ATLANTA – Rick Altizer was named president of McAlister’s Deli, a unit of Focus Brands which is a franchisor and operator of more than 5,000 ice cream shops, bakeries, restaurants and cafes in the United States, the District of Columbia and abroad.
Altizer joins the company from Rightwell Growth, a business consultancy that develops business strategies for early-stage growth companies.
“I am very pleased to have this opportunity to lead McAlister’s to its next stage of growth and success,” he said in a statement.
Altizer has more than 30 years of experience in retail marketing operations. He began his career in the foodservice industry at McDonald’s Corp., where he worked in a number of positions with the company including in accounting, operations, store management and vice president and general manager of 550 restaurants across Kansas and Missouri.
After McDonald’s, Altizer spent four years at Midas International where he was vice president of operations and training, then as the president of Jiffy Lube International before landing at Shell Oil in Houston where he served as fuel marketing vice president.
Altizer would go on to become CEO of Elevation Burger, which serves only organic hamburgers sourced from grass-fed cattle. He is credited with transforming the company into a high-growth restaurant franchise with double-digit sales growth.
“Rick is an accomplished executive who has a strong track record for leading high-performance teams and transforming businesses into high-growth franchises,” Paul Damico, Focus Brands president, North America, said in a statement. “He will draw on his extensive experience in the franchise business to continue to drive McAlister’s innovation and success.”
