Twin Peaks CEO Joe Hummel is stepping down, along with Chief Legal Officer Clay Mingus, the company announced Monday.
The two are moving on to pursue other opportunities, Twin Peaks said. CFO Ken Kuick will step in as interim CEO, and Allen Sussman, general counsel for Twin Peaks’ former parent company Fat Brands, will be interim chief legal officer.
The leadership change will take effect April 10.
Hummel has been with the sports bar chain since 2011, first as a franchisee and then as CEO for nearly eight years. Mingus worked alongside him during that same stretch. And before that, they worked together at Hooters of America.
In January, they helped take Twin Peaks public in a spinoff from owner Fat Brands.
“We would like to thank Joe and Clay for all that they have done for Twin Peaks over the last 14 years,” Kuick said in a statement. “Starting on the franchisee side of Twin Peaks together and then taking on leadership roles at Twin Peaks and now Twin Hospitality Group, they helped pave the way for the IPO.”
The chain’s message around the IPO has been about rapid unit growth. It currently has 115 “sports lodges” in 27 states and Mexico but has its sights set on as many as 650 in the U.S., starting with up to 11 openings this year, as well as 250 internationally.
Its restaurants are known for scantily clad waitresses, a wide beer and food selection, and lots of TVs for sports fans. In terms of overall sales, it has been one of the fastest-growing brands in casual dining in recent years.
But traffic has dipped more recently. In the last quarter of 2024, same-store sales fell 0.6%, and they were down about 2.8% through February. The Dallas-based chain had high hopes that the March Madness college basketball tournament would help bring customers in this month.
Twin Peaks stock, meanwhile, has lost more than half its value since it began trading Jan. 30.
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