Krystal plans to move its support center to Atlanta starting in February 2013.
J.Ed Marston, Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce said, "Ever since it was announced that an Atlanta investment group was acquiring Krystal last spring we have known this is a possibility, so it is a sad day. It's not really that big of a surprise."
Krystal has 60 restaurants in Atlanta and 20 in Chattanooga with more than 300 restaurants in the southeast. They feel that their support center needs to be as close as possible to new and existing markets. Doug Pendergast, Krystal President and CEO said, "It's very difficult to support those restaurants from Chattanooga mostly because of the air connections, and Atlanta provides us the opportunity for direct flights to all of our restaurants."
Sixty jobs will be effected by the move. The company will give those employees the opportunity to interview for those positions in Altanta. Pendergast said, "For those that choose not too, or those that don't get, we are going to take good care of them with severance bonus out placement and career counsel."
Krystal is working on a new prototype design for the restaurant. They plan to open at least 150 new restaurants in the next five years, creating thousands of new jobs. Pendergast said, "The heart and soul of the brand will always be here in Chattanooga. Its been a wonderful birth place for the brand and we hope to continue to serve the community through our restaurants and hope folks continue to buy sack fulls of Krystals."
