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El Pollo Loco

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El Pollo Loco
Company typePublic
IndustryCasual Dining Restaurant, Restaurants
FoundedLos Angeles, California (1980)
HeadquartersCosta Mesa, California
Number of locations
399[1]
Key people
Steve Sather (President, CEO)

Kay Bogeajis (Chief Operating Officer)
Larry Roberts (Chief Financial Officer)

Ed Valle (Chief Marketing Officer)
ProductsFire-grilled chicken and related Mexican food
Websiteelpolloloco.com

El Pollo Loco is a restaurant chain based in the United States, specializing in Mexican-style grilled chicken. Restaurant service consists of: dine-in, take-out, with some locations offering drive through options. The company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California and operates over 400 (as of March 2014) company-owned and franchised restaurants in the Southwestern United States. "El Pollo Loco" is Spanish for "The Crazy Chicken".

Entrance to El Pollo Loco headquarters in Costa Mesa, California
A typical El Pollo Loco restaurant

El Pollo Loco makes Mexican chicken entrees. The company describes its chicken as "citrus-marinated and fire-grilled."

History

Juan Francisco Ochoa started the restaurant in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, in 1975.[2] By 1979, the chain had expanded throughout northern Mexico. In 1980, its first U.S. restaurant opened in Los Angeles, California, at 503 Alvarado Street, near Sixth Street.[3] In 1983, the American restaurants in the chain were acquired by Denny's, with an agreement that the Ochoa family would continue to operate the restaurants in Mexico. In 1991 El Pollo Loco opened its 200th restaurant. In 1994 El Pollo Loco added self-serve salsa bars in all restaurants and in 1995 El Pollo Loco earned a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for building the world’s largest burrito in Anaheim, California. The burrito was 3,112 feet long and weighed two tons.[4] American Securities Capital Partners acquired El Pollo Loco in 1999 and sold it to current owner Trimaran Capital Partners in 2005. In January 2007, El Pollo Loco was featured on NBC TV’s hit show The Apprentice: Los Angeles where contestants competed by creating and selling versions of El Pollo Loco’s Pollo Bowl.[5] El Pollo Loco was recognized by the World Franchising Network as a Top Franchise for Hispanics in 2010.[4]

In July 2014, El Loco Pollo (NasdaqLOCO) became a publicly traded company by first offering shares of corporate stock for sale on NASDAQ.[6][7]


Locations

In the U.S., the El Pollo Loco chain operates nearly 400 company-owned and franchised restaurants in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, and California. In 2012, El Pollo Loco restaurants went through a major makeover, with more than 55 of their restaurants sporting a newer more contemporary look. The revamped stores include grills that are visible to guests as they order, larger windows that shed more light on the colorful orange and blue hues of the dining room. The salsa bar moved from the dining room to a more central location near the front counter.[8]

In Mexico, Pollo Loco operates over 40 restaurants in Mexico City and the states of Nuevo León, Coahuila, Sonora, and Michoacán, 32 of those being located in Nuevo León. [9]

Growth

El Pollo Loco saw systemwide sales up nearly 9% in 2012; fueled by limited-time offers, a new marketing campaign and restaurant remodels the company opened new restaurants in Las Vegas, NV, Torrance, CA and Oceanside, CA in the Summer of 2013. El Pollo Loco or its franchisees briefly operated several restaurants in metro Atlanta[10] and Boston,[11][12] New Jersey[13] and in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia;[14] these closed by 2011. The chain's franchised restaurants in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area[15][16] also closed in 2011. An El Pollo Loco in the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut[17] closed in spring 2012. The last of four Chicago area[18] stores closed at the end of 2012.

Charity partners

The brand created Fire-Grilled Fundraisers, an initiave for nonprofit organizations to raise funds for their cause while dining at the restaurant. They also created El Pollo Loco Charities, a nonprofit 501© charity created and powered by volunteer employees of El Pollo Loco. El Pollo Loco Charities provide over 10,000 meals a year to help underprivileged families.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.elpolloloco.com/locations/all-locations.html
  2. ^ Diaz, Francisco (8 July 2011), "Entrepreneur of the Year is Named", Laredo Sun, retrieved 16 July 2013[dead link]
  3. ^ The Legacy of El Pollo Loco, El Pollo Loco website
  4. ^ a b c http://www.elpolloloco.com/contentAsset/raw-data/61990b90-b875-42b9-9308-8e176e684093/fileAsset/
  5. ^ "El Pollo Loco is Newest 'Recruit' on NBC's The Apprentice: Los Angeles". Business Wire. 28 January 2007. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  6. ^ Li, Shan (July 25, 2014). "El Pollo Loco stock sizzles to close at 60% above IPO price". Los Angeles Times.
  7. ^ Luna, Nancy (July 25, 2014). "Wall Street clamors for a taste of chicken: El Pollo Loco stock surges 60 percent on first day of trading". Orange County Register.
  8. ^ Luna, Nancy (8 November 2012). "El Pollo Loco joins fray of fast food makeovers". Orange County Register. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  9. ^ http://www.elpolloloco.com.mx/EPL/El_Pollo_Loco___Sucursales.html
  10. ^ "El Pollo Loco Leaves Atlanta as Other Chains Make a Comeback". Tomorrow's News Today - Atlanta. October 5, 2011.
  11. ^ "El Pollo Loco Opens 400th Restaurant in Chelsea, its First Boston Area Location Experienced Multi-Unit Restaurateurs Open Third of at Least 25 New Eng". Franchise.Com. May 27, 2008.
  12. ^ "El Pollo Loco in Chelsea Has Closed". Boston Restaurant Talk. January 14, 2010.
  13. ^ Verdon, Joan (May 3, 2012). "Latin-flavor chicken chains haven't migrated to North Jersey in expected numbers". NorthJersey.com.
  14. ^ Shapiro, Carolyn (February 17, 2011). "3 El Pollo Loco restaurants closing". Virginia Pilot.
  15. ^ Gunderson, Laura (April 4, 2009). "Fast-food chains look toward growth in Portland market". The Oregonian.
  16. ^ Wells, Shannon (15 July 2008). "Restaurant spices up Wood Village Town Center". Portland Tribune.
  17. ^ Giuca, Linda (November 23, 2006). "Take On A Chicken In A Game Of Tic-tac-toe". Hartford Courant.
  18. ^ Meyer, Gregory (August 4, 2005). "El Pollo Loco's Hombre in Chicago". Crain's Chicago Business.