HOLT, Mich., Oct. 16, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Proquest Capital Corporation, a Nevada corporation (Pink Sheets:PROQ), today announced that it has formed a new Franchise Department.
The Franchise Department shall be led by Linda Schultz, Chief Operating Officer of "Hot N Now Burgers", who will provide leadership and direction to the franchise body with the assistance of newly promoted Franchise Consultant, Frank Uherek. As a bio, Frank Uherek holds thirty years of management experience, seventeen of which were in the quick service food industry. At Hot N Now Burgers, Mr. Uherek has served as a supervisor for eight years prior to becoming a Franchise Consultant with the Company.
The franchise body now has the leadership and operational experience to meet the evolving requirements of the franchisees to run their respective businesses more efficiently.
The formation of the new franchise team, implementation of new compliance mandates and the introduction of the weekly Royalty program, will bolster the royalty income to the company thereby improving weekly cash flow and improve the quality of financial information provided to the company by the franchisees now on a weekly basis.
Proquest's Chairman and CEO William E. Curtis stated, "The leadership and experience that now will be provided to our franchisees by Linda Shultz's team will result in stronger franchisees and improve our Brand value."
More Information About Proquest
Proquest operates 44 Hot 'N Now fast food restaurants in Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana, of which 23 are company owned and 21 are franchised. Proquest will soon change its corporate name to HOT BRANDS, INC. System-wide 2002 gross sales for the units were approximately $25 million annually. The Hot 'N Now Business currently has over 450 employees, all of which either work for the corporate office or at the operations of the corporate-owned locations.
Proquest is launching an aggressive effort to acquire other restaurant assets that are synergistic with the Hot 'N Now Business. These acquisitions may be structured as mergers, stock exchanges or cash purchases. Proquest will favor companies with strong operating revenues that lend themselves well to the establishment of a franchise program or similar means of rapid establishment of a distribution network. Proquest's management has significant experience in the turnaround of distressed restaurant and food properties and will be looking for sound assets that can be bought inexpensively and overhauled quickly towards profitability.
Except for the historical information presented, the above statements are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 or regulations thereunder. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. These risks include the economic health of the restaurant and fast-food industries, competitive pricing pressures, completion of planned acquisitions and success at integrating and operating the acquired operations and the availability of necessary financing. These statements speak only as of above date, and Proquest disclaims any intent or obligation to update them.
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