachelor of Arts, with distinction, majoring in economics and minoring in mathematics. He also received a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Melissa Strait serves as Chief People Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Strait oversees the strategy, development, and execution of human resources, organizational effectiveness programs, and talent management programs for Inspire and its brands.

Prior to Inspire, Strait was the Chief People Officer of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. In 2017, for the first time in brand history, Fortune ranked Arby’s as one of the 100 Best Workplaces for Diversity, Women, and Millennials.

Strait began her 30-year career with Arby’s as a front-line team member in Michigan. She previously held positions ranging from Director of Training to Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Leadership Development.

Strait is an alumna of the Hope College where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology.

Raghu Sagi serves as Chief Information Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Sagi is responsible for leading technology initiatives across the Inspire enterprise, including enhancing technologies for company and franchise restaurants as well as the overall digital experience for guests.

Prior to Inspire, Sagi served as Chief Engineering Officer for Sephora Americas (an LVMH brand), where he was responsible for Omni-Channel Digital, Retail, Personalization & CRM including Loyalty and Data Insights technology capabilities and platforms.

Prior to Sephora, Sagi held technology leadership positions at Walmart and Best Buy.

During his time at Inspire Brands, Sagi was named to the Forbes CIO Next List, recognizing the top 50 top tech leaders redefining the CIO role and driving game-changing innovation. He was also named to the CIO 100 list and the Constellation Research 2023 Business Transformation 150 list.

Sagi is an alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, where he received a Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Communications Engineering. He also received a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

Christopher Fuller serves as Chief Communications and Impact Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Fuller leads communications for Inspire and its brands, including internal and external engagement, meetings and events, creative services, government relations, community relations, and corporate communications, as well as the company's environmental, social, and governance initiatives.

Fuller also serves as executive sponsor for the organization’s “Good Citizen” pillar within the “People First” approach. In this role, he has led the creation of the Inspire Foundation and the expansion of the Foundation’s purpose to ‘ignite and nourish change for good.’ In 2021, Inspire and its brands raised $19 million for philanthropic causes. In 2022, Fuller oversaw the publication of Inspire’s first impact report.

Prior to Inspire, Fuller served as Senior Vice President of Communications for Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.

While at Inspire, Fuller has overseen communications for four brand acquisitions and integrations, beginning with the $2.9 billion acquisition of Buffalo Wild Wings in 2018 and most recently with the $11.3 billion acquisition of Dunkin’ Brands in 2020.

Fuller has nearly 25 years of communications, PR, and government relations experience for organizations including restaurant brands, global ad agencies, and the United States Congress.

Fuller serves on the Leadership Council and co-chairs the Advisory Council for Dine for No Kid Hungry, is a board member of the Perimeter Chamber of Commerce, is a board member of the Georgia Music Accord, and is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society. He also chairs the Inspire Foundation Board of Directors.

Fuller is an alumnus of West Texas A&M University where he received a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications. He also received an MBA from the University of Dallas.

Jim Taylor serves as President of Arby’s, part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Taylor sets the strategic direction for Arby’s and is responsible for the growth and success of over 3,400 franchise and corporate restaurants.

Taylor previously served as Chief Marketing Officer of Arby’s, where he led all research and development, new product innovation, brand marketing and positioning, advertising creation, and media planning. He also served as Senior Vice President of Brand Advertising and Activation as well as Senior Vice President of Product Development and Innovation.

Prior to joining Arby’s, Taylor worked for Darden Restaurants, the parent company of some of the most recognizable brands in fullservice dining, such as Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, and Seasons 52. At Darden, Taylor served as Senior Vice President of Enterprise Strategy, Innovation, and Marketing; Senior Vice President of Olive Garden Brand Development; Marketing Director of Olive Garden Brand Development; and Marketing Director of Red Lobster National Promotions.

Taylor began his career with Procter & Gamble where, during his 15-year tenure, he served in various finance and marketing leadership capacities for the company’s oral care, male grooming, and digestive wellness portfolios.

Taylor is an alumnus of the University of Illinois where he received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in General Engineering. He also received a Master of Science degree from Stanford University.

Taylor serves on the Board of Advisors to the University of Georgia Terry College of Business.

Lyle Tick serves as President of Buffalo Wild Wings, part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Tick sets the strategic direction for Buffalo Wild Wings and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing, operations, and supply chain teams. He is also responsible for the growth and success of Buffalo Wild Wings company-owned restaurants as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community.

Prior to joining Buffalo Wild Wings, Tick was Managing Director for Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) beauty brands business in the Americas. At WBA, Tick led the re-organization of the America’s business and established a capabilities program around end to end brand management and commercial management.

Prior to WBA, Tick served as Senior Global Category Director at Bacardi based in London and Vice President of Marketing for North America based in Miami. As Senior Global Category Director, he was responsible for the global Vodka category, the development of a 5-year global strategic plan for the category, and the renovation of the Grey Goose Brand. As Vice President of Marketing for North America, Tick drove the Grey Goose business back into growth reversing a multi-year year negative trend.

Prior to Bacardi, Tick served in a variety of positions within marketing and advertising agencies, including J. Walter Thompson, Gotham, McGarryBowen, and DDB.

In 2005, Tick was named one of the 20 visionaries in advertising and marketing under the age of 30 by Ad Age.

Tick is an alumnus of the University of Wisconsin.

Christian Charnaux serves as Chief Growth Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Charnaux leads Inspire’s growth efforts, including the identification and integration of strategic additions to Inspire’s multi-brand portfolio, as well as Inspire’s Development, International, and Supply Chain functions.

Prior to Inspire, Charnaux was with Hilton Worldwide where he served in a number of brand management, commercial services, and finance positions. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance where he oversaw Hilton’s Capital Markets, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Investor Relations efforts.

Previously, Charnaux was with the Boston Consulting Group where he focused on the travel and consumer product sectors. He also worked for J.P. Morgan in the Technology coverage and Mergers & Acquisition groups.

Charnaux is an alumnus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree, with Highest Distinction, in History and Political Science and was a Morehead Scholar. He also received an MBA, with Distinction, from Harvard Business School. He currently serves on the boards of Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School and National DCP. He also serves the Advisory Boards of Georgia's Partnership for Inclusive Innovation and Engage Ventures.

Claudia San Pedro serves as Head of the Limited Service Category and President of SONIC Drive-In, part of the Inspire family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

San Pedro sets the strategic direction for SONIC and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing and operations teams as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community.

San Pedro assumed her role in January 2018. She joined SONIC in 2006 as vice president of investor relations and treasurer before being promoted to executive vice president and chief financial officer in 2015. In her previous roles, San Pedro was responsible for SONIC's financial planning practices, as well as the brand's relationship with lending institutions, shareholders, and the financial community.

Prior to joining SONIC, she served as the director for the Oklahoma Office of State Finance (OSF). Appointed by Governor Brad Henry in 2005, San Pedro was the first female and first Hispanic to serve as director of state finance for Oklahoma.

Before joining OSF and the Henry administration, San Pedro served as the assistant director of the Oklahoma State Senate fiscal staff and a staff budget analyst for the senate appropriations subcommittees on education, human services, and general government.

For her leadership, San Pedro was named the 2022 Restaurant Leader of the Year by the editors of Restaurant Business. She was also included on the HERoes Women Executive Role Model List 2021, powered by Yahoo! Finance; honored as part of Nation’s Restaurant News’ 2021 Power List: Women of Influence; named one of LATINA Style’s 2020 Corporate Executives of the Year; and featured on Entrepreneur’s 100 Powerful Women 2020 list.

San Pedro presently serves on the board of Directors of the International Franchise Association, the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, BOK Financial, and the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools. She also serves on the University of Oklahoma Price College of Business Board of Advisors and the Smith College Board of Trustees. 

San Pedro holds an undergraduate degree from Smith College in Massachusetts and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Oklahoma.

Born in Mexico City, San Pedro resides in Oklahoma City with her family.

Paul Brown serves as Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide. Inspire is supported by more than 650,000 company and franchise team members. In 2022, its brands achieved over $31 billion in global system sales, making Inspire the second largest restaurant company in the United States.

Prior to founding Inspire, Brown was Chief Executive Officer of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.

Arby’s turnaround “can be attributed to Brown’s vision and leadership,” according to Fortune. As CEO, he launched several transformative initiatives across the brand’s global system with a focus on innovation, including: introducing a new brand purpose, Inspiring Smiles Through Delicious Experiences®; unveiling a visionary restaurant design that increases energy efficiency; launching a team member training program that is centered on goal setting; and fostering a unique approach to product development that reinforces the brand’s We Have The Meats® marketing.

Prior to Arby’s, Brown served as President of Brands and Commercial Services of Hilton Worldwide. The global hospitality company is comprised of ten brands including Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton, Hampton by Hilton, and Home2 Suites by Hilton. Brown was the company’s global leader for brand management, product standards, marketing, sales, pricing, e-Commerce, loyalty programs, franchise relations, and information technology.

Brown also previously served with Expedia, Inc., the world’s leading online travel company, as President of Expedia.com and Expedia’s Partner Services Group. Prior to Expedia, Brown was a partner at the McKinsey & Company. Based in London, he was a leader of the firm’s global travel and hospitality practice and served clients across the travel, hospitality, and retail sectors. Brown has worked with InterContinental Hotels Group as Senior Vice President of Global Brand Services and was responsible for global sales, reservations, the Priority Club loyalty program, e-Commerce, and purchasing. He was also a Manager for The Boston Consulting Group in the firm’s Chicago and Atlanta offices.

For his leadership, Brown was named by Business Insider in 2019 as one of the 10 People Transforming Retail. He was also named the 2018 Norman Award recipient by Nation’s Restaurant News, a 2018 Silver Plate honoree by IFMA, the 2017 Restaurant Leader of the Year by Restaurant Business, and a 2016 Entrepreneur of the Year in Retail and Consumer Products in the Southeast by EY. In 2020, Brown became a member of the Wall Street Journal CEO Council.

Brown is chairman of the board of directors of Neiman Marcus Group and a member of the board of directors of FOCUS Brands, Inc. He is also active in the community, serving on the boards of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, the Georgia Tech Foundation, and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee.

Brown is an alumnus of Georgia Tech where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in management. He also received an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a Master of Engineering Management from the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He is currently a Fellow with the Culinary Institute of America and has served as an executive-in-residence at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration.

Don Crocker serves as Chief Development Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Crocker leads all aspects of company and franchise restaurant development, including real estate & construction, architecture & design, franchise recruitment, and facilities management. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Real Estate for Inspire, overseeing real estate strategy and execution, asset management, site selection, and contract negotiation for all brands.

Prior to Inspire, Crocker was with Chick-fil-A, Inc. for more than two decades. Crocker served in a number of senior leadership roles within the Real Estate, Restaurant Development, and Supply Chain groups, including Senior Director of Real Estate, where he led the development and execution of market expansion and capital investment strategies touching over one-third of the systemwide portfolio.

Prior to Chick-fil-A, Crocker served in real estate development for Waffle House, Inc., where he oversaw market strategy, site selection, sales forecasting, contract negotiation, and new store development for the West and Southwest regions of the U.S. Crocker is an alumnus of the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering. He is also an alumnus of the Goizueta Business School at Emory University.

Christopher Held serves as Chief Supply Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Held is responsible for leading the supply chain functions of Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, SONIC Drive-In, and Jimmy John’s, as well as Arby’s and Dunkin' supply chain outside the United States.

Prior to Inspire, Held was with Restaurant Supply Chain Solutions (RSCS), the supply chain management organization for Yum! Brands. At RSCS, Held served as Senior Vice President for Kentucky Fried Chicken, where he was responsible for leading the supply chain for 4,500 KFC locations.

Previously, Held was with McKinsey & Company where he designed supply chain and operations strategy as well as postmerger supply chain and operations structure for clients across multiple industries. Held previously founded and operated an over the road transportation company and taught Supply Chain at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Held earned his Ph.D. in Operations Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he also earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering. He holds master’s degrees in Management (Harvard University), Finance & Financial Law (University of London), Industrial Engineering (Georgia Institute of Technology), and Chemical Engineering (University of Houston).  

James North serves as President of Jimmy John’s, part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

North sets the strategic direction for Jimmy John’s and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing, operations, and supply chain teams. He is also responsible for the growth and success of Jimmy John’s company-owned restaurants as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community. Under North’s leadership, Jimmy John’s has grown to over 2,800 locations in 43 states and is one of the fastest growing restaurant brands in the United States.

North began his career with Jimmy John’s as an Assistant Manager in Champaign, Illinois. He went on to hold several positions within the company, including Area Manager, Guerilla Marketer, and Real Estate Manager. In 2003, North was promoted to Chief Operating Officer and one year later, he was named the company’s President.

North is an alumnus of the University of Canterbury in his home country of New Zealand.

Scott Murphy serves as Head of the Beverage-Snack Category and President of Dunkin’, part of the Inspire family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Murphy sets the strategic direction for Dunkin’ and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing, operations, and culinary teams, as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community.

Prior to Inspire, Murphy served as President of Dunkin’ Americas at Dunkin’ Brands. He previously served in a variety of leadership positions with the company, including Chief Operating Officer of Dunkin’ and Chief Supply Officer & SVP of International Operations for Dunkin’ Brands.

Previously, Murphy served in leadership roles with A.T. Kearney, Inc., a management consulting firm, where he worked to identify and implement operational opportunities within the supply chain for the firm’s largest clients.

Murphy is an alumnus of Georgetown University. He also received an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Michael Haley serves as President and Managing Director of International for Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

As President of International, Haley is responsible for growing the company’s restaurant footprint beyond the United States. This includes expanding in international markets where Inspire can secure large, multi-unit agreements with high-performing operators. Today, Inspire’s international presence includes over 9,500 restaurants across more than 70 global markets.

Prior to Inspire, Haley was based in London as the Chief Partnership Officer at Pret A Manger, where he held global responsibility for Pret’s Partnership shops. Prior to Pret A Manger, he spent more than 14 years with Starbucks Coffee Company in Seattle, Amsterdam, and London. While at the company, Haley led the development for Starbucks licensed and franchised stores across Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Haley is an alumnus of Villanova University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in civil and environmental engineering. He also received an MBA from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business.

Kate Jaspon serves as Chief Financial Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Jaspon oversees all accounting and reporting, tax, financial planning and analysis, treasury, and internal audit functions for Inspire and its brands. She is also responsible for managing Inspire’s relationship with lending institutions, investors, and the financial community.

Prior to joining Inspire in December 2020, Jaspon served as the Chief Financial Officer of Dunkin’ Brands, the former parent company to Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins, where she led all finance related functions, as well as investor relations since 2017. In this role, she oversaw global financial planning and analysis, accounting, financial reporting, tax, treasury, enterprise risk management, payments, insurance, and demand planning functions.

During her 15-year tenure with Dunkin’ Brands, Jaspon led several transactions including the company's IPO and follow-on equity offerings, securitizations and numerous debt transactions, the divestiture of a brand, and the sale to Inspire.

Previously, Jaspon spent eight years at KPMG LLP as an auditor. She is currently a member of the CNBC CFO Council, Board of Directors for W.W. Grainger, Inc., a Fortune 500 B2B business, and the Women’s Foodservice Forum. She also served as a Member and Audit Committee Chair of the Board of Directors for MOD Pizza from 2017 to 2019.

Jaspon is an alumnus from Babson College and is a CPA.

Dan Lynn serves as Chief Commercial Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Lynn oversees demand generation, digital retail,  guest product management, and customer marketing for each brand. He also leads the development of Inspire’s comprehensive data & analytics functions, enabling each brand to leverage analytics and data science to drive competitive advantage and long-term growth.

Prior to Inspire, Lynn co-founded ZUZU Hospitality, a successful revenue platform for thousands of independent hotels across Asia.

Prior to founding ZUZU, Lynn worked for Expedia Group and led strategy and analytics for the North American business. He went on to launch Expedia in 13 new countries and served as CEO of AirAsia Expedia, and then head of APAC and Emerging Markets for Vrbo (an Expedia Group company).

Before joining Expedia Group, Lynn worked in McKinsey’s London office, where he served global companies in the travel and hospitality industries.

Lynn is an alumnus of the University of Oxford, where he received a Master of Arts in Economics and Management. Lynn is a native of the United Kingdom.

John Kelly serves as Chief Company Restaurant Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

As Chief Company Restaurant Officer, Kelly is responsible for the largest collection of multi-brand company restaurants in the United States representing Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC. His organization brings focused attention and resources to grow Inspire’s company restaurants around three key tenants: People, Performance, and Profitability.

Before becoming CCRO, Kelly was Chief Operating Officer of Arby’s and was responsible for overseeing North American operations for more than 3,400 restaurants. He oversaw the operations excellence of all Arby’s restaurants in the United States and Canada and led a team of more than 200 operations professionals.

Prior to becoming COO, Kelly served as Senior Vice President of Operations for the East Region, where he led operations management for 1,400 corporate and franchise restaurants. He also previously served as Senior Vice President of Operations for the West Region, where he led operations management for 1,800 corporate and franchise restaurants.

Prior to Arby’s, Kelly worked in Operations for McDonald’s, where he served as an Operations Consultant and assisted as a liaison for menu management, product development, and restaurant innovation in Chicago.

Kelly is an alumnus of Northern Illinois University where he received a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Communications.

Nils H. Okeson serves as General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Okeson oversees the legal, corporate secretary, risk management, lease management, and administrative services functions for Inspire and its brands.

Prior to Inspire, Okeson was General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.

Okeson joined Arby’s as General Counsel in 2005 and became General Counsel of Arby’s former parent corporation, Triarc Companies in 2007. In these roles, he helped lead the organization through a number of significant M&A and financing transactions as Triarc evolved into a pure play restaurant company eventually combining with Wendy’s International, Inc. to form Wendy’s/Arby’s Group in 2008. At Wendy’s/Arby’s Group, Okeson served as General Counsel of the parent company and each of the Arby’s and Wendy’s operating companies. Following Roark Capital Group’s acquisition of Arby’s in 2011, Okeson remained with Arby’s as General Counsel while assuming additional senior management responsibilities.

Previously, Okeson was a partner at Alston & Bird LLP in Atlanta, Georgia, where he spent 15 years specializing in corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, securities regulation, and corporate finance. While at Alston & Bird, Okeson co-chaired the firm’s securities and corporate governance practice quality teams.

He was listed in Chambers USA America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, The Best Lawyers in America, and Georgia Super Lawyers. Okeson is a past member of the Advisory Board of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware. In 2005, he was named a Georgia Rising Star in Atlanta magazine and Georgia Super Lawyers – Rising Stars Edition. Okeson was named Outstanding General Counsel in 2015 and Dealmaker of the Year in 2019 by the Atlanta Business Chronicle and the Georgia chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel.

Okeson is an alumnus of the University of Virginia where he received a Bachelor of Arts, with distinction, majoring in economics and minoring in mathematics. He also received a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Melissa Strait serves as Chief People Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Strait oversees the strategy, development, and execution of human resources, organizational effectiveness programs, and talent management programs for Inspire and its brands.

Prior to Inspire, Strait was the Chief People Officer of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. In 2017, for the first time in brand history, Fortune ranked Arby’s as one of the 100 Best Workplaces for Diversity, Women, and Millennials.

Strait began her 30-year career with Arby’s as a front-line team member in Michigan. She previously held positions ranging from Director of Training to Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Leadership Development.

Strait is an alumna of the Hope College where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology.

Raghu Sagi serves as Chief Information Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Sagi is responsible for leading technology initiatives across the Inspire enterprise, including enhancing technologies for company and franchise restaurants as well as the overall digital experience for guests.

Prior to Inspire, Sagi served as Chief Engineering Officer for Sephora Americas (an LVMH brand), where he was responsible for Omni-Channel Digital, Retail, Personalization & CRM including Loyalty and Data Insights technology capabilities and platforms.

Prior to Sephora, Sagi held technology leadership positions at Walmart and Best Buy.

During his time at Inspire Brands, Sagi was named to the Forbes CIO Next List, recognizing the top 50 top tech leaders redefining the CIO role and driving game-changing innovation. He was also named to the CIO 100 list and the Constellation Research 2023 Business Transformation 150 list.

Sagi is an alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, where he received a Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Communications Engineering. He also received a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

Christopher Fuller serves as Chief Communications and Impact Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Fuller leads communications for Inspire and its brands, including internal and external engagement, meetings and events, creative services, government relations, community relations, and corporate communications, as well as the company's environmental, social, and governance initiatives.

Fuller also serves as executive sponsor for the organization’s “Good Citizen” pillar within the “People First” approach. In this role, he has led the creation of the Inspire Foundation and the expansion of the Foundation’s purpose to ‘ignite and nourish change for good.’ In 2021, Inspire and its brands raised $19 million for philanthropic causes. In 2022, Fuller oversaw the publication of Inspire’s first impact report.

Prior to Inspire, Fuller served as Senior Vice President of Communications for Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.

While at Inspire, Fuller has overseen communications for four brand acquisitions and integrations, beginning with the $2.9 billion acquisition of Buffalo Wild Wings in 2018 and most recently with the $11.3 billion acquisition of Dunkin’ Brands in 2020.

Fuller has nearly 25 years of communications, PR, and government relations experience for organizations including restaurant brands, global ad agencies, and the United States Congress.

Fuller serves on the Leadership Council and co-chairs the Advisory Council for Dine for No Kid Hungry, is a board member of the Perimeter Chamber of Commerce, is a board member of the Georgia Music Accord, and is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society. He also chairs the Inspire Foundation Board of Directors.

Fuller is an alumnus of West Texas A&M University where he received a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications. He also received an MBA from the University of Dallas.

Jim Taylor serves as President of Arby’s, part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Taylor sets the strategic direction for Arby’s and is responsible for the growth and success of over 3,400 franchise and corporate restaurants.

Taylor previously served as Chief Marketing Officer of Arby’s, where he led all research and development, new product innovation, brand marketing and positioning, advertising creation, and media planning. He also served as Senior Vice President of Brand Advertising and Activation as well as Senior Vice President of Product Development and Innovation.

Prior to joining Arby’s, Taylor worked for Darden Restaurants, the parent company of some of the most recognizable brands in fullservice dining, such as Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, and Seasons 52. At Darden, Taylor served as Senior Vice President of Enterprise Strategy, Innovation, and Marketing; Senior Vice President of Olive Garden Brand Development; Marketing Director of Olive Garden Brand Development; and Marketing Director of Red Lobster National Promotions.

Taylor began his career with Procter & Gamble where, during his 15-year tenure, he served in various finance and marketing leadership capacities for the company’s oral care, male grooming, and digestive wellness portfolios.

Taylor is an alumnus of the University of Illinois where he received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in General Engineering. He also received a Master of Science degree from Stanford University.

Taylor serves on the Board of Advisors to the University of Georgia Terry College of Business.

Lyle Tick serves as President of Buffalo Wild Wings, part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Tick sets the strategic direction for Buffalo Wild Wings and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing, operations, and supply chain teams. He is also responsible for the growth and success of Buffalo Wild Wings company-owned restaurants as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community.

Prior to joining Buffalo Wild Wings, Tick was Managing Director for Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) beauty brands business in the Americas. At WBA, Tick led the re-organization of the America’s business and established a capabilities program around end to end brand management and commercial management.

Prior to WBA, Tick served as Senior Global Category Director at Bacardi based in London and Vice President of Marketing for North America based in Miami. As Senior Global Category Director, he was responsible for the global Vodka category, the development of a 5-year global strategic plan for the category, and the renovation of the Grey Goose Brand. As Vice President of Marketing for North America, Tick drove the Grey Goose business back into growth reversing a multi-year year negative trend.

Prior to Bacardi, Tick served in a variety of positions within marketing and advertising agencies, including J. Walter Thompson, Gotham, McGarryBowen, and DDB.

In 2005, Tick was named one of the 20 visionaries in advertising and marketing under the age of 30 by Ad Age.

Tick is an alumnus of the University of Wisconsin.

Christian Charnaux serves as Chief Growth Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Charnaux leads Inspire’s growth efforts, including the identification and integration of strategic additions to Inspire’s multi-brand portfolio, as well as Inspire’s Development, International, and Supply Chain functions.

Prior to Inspire, Charnaux was with Hilton Worldwide where he served in a number of brand management, commercial services, and finance positions. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance where he oversaw Hilton’s Capital Markets, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Investor Relations efforts.

Previously, Charnaux was with the Boston Consulting Group where he focused on the travel and consumer product sectors. He also worked for J.P. Morgan in the Technology coverage and Mergers & Acquisition groups.

Charnaux is an alumnus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree, with Highest Distinction, in History and Political Science and was a Morehead Scholar. He also received an MBA, with Distinction, from Harvard Business School. He currently serves on the boards of Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School and National DCP. He also serves the Advisory Boards of Georgia's Partnership for Inclusive Innovation and Engage Ventures.

Claudia San Pedro serves as Head of the Limited Service Category and President of SONIC Drive-In, part of the Inspire family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

San Pedro sets the strategic direction for SONIC and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing and operations teams as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community.

San Pedro assumed her role in January 2018. She joined SONIC in 2006 as vice president of investor relations and treasurer before being promoted to executive vice president and chief financial officer in 2015. In her previous roles, San Pedro was responsible for SONIC's financial planning practices, as well as the brand's relationship with lending institutions, shareholders, and the financial community.

Prior to joining SONIC, she served as the director for the Oklahoma Office of State Finance (OSF). Appointed by Governor Brad Henry in 2005, San Pedro was the first female and first Hispanic to serve as director of state finance for Oklahoma.

Before joining OSF and the Henry administration, San Pedro served as the assistant director of the Oklahoma State Senate fiscal staff and a staff budget analyst for the senate appropriations subcommittees on education, human services, and general government.

For her leadership, San Pedro was named the 2022 Restaurant Leader of the Year by the editors of Restaurant Business. She was also included on the HERoes Women Executive Role Model List 2021, powered by Yahoo! Finance; honored as part of Nation’s Restaurant News’ 2021 Power List: Women of Influence; named one of LATINA Style’s 2020 Corporate Executives of the Year; and featured on Entrepreneur’s 100 Powerful Women 2020 list.

San Pedro presently serves on the board of Directors of the International Franchise Association, the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, BOK Financial, and the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools. She also serves on the University of Oklahoma Price College of Business Board of Advisors and the Smith College Board of Trustees. 

San Pedro holds an undergraduate degree from Smith College in Massachusetts and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Oklahoma.

Born in Mexico City, San Pedro resides in Oklahoma City with her family.

Paul Brown serves as Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide. Inspire is supported by more than 650,000 company and franchise team members. In 2022, its brands achieved over $31 billion in global system sales, making Inspire the second largest restaurant company in the United States.

Prior to founding Inspire, Brown was Chief Executive Officer of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.

Arby’s turnaround “can be attributed to Brown’s vision and leadership,” according to Fortune. As CEO, he launched several transformative initiatives across the brand’s global system with a focus on innovation, including: introducing a new brand purpose, Inspiring Smiles Through Delicious Experiences®; unveiling a visionary restaurant design that increases energy efficiency; launching a team member training program that is centered on goal setting; and fostering a unique approach to product development that reinforces the brand’s We Have The Meats® marketing.

Prior to Arby’s, Brown served as President of Brands and Commercial Services of Hilton Worldwide. The global hospitality company is comprised of ten brands including Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton, Hampton by Hilton, and Home2 Suites by Hilton. Brown was the company’s global leader for brand management, product standards, marketing, sales, pricing, e-Commerce, loyalty programs, franchise relations, and information technology.

Brown also previously served with Expedia, Inc., the world’s leading online travel company, as President of Expedia.com and Expedia’s Partner Services Group. Prior to Expedia, Brown was a partner at the McKinsey & Company. Based in London, he was a leader of the firm’s global travel and hospitality practice and served clients across the travel, hospitality, and retail sectors. Brown has worked with InterContinental Hotels Group as Senior Vice President of Global Brand Services and was responsible for global sales, reservations, the Priority Club loyalty program, e-Commerce, and purchasing. He was also a Manager for The Boston Consulting Group in the firm’s Chicago and Atlanta offices.

For his leadership, Brown was named by Business Insider in 2019 as one of the 10 People Transforming Retail. He was also named the 2018 Norman Award recipient by Nation’s Restaurant News, a 2018 Silver Plate honoree by IFMA, the 2017 Restaurant Leader of the Year by Restaurant Business, and a 2016 Entrepreneur of the Year in Retail and Consumer Products in the Southeast by EY. In 2020, Brown became a member of the Wall Street Journal CEO Council.

Brown is chairman of the board of directors of Neiman Marcus Group and a member of the board of directors of FOCUS Brands, Inc. He is also active in the community, serving on the boards of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, the Georgia Tech Foundation, and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee.

Brown is an alumnus of Georgia Tech where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in management. He also received an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a Master of Engineering Management from the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He is currently a Fellow with the Culinary Institute of America and has served as an executive-in-residence at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration.

Don Crocker serves as Chief Development Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Crocker leads all aspects of company and franchise restaurant development, including real estate & construction, architecture & design, franchise recruitment, and facilities management. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Real Estate for Inspire, overseeing real estate strategy and execution, asset management, site selection, and contract negotiation for all brands.

Prior to Inspire, Crocker was with Chick-fil-A, Inc. for more than two decades. Crocker served in a number of senior leadership roles within the Real Estate, Restaurant Development, and Supply Chain groups, including Senior Director of Real Estate, where he led the development and execution of market expansion and capital investment strategies touching over one-third of the systemwide portfolio.

Prior to Chick-fil-A, Crocker served in real estate development for Waffle House, Inc., where he oversaw market strategy, site selection, sales forecasting, contract negotiation, and new store development for the West and Southwest regions of the U.S. Crocker is an alumnus of the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering. He is also an alumnus of the Goizueta Business School at Emory University.

Christopher Held serves as Chief Supply Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Held is responsible for leading the supply chain functions of Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, SONIC Drive-In, and Jimmy John’s, as well as Arby’s and Dunkin' supply chain outside the United States.

Prior to Inspire, Held was with Restaurant Supply Chain Solutions (RSCS), the supply chain management organization for Yum! Brands. At RSCS, Held served as Senior Vice President for Kentucky Fried Chicken, where he was responsible for leading the supply chain for 4,500 KFC locations.

Previously, Held was with McKinsey & Company where he designed supply chain and operations strategy as well as postmerger supply chain and operations structure for clients across multiple industries. Held previously founded and operated an over the road transportation company and taught Supply Chain at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Held earned his Ph.D. in Operations Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he also earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering. He holds master’s degrees in Management (Harvard University), Finance & Financial Law (University of London), Industrial Engineering (Georgia Institute of Technology), and Chemical Engineering (University of Houston).  

James North serves as President of Jimmy John’s, part of the Inspire Brands family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

North sets the strategic direction for Jimmy John’s and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing, operations, and supply chain teams. He is also responsible for the growth and success of Jimmy John’s company-owned restaurants as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community. Under North’s leadership, Jimmy John’s has grown to over 2,800 locations in 43 states and is one of the fastest growing restaurant brands in the United States.

North began his career with Jimmy John’s as an Assistant Manager in Champaign, Illinois. He went on to hold several positions within the company, including Area Manager, Guerilla Marketer, and Real Estate Manager. In 2003, North was promoted to Chief Operating Officer and one year later, he was named the company’s President.

North is an alumnus of the University of Canterbury in his home country of New Zealand.

Scott Murphy serves as Head of the Beverage-Snack Category and President of Dunkin’, part of the Inspire family of restaurants. Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Murphy sets the strategic direction for Dunkin’ and is responsible for overseeing the brand’s marketing, operations, and culinary teams, as well as the brand’s relationship with its franchise community.

Prior to Inspire, Murphy served as President of Dunkin’ Americas at Dunkin’ Brands. He previously served in a variety of leadership positions with the company, including Chief Operating Officer of Dunkin’ and Chief Supply Officer & SVP of International Operations for Dunkin’ Brands.

Previously, Murphy served in leadership roles with A.T. Kearney, Inc., a management consulting firm, where he worked to identify and implement operational opportunities within the supply chain for the firm’s largest clients.

Murphy is an alumnus of Georgetown University. He also received an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Michael Haley serves as President and Managing Director of International for Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

As President of International, Haley is responsible for growing the company’s restaurant footprint beyond the United States. This includes expanding in international markets where Inspire can secure large, multi-unit agreements with high-performing operators. Today, Inspire’s international presence includes over 9,500 restaurants across more than 70 global markets.

Prior to Inspire, Haley was based in London as the Chief Partnership Officer at Pret A Manger, where he held global responsibility for Pret’s Partnership shops. Prior to Pret A Manger, he spent more than 14 years with Starbucks Coffee Company in Seattle, Amsterdam, and London. While at the company, Haley led the development for Starbucks licensed and franchised stores across Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Haley is an alumnus of Villanova University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in civil and environmental engineering. He also received an MBA from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business.

Kate Jaspon serves as Chief Financial Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Jaspon oversees all accounting and reporting, tax, financial planning and analysis, treasury, and internal audit functions for Inspire and its brands. She is also responsible for managing Inspire’s relationship with lending institutions, investors, and the financial community.

Prior to joining Inspire in December 2020, Jaspon served as the Chief Financial Officer of Dunkin’ Brands, the former parent company to Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins, where she led all finance related functions, as well as investor relations since 2017. In this role, she oversaw global financial planning and analysis, accounting, financial reporting, tax, treasury, enterprise risk management, payments, insurance, and demand planning functions.

During her 15-year tenure with Dunkin’ Brands, Jaspon led several transactions including the company's IPO and follow-on equity offerings, securitizations and numerous debt transactions, the divestiture of a brand, and the sale to Inspire.

Previously, Jaspon spent eight years at KPMG LLP as an auditor. She is currently a member of the CNBC CFO Council, Board of Directors for W.W. Grainger, Inc., a Fortune 500 B2B business, and the Women’s Foodservice Forum. She also served as a Member and Audit Committee Chair of the Board of Directors for MOD Pizza from 2017 to 2019.

Jaspon is an alumnus from Babson College and is a CPA.

Dan Lynn serves as Chief Commercial Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

Lynn oversees demand generation, digital retail,  guest product management, and customer marketing for each brand. He also leads the development of Inspire’s comprehensive data & analytics functions, enabling each brand to leverage analytics and data science to drive competitive advantage and long-term growth.

Prior to Inspire, Lynn co-founded ZUZU Hospitality, a successful revenue platform for thousands of independent hotels across Asia.

Prior to founding ZUZU, Lynn worked for Expedia Group and led strategy and analytics for the North American business. He went on to launch Expedia in 13 new countries and served as CEO of AirAsia Expedia, and then head of APAC and Emerging Markets for Vrbo (an Expedia Group company).

Before joining Expedia Group, Lynn worked in McKinsey’s London office, where he served global companies in the travel and hospitality industries.

Lynn is an alumnus of the University of Oxford, where he received a Master of Arts in Economics and Management. Lynn is a native of the United Kingdom.

John Kelly serves as Chief Company Restaurant Officer of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC Drive-In restaurants worldwide.

As Chief Company Restaurant Officer, Kelly is responsible for the largest collection of multi-brand company restaurants in the United States representing Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC. His organization brings focused attention and resources to grow Inspire’s company restaurants around three key tenants: People, Performance, and Profitability.

Before becoming CCRO, Kelly was Chief Operating Officer of Arby’s and was responsible for overseeing North American operations for more than 3,400 restaurants. He oversaw the operations excellence of all Arby’s restaurants in the United States and Canada and led a team of more than 200 operations professionals.

Prior to becoming COO, Kelly served as Senior Vice President of Operations for the East Region, where he led operations management for 1,400 corporate and franchise restaurants. He also previously served as Senior Vice President of Operations for the West Region, where he led operations management for 1,800 corporate and franchise restaurants.

Prior to Arby’s, Kelly worked in Operations for McDonald’s, where he served as an Operations Consultant and assisted as a liaison for menu management, product development, and restaurant innovation in Chicago.

Kelly is an alumnus of Northern Illinois University where he received a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Communications.