Applebee’s sues franchisees over eight sudden closings in Kansas City area
After eight of its franchises in the Kansas City area closed abruptly last week, Applebee’s is suing the recent owners and operators of the franchises for allegedly violating both their contracts and their leases.
Applebee’s Franchisor LLC brought a federal lawsuit last week against William J. Georgas, William G. Georgas and Steven B. Steinmetz, as well as multiple trusts managed by the trio, according to court documents. The lawsuit is dated Oct. 30, the same day the restaurants closed.
As of 2022, William J. Georgas is the principal shareholder of Apple Central KC LLC and Apple Central LLC. Until recently. Georgas owned and operated eight Applebee’s franchises in the greater Kansas City area, including restaurants in Raytown, Lee’s Summit and Overland Park.
Applebee’s states that after the sudden closure, Georgas owes the corporation nearly $4.5 million in future lost royalties and advertising fees.
The lawsuit also states that the sudden closures violated Georgas’ leases in Leavenworth, Olathe, Mission and Overland Park, for which Applebee’s is seeking an additional $3.6 million. Applebee’s alleges that Georgas stopped paying rent at four of the restaurants several days before they closed.
Georgas assumed oversight of the eight Applebee’s between 2015 and 2017, according to the lawsuit. He had a 20-year contract with Applebee’s for seven of the restaurants and a 10-year contract for the Metcalf location.
This isn’t the first time that Applebees has sued Georgas for misconduct as a franchise owner.
Georgas previously owned seven other Applebee’s locations in the Kansas City area, which he also closed without warning between 2016 and 2018, according to court documents.
The majority of the closures, including at an Independence franchise, followed a nationally publicized racial profiling incident in February 2018 during which staff accused two Black women of attempting to leave the Applebee’s without paying their bill. Widely circulated video footage shows Independence police officers mocking the women while responding to the restaurant.
Three employees were fired over the racial profiling incident before the Independence franchise closed for good later in February. Applebee’s sued Georgas in May 2018 over the closures.
“Due to the mass closure of the Restaurants, including without limitation the high-profile and controversial circumstances behind one or more of the closures, Applebee’s reputation and brand have been harmed,” lawyers for Applebee’s wrote in the 2019 lawsuit.
All three plaintiffs live in Greenwich, Connecticut, according to the 2024 lawsuit. Trial proceedings will take place in Kansas City, Kansas.
Applebee’s locations at 1100 NW Highway 7 in Blue Springs and 6069 NE Antioch Road in the Northland remain open.
Previous reporting by Jenna Thompson, David Hudnall, Max Londberg, Aaron Randle and Joe Robertson contributed to this article.
