Houlihan’s Restaurants, Inc. has named Bob Nygren as the group’s CFO. Nygren will lead the financial operations for Houlihan’s Restaurants, owner of Houlihan’s, Bristol Seafood Grill, Devon Seafood + Steak, and J. Gilbert’s Wood-Fired Steaks & Seafood.
Nygren is a familiar face in the Kansas City restaurant industry as he was the vice president of finance for Applebee’s from August 2011 until August 2015. Most recently, he was named the CFO of Newk’s Eatery, an express-casual concept based out of Jackson, Mississippi.
Nygren received his bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Phoenix and master’s in business administration from Pepperdine University. While pursuing his bachelor’s degree, Nygren was the general manager of a Boston Market and, after nearly four years in that role, he took a general manager position with Yum! Brands, the parent company of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC, and WingStreet. Nygren worked his way up at Yum! Brands to senior assets analyst, a position that allowed him to build his financial proficiencies. Further refining his financial skills, Nygren was also the senior director of finance for NPC International, which is the nation’s ninth-largest restaurant unit operator and manages numerous Pizza Hut and Wendy’s locations throughout the United States.
