• by Teresa Buyikian , 11 hours ago

Darin Dugan has been promoted to brand president of Jimmy John’s. Only the third president in the sandwich chain’s history, Darin most recently served as Jimmy John’s CMO for the that last six years. He takes the position held by James North, who led the brand for the last 25 years and has now been appointed as Jimmy John’s global brand ambassador.

“Darin has brought creativity and discipline together by modernizing campaigns, elevating the menu, and launching new, brand-defining product platforms, including wraps and toasted sandwiches. He’s a passionate leader with a deep understanding of what makes this brand so special…,” said Scott Murphy, Inspire Brands chief brand officer and Dunkin’ brand president.

Prior to Jimmy John’s, Dugan served as  vice president of national marketing for Sonic until the chain was acquired by Inspire in 2018. Earlier in his career he worked for Applebee’s and spent more than 14 years at Kraft Foods Group.

Kate Carpenter has been promoted to Jimmy John’s CMO, filling the role left vacant by Dugan. Carpenter mostly recently served as vice president of integrated marketing for the brand for the past two years. Before joining Jimmy John’s, Carpenter worked as brand lead at Newell Brands after serving as senior director of brand for Papa John’s International. Earlier in her career she spent over a decade Coca-Cola, working on multiple brands.

Jimmy John’s currently operates over 2,600 locations worldwide, and while it has grown since being acquired by Inspire, the chain has been plagued by poor customers reviews, only receiving an average of 2.7 stars from close to 80,000 reviews on Yelp.

Separately, regional chain Farmer Boys has tapped Mark Hardison as its new CMO.

Hardison joins the chain most recently from California Fish Grill, where he also served as CMO. Before California Fish Grill he spent 20 years at El Pollo Loco, rising to the position of senior vice president of marketing.

The 45-year-old QSR, which operates more than 100 locations in Arizona, California and Nevada, boasts being a farm-to-table restaurant, with fresh produce delivered to each location every morning.