WHITEFISH Mont. William Foley II, the southern California businessman who gathered Carl's Jr., Hardee's and several other regional chains into one of the nation's largest quick-service operations, is at it again. He and associate Alan Stinson have acquired four growth-minded Montana-based restaurant chains through Foley's newly formed Glacier Restaurant Group LLC with the intention of expanding the ventures.
Terms were not disclosed.
The acquired concepts are MacKenzie River Pizza Co., based in Bozeman; CM Brands, parent of the Mambo's Italian chain headquartered here; Craggy Range Bar and Grill, also based here; and Corner House Grille, another Whitefish company. The biggest of the upstarts appears to be MacKenzie, with 12 outlets.
In announcing the acquisitions, Glacier indicated that it will focus its expansion efforts on Montana, Idaha and the Pacific Northwest.
Foley moved into the restaurant industry in the 1990s when he came to the assistance of Carl's Jr. founder Carl E. Karcher, who was fighting at the time to regain control of the concern bearing his name. Foley served as a financial advisor and lender to Karcher, then moved into management of what is now CKE Restaurants, rising to chairman. Along the way, he brought the Hardee's, La Salsa, Green Burrito and Taco Bueno quick-service chains into the company's fold through an investment in another Foley-affiliated company, Santa Barbara Restaurant Group.
At one point, Foley was also chairman of the Rally's drive-thru chain.
