A major franchise operator for hundreds of Popeyes locations will close more locations amid its ongoing Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to a March 10 court filing obtained by PEOPLE.
Sailormen Inc., a Miami-based company that oversaw more than 130 locations in Florida and Georgia, recently closed three more locations, bringing its total to around 20. The company initially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Southern District of Florida on January 15, claiming it was in debt by nearly $130 million, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY, at the time.
The franchisee said it continued to face lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and an “increasingly limited qualified labor force” prior to its decision, the court documents state. Sailormen, Inc. was also reported to have previously tried to sell 16 Popeyes locations in 2023, though the deal fell through and it was left responsible for the restaurant leases, adding to its financial burden.
A total 3,272 hourly workers were reported to be employed by the Sailormen Popeyes restaurants as of January 15. Sailormen was founded in 1984 “for the purpose of owning and operating Popeyes restaurants, according to bankruptcy documents, and was acquired by businessmen Bob Berg and Steve Wemple in 1987, at which point it operated 11 locations in the Miami area.
Sailormen eventually expanded to include stores in Alabama, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri and Mississippi between 1995 and 2000, but would later sell off markets in those states between 2012 and 2018 in an effort to focus on new store development in Florida and Georgia.
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