Tamra Kennedy didn’t target restaurants or the franchise industry as she started carving out her career path in the mid-1980s. But she did know she wanted to follow in the footsteps of her father, an independent trucker, and be her own boss.
“We lived a life of being independent of what you would call the corporate status,” she said.
So, even as Kennedy started out making $4.05 an hour in 1984 as a secretary with Twin City T.J., a Taco John’s franchisee with operations in Minnesota and Iowa, she always planned to seek additional opportunities. Kennedy worked her way up through the organization starting with sorting mail, then by learning about financials and studying data to implement best practices across the restaurants.
A few years later, in 1990, she moved to Minnesota to become the office manager, which got her closer to restaurant operations. When that owner, Lester Meltzer, started talking about a succession plan, she asked if he would sell to her.
“The answer was maybe,” Kennedy said. “I had never made a taco. I had all this background in administrative, accounting, finance, all of that, but never store operations. So, I took a year of working nights in the restaurants while keeping my day job to learn everything there was to learn about running a restaurant. I call it getting my credentials.”
Mentorship focus
In the end, she earned those credentials. She acquired Twin City’s TJ’s Inc. from Meltzer in 1999. She loves the business and working with her sister, Donna Atchley, who is the company’s office manager, and her son, Jesse Kennedy, who is the director of operations.
The company peaked at nine locations. There are six now after some downsizing and consolidation during the pandemic, including the sale of an Iowa-based location to another franchisee.
“It proved to be more challenging to work in two different states during COVID,” Kennedy said. “I didn’t feel like I could support that store as well as I would have liked given all that I had my hands full with in the Twin Cities.”
Much as she learned a ton working through the organization in her early days, Kennedy has enjoyed teaching her employees as they’re starting out. She calls her managers “her heroes” and many of her current general managers have ascended to crew team leadership positions.
“I look at the reason to be in the quick service restaurant business is to give young people their first jobs; their first opportunity to work on a team, to make friends they otherwise wouldn’t have,” Kennedy said. “And to learn some basic skills they’ll use to catapult them into whatever career they decide to move on to. Mentoring is a part of that.”
She mentors on a larger scale, as well, hearing frequently from people outside the organization looking to get involved in franchising and from brands looking for advice on launching across the country.
“It’s very satisfying to, in some way, help others in franchising start their own journey,” she said.” That’s probably where I see myself going.”
National impact
Kennedy is open to expanding her restaurant holdings, but she’s also getting more involved with the International Franchise Association (IFA), a trade organization that focuses on government and public relations for the franchise industry.
She’s spent considerable time in recent years in Washington, D.C. meeting with congressional representatives working to convince them not to raise barriers to achieving the American Dream.
“I’m always looking for an opportunity to expand my brand or with other concepts,” Kennedy said. “I’m also saying yes a lot more to working on the advocacy side, through IFA, with elected officials, talking about how important it is to protect small business, how important it is that regulators are not so burdensome that people can’t get started owning their own business.”
Kennedy’s advocacy efforts, both with her staff and in Washington, won her the IFA’s Bonny LeVine Award at the organization’s annual conference in February. The award recognizes the women leaders who have taken on mentorship roles in the franchising sector.
Kennedy has served on the board of both the main IFA organization and its foundation. She’s chair of the IFA Franchisee Forum and has testified before Congress and has recruited other women to serve in leadership roles throughout IFA.
“There are thousands of employee-to-owner success stories in franchising, but few give as much back to the business model and inspire others to join their ranks as Tamra Kennedy,” said Matthew Haller, president and CEO of IFA. “Tam is a pillar within her community and serves as a role model and mentor for the next generation of leaders in franchising.”
John Francis, a local franchise consultant who operates as Johnny Franchise, called Kennedy a “caring and thoughtful person” who works hard to take care of her employees.
“She takes it very seriously that many of her employees get their first job working with her at Taco John’s,” he said. “She’s a great lady, very smart, very good and a lot of fun.”
It’s another day’s work for Kennedy. She’s just trying to run her business and help others get their start.
“People have asked ‘Why do you think you won the award?’” she said. “I never have an answer for that. There are so many great people who work in franchising. I was just really honored to be selected.”
