Former Milwaukee Bucks player Ulysses “Junior” Bridgeman, who became one of the largest restaurant franchise operators in the country after retiring from the NBA in 1987, is in the process of divesting his restaurant holdings and has become a new bottler for the Coca-Cola system.
Bridgeman turned a purchase of five Wendy’s franchises in Milwaukee into 240 Wendy’s nationwide (the second largest portfolio in the chain’s franchisee network) and 125 Chili’s, according to Restaurant Business Online.
Today those restaurants, which bring in more than $1.5 million of annual sales apiece, are at the heart of a 240-store portfolio—making Bridgeman’s private company, Bridgeman Foods, America’s second-largest Wendy’s franchise owner. (Bridgeman won’t discuss his profits.) He also owns 125 Chili’s restaurants, 45 Fannie May Chocolate stores, and scads of other retail franchises, most of them clustered in the upper Midwest, between corporate headquarters in Milwaukee and Louisville. His employee roster numbers 9,000 people. Estimates of his net worth range from $450 million to $600 million.
Bridgeman has signed a letter of intent to acquire territory from the Coca-Cola Co. in Missouri, Illinois, Kansas and Nebraska, including the cities of St. Louis and Kansas City. Bridgeman also will acquire a production facility in Lenexa, Kan. Justin Bridgeman, one of Junior Bridgeman’s sons, will lead the company with his father.
Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman (born September 17, 1953) is a retired American basketball player.
Born in East Chicago, Indiana, Bridgeman was a member of the 1971 East Chicago Washington High School Senators basketball team, which went undefeated (29-0) and won the Indiana state high school basketball championship. Among his teammates were his brother Sam, Pete Trgovich (who played at UCLA) and Tim Stoddard (N.C. State), who would go on to have success as a Major League Baseball pitcher.
A 6’5″ guard/forward from the University of Louisville, Bridgeman was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1975 and immediately traded with Brian Winters, David Meyers and Elmore Smith to the Milwaukee Bucks for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Bridgeman went on to have a solid 12-year NBA career, spent mostly with the Bucks, and he scored 11,517 total points. Although he was a sixth man for most of his career, he averaged double figures in scoring for nine consecutive seasons. He played in 711 games for the Bucks, still the most in franchise history, although he started only 105 times. His #2 jersey was retired by the Bucks franchise in 1988.
Also, The Former 6th Man Of The Year Award Winning Professional Basketball Player, “Junior Bridgeman”, has become the first existing Wendy’s franchisee to acquire company-owned locations in the quick-service brand’s recently announced 425-unit refranchising effort.
Bridgeman, one of the restaurant industry’s most established athlete franchisees, bought 30 Wendy’s units in the St. Louis market through BB St. Louis Inc., a partnership between Bridgeman and Chauncey Billups, a point guard for the Detroit Pistons and a 16-year veteran of the National Basketball Association. The deal marks Billups’ first foray into the restaurant industry.
The acquisition increases the total number of Wendy’s restaurants that Bridgeman operates to 196. He also operates more than 100 locations of Chili’s and several dozen Fazoli’s units. The latest deal with Wendy’s includes 29 existing units and one location under construction.Dublin, Ohio-based The Wendy’s Co. disclosed that the acquisition includes a development plan for more new locations in the market and a requirement to remodel some of the units in Wendy’s new “Image Activation” prototype design.
“We are expanding our relationship with successful, well-capitalized franchisees with strong operating credentials and a commitment to our Image Activation reimaging program,” chief executive Emil Brolick said in a statement. “We have enjoyed a longstanding relationship with Junior Bridgeman, and he is an exceptional person, an excellent operator and very committed to building a people culture. In addition, we are eager to welcome Chauncey to the Wendy’s family.”
Bridgeman said in a statement that he and Billups were excited about their new partnership. “We have a tremendous opportunity in the St. Louis market,” he said, “and our goal is to build upon the positive momentum and growth that the Wendy’s brand is currently experiencing.”
For every player like Billups, though, there are several more who end up going broke within five years of retirement—tales that break Bridgeman’s heart. “Unless you grew up in a family where someone owned a business or you sat around the kitchen table talking about the business page—which 99.9% of the players didn’t—you have no idea what $10,000 or $100,000 can do or how long it really lasts,” he says.
Bridgeman is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. Bridgeman has an estimated net worth of over $400 million dollars as a result of his great decision making abilities, and his tireless work ethic. He was also elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999.
THE MYBOYSAY SPORTS NATION WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE “MR. Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman”, ON HIS MAGNIFICENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE CORPORATE WORLD.
