---
title: "QSR: Ex-Papa John's CMO Brandon Rhoten Joins Potbelly"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/d8b4342c-977e-4902-8d6a-629eff0ed053
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/qsr-ex-papa-johns-cmo-brandon-rhoten-joins-potbelly-2706803
category: "Pizza"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Pizza"
topics: ["People"]
published: 2018-06-12T16:11:26.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T04:09:22.123Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/5d4adbc7df726f8414528afdac54e1c73518.jpg
---

# QSR: Ex-Papa John's CMO Brandon Rhoten Joins Potbelly

**TL;DR:** Brandon Rhoten, former CMO of Papa John's, has joined Potbelly as senior vice president and chief marketing officer. Rhoten will oversee all of the brand's marketing efforts, including strategy and execution.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2018-06-12. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/qsr-ex-papa-johns-cmo-brandon-rhoten-joins-potbelly-2706803).*

## Story

Last month, Brandon Rhoten announced his resignation from his role as chief marketing officer for Papa John’s International Inc. Today, we learned where Rhoten will go next.

According to a press release published on qsr.com, Rhoten will join Potbelly Corporation as the franchise’s new senior vice president and chief marketing officer. Rhoten will oversee all of the brand’s marketing efforts, including strategy and execution.

In addition to his marketing experience with Papa John’s, Rhoten also previously served as the vice president of advertising, media and digital/social at Wendy’s International.

“The kind of marketer who would have Boyz II Men sing to a cheeseburger and give a year of chicken nuggets to a high schooler for earning the most retweets in history will definitely bring the quirky fun back to Potbelly,” said Alan Johnson, Potbelly’s president and chief executive officer. “Brandon’s experience and approach are perfectly aligned with the direction we are setting to expand our brand presence in a world where social and digital drive the conversation. We look forward to leveraging his many years of creativity, brand strategy, bold and disruptive marketing, and success with other well-known consumer brands.

This is an exciting time for Potbelly.”

Rhoten’s hiring is the latest in a series of key appointments in Potbelly’s corporate office. The brand recently hired a new senior vice president of franchise development, a new vice president of off-premisee and a new vice president of culinary innovation.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- Wendy's (company)
- marketing strategy (topic)
- Papa Johns (company)
- qsr industry (topic)
- Potbelly (company)
- cmo appointment (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/qsr-ex-papa-johns-cmo-brandon-rhoten-joins-potbelly-2706803). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/d8b4342c-977e-4902-8d6a-629eff0ed053).