Wed 23rd Feb 2022 - Fridays appoints Chris Liddell to head up QSR format and Julie McEwan as new chief operating officer Fridays appoints Chris Liddell to head up QSR format and Julie McEwan as new chief operating officer: Fridays, the Robert B Cook-led brand, has appointed Chris Liddell, formerly of Costa Coffee and PizzaExpress, to head up its soon-to-launch quick service restaurant (QSR) format, “Fridays and Go”, Propel has learned. Liddell, who was most recently at Costa, has joined the business as a regional director, alongside heading up “Fridays and Go”, which will launch next month, in Dundee. Last month, Hostmore, the parent company of Fridays and the 63rd+1st concept in the UK, said it aimed to open potentially up to 30 additional QSR sites across the UK in the next three years, subject to the brand’s success. As previously revealed by Propel, the company confirmed it will open the first “Fridays and Go” site, which will span circa 2,600 square feet, on the former Fatburger unit in Dundee’s Reform Street. Meanwhile, Fridays has appointed Julie McEwan, formerly of Whitbread, Spirit Group and Casual Dining Group, as its new chief operating officer. McEwan started her career at Whitbread, spending several years as operations manager for Premier Inn, before joining Spirit Pub Company. At Spirit, she held several senior roles, including leading the Flaming Grill brand and managing its conversion programme, which saw the estate grow from 84 to 146 sites in 18 months. In 2016, She joined Casual Dining Group (now Big Table Group) as operations director of Las Iguanas and was promoted to brand director in 2019. She was named as one of the top 100 Women to Watch in Hospitality, Travel and Leisure in 2020. In her new role, Fridays said McEwan will oversee operations for all its UK sites, ensuring that “quality, simplicity and relevance is at the forefront of everything it delivers as it embarks on its ambitious growth plans”. She will join the company in early March and replaces Suzanne Peacock, who has left the business. As part of its growth plans, Fridays recently announced a new flagship store opening in Chelmsford this spring, as well as the upcoming launch of “Fridays And Go”. Cook said: “Julie brings a wealth of experience and unrivalled expertise that will be instrumental to our growth plans, as we bring the Fridays feeling to even more people right across the country.” McEwan added: “I am looking forward to being part of its next growth chapter, working alongside exceptionally talented people.”