WEN vs SAM Comparison

The Wendy's Company is the second-largest burger quick-service restaurant, or QSR, chain in the United States by systemwide sales, with $12.6 billion in 2024, narrowly edging Burger King ($11.5 billion) and clocking in well behind wide-moat McDonald's ($51.1 billion). After divestitures of Tim Hortons (2006) and Arby's (2011), the firm manages just the burger banner, generating sales across a footprint that spanned more than 7,200 total stores in 30 countries as of year-end 2024. Wendy's generates revenue from the sale of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, and fries throughout its company-owned footprint, through franchise royalty and marketing fund payments remitted by its franchisees, which account for roughly 94% of stores, and through franchise flipping and advisory fees.

Boston Beer is a top player in high-end malt beverages and adjacent categories in the US, with strong positions in craft beer, flavored malt beverages, hard cider, and hard seltzer. The bulk of volume and revenue is concentrated in four brands: Samuel Adams, Angry Orchard, Twisted Tea, and Truly. Beverages are produced using a hybrid model leveraging both in-house capacities and third-party breweries through contract arrangements. While the firm is required to use distributors to reach end markets, including retailers and on-premises operators, it also employs 500 internal sales representatives to educate the market about its products. The firm generates almost all sales in the US.