Operations

Fast Casual Hall of Fame inductees include Fazoli's, Panera Bread, Native Brand leaders

Fazoli's former CEO Carl Howard, Native Foods CEO Carin Stutz and Blaine Hurst, former Panera Bread CEO, make up the inaugural class of the Fast Casual Hall of Fame and will be honored at the annual Fast Casual Executive Summit.

Image courtesy of Networld Media Group.

August 11, 2022

For over 20 years, fast casual concepts have been at the forefront of innovation in the restaurant industry, proving to be trendsetters in store design, menu development, customer experience and restaurant technology.

That would not be possible, however, without the blood, sweat and tears of the men and women leading those brands. They are the very reason we've created The Fast Casual Hall of Fame — to honor individuals, who through their vision and leadership, have driven not only the success of their brands but of the fast casual segment as a whole.

This year's honorees — former Fazoli's CEO Carl Howard, former Panera CEO Blaine Hurst and Native Foods CEO Carin Stutz — will join us for an awards ceremony, sponsored by Botrista Technology, during the annual Fast Casual Executive Summit, Oct. 9-11, in Indianapolis, to receive their awards and address the attendees. They'll discuss what led them to their positions, how the industry has shaped them and what's coming next.

Join us at the summit (register here) to meet the inductees and to learn why Howard, Hurst and Stutz were chosen as the first class of Fast Casual Hall of Fame honorees.

To read more about the inductees, click here.