Arby’s cofounder, Leroy Raffel, who helped launch the iconic roast beef spot in 1964, dies aged 96

Arby’s co-founder Leroy Raffel has died at 96 and has been remembered as a “truly visionary leader” after helping start the fast-food chain, now worth $3.9 billion.

Raffel ‘passed away peacefully at home’ on Tuesday according to legacy.com and is survived by his four children, Ken, Janet, Jim, Nancy, and eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

He grew up in the restaurant business, living in the Leslie Hotel in New Castle, Pennsylvania, and later helped build the popular sandwich joint that started with just 10 seats, 20 parking spaces, and 69-cent roast beef sandwiches, until its success. modern.

The death of the visionary restaurant owner was announced by Arby’s in a Facebook tribute post featuring an image of Raffel and his brother, Forrest, who died at age 86 in 2008, holding a giant roast beef sandwich in front of an Arby’s sign. .

“You may not be aware that the ‘RB’ at Arby’s represents our co-founders (the Raffel brothers) who launched the brand in 1964 behind an iconic roast beef sandwich,” the post read.

‘This week we mourn the loss of Leroy Raffel, 96, who was a truly visionary leader.

“We continue to be honored to carry on the legacy that Leroy and his brother Forrest created. May his memory be a blessing.’

Arby’s president Jim Taylor also paid tribute to Raffel on the website Inspire Brands, owner of Arby’s and other brands including Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin and Jimmy John’s.

“The team and I send our deepest condolences to Leroy’s friends, loved ones and family, including his four children, Janet, Jim, Nancy and Ken,” Taylor said in the statement.

The brothers opened their first restaurant in Boardman, Ohio, in 1964, according to Taylor, who described the restaurant as an “innovative approach to quick-service meals.”

‘The Raffel Brothers (RB and the brand’s namesake) debuted their first roast beef sandwiches for just 69 cents, which was a premium item served hot, fresh and made to order – a higher quality offering compared to the hamburger chains of the time. ‘ he said.

‘On behalf of Arby’s, we are making a donation in Leroy’s name to the Greater Miami Jewish Federation.

“Leroy’s legacy will live on with his beloved brand, and we will always be grateful for his vision and commitment to Arby’s.”

Before becoming the founders of Arby’s, the brothers designed and equipped restaurants, hotels and institutional kitchens but “saw the writing on the wall” for the future of the independent restaurateur, Raffel told The Business Journal for an August 1989 story.

They used the first letters of ‘Raffel Brothers’ as the basis for their restaurant name and opened their first Arby’s on US Route 224 in Boardman, just west of where the current township store is located.

“Even in 1964, that was still the best location for a fast food restaurant in the Youngstown market,” Raffel said in 1989.

In 1989, the brothers credited the Youngstown area with providing a foundation for Arby’s success, particularly the local employees.

“There was no question at the time that the best managers came from the Youngstown area, that we could take the youngsters, train them in Youngstown, move them to other areas, and get very good results,” Raffel said in the 1989 interview.

“There’s a really good work ethic at Youngstown that really helped us in our development.”

Raffel was born on March 13, 1927 and served in the Naval Reserve during World War II and graduated from the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania.

In the 1950s, the brothers purchased their uncle’s restaurant equipment business and created Raffel Brothers, Inc., which became one of the nation’s leading foodservice consulting firms.

Seeing the growth of Ray Kroc’s McDonald’s and how companies like Burger King were finding lucrative avenues in the world of fast food, the couple wanted to take the idea of ​​quick service one step beyond the traditional sale of hamburgers.

Raffel and his brother were the first to open a quick-service roast beef sandwich shop using their company initials Raffel Brothers to create Arby’s.

Arby’s was positioning itself as an ‘upscale’ quick-service establishment that priced its sandwiches higher than the typical McDonald’s hamburger, which was served at 15 cents at the time.

After their immediate success, the brothers began to rapidly expand the company, and by the late 1960s, they had more than 300 locations in nearly 40 states.

The use of bank loans and equity capital to help finance growth in the late 1960s, but those sources were rapidly dwindling as they struggled to maintain operating levels along with the prospect of growth plans.

The brothers sought to take their organization public with an initial public offering, which is when a private company first sells stock to the public, in 1970.

Changes made within the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) at the time delayed the IPO and, when the issuances on the stock market were rescheduled, forced the brothers to abandon the issuance of shares.

In the late 1970s, the brothers had to seek a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, which allows a debtor to propose a reorganization plan to keep the business afloat, paying off creditors over time.

During the reorganization process, the Raffel brothers began to regain control of the organization spending a couple of years of profitability, successfully emerging from bankruptcy in 1975.

Arby’s grew to 500 locations across the country, but the company again needed an infusion of cash which led to a deal with the Royal Crown Cola Co in 1976, in which they sold Arby’s for $18 million, and by the end of 1979, brother He stopped operating the successful company that remains in his legacy.

While Arby’s has gone through a variety of new management structures, it is now under the Inspire Brands family and employs 80,000 people across the country.

When asked at a franchise seminar how he was able to change Arby’s and deal with the stress of Chapter 11, Raffel quipped, “because I’m a tough son of ab.”

Raffel was very active in the Jewish community, and the executive director of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation said, “Leroy had a quiet confidence, a Midwestern sensibility, and a worldview that was both ordinary and rational.”

“He was also the source of relentless encouragement and sage advice that combined his sharp intellect and business acumen with his commitment to Israel and the Jewish people.”

A funeral for Raffel was held at Lakeside Memorial Park in Florida.