News

Church's hires Burger King veteran to head development

May 20, 2013

Church's Chicken President and CEO Jim Hyatt announced the appointment of Tony Moralejo as its chief development officer responsible for domestic and international expansion. His responsibilities also include franchising, reimaging, construction and real estate management.

Moralejo reports directly to Hyatt. He joins Church's more than 15 years in various senior positions within the Burger King Corporation, including providing leadership in development, franchising, real estate, finance and marketing and was also the brand's International General Counsel. He was the vice president of Development for the Latin America and Caribbean regions where he cultivated an aggressive pipeline that led the company to an unprecedented growth into new countries.

Most recently, Moralejo took on the special assignment of leading a multi-functional team negotiating and implementing new joint venture companies and master franchise models to accelerate growth and international presence in key countries.

Earlier in his career he was the senior director of Partner and Franchised Management in the Direct to Consumer Group at Nike Inc., and was a member of the brand's Global Leadership Retail Team. After receiving his law degree, Moralejo established a private practice where he specialized in real estate, commercial development and real estate financing.

"Tony is a valuable addition to Church's management team and has a vast amount of experience and an impressive track record in restaurant development and building relationships with franchisees," Hyatt said. "He will be instrumental in spearheading and accelerating the brand's growth plans both domestically and internationally."

Moralejo graduated from the University of Miami with a degree in business administration and received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

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