Welcome back A&W
Great things are happening in Lexington. We are excited to announce that the new A&W global headquarters will be built on the Coldstream Research Campus. After celebrating their 100 years in business, A&W has decided to become the first company to construct a facility within the city’s land on the Coldstream Research Campus.
Dating back to 1919, A&W Root Beer is the nation’s No. 1 selling root beer, still making delicious root beers at every store location. The company was once part of the Yorkshire Brands, which was located in Lexington in the 1990s.
A&W moved their headquarters back to Lexington in 2012 in leased space at Coldstream. Their intent is to have a long-lasting future in this forever growing city. After the purchase from YUM! Brands, A&W seized the opportunity to push their brand to new heights and focus on the company’s growth. The move back to Lexington brought 30 excellent, well-paying jobs and A&W now wants to bring more jobs with future growth of their company.
“We set up offices for A&W in Lexington in 2012 with a long-term mindset. Development of our own offices just furthers that commitment,” said Kevin Bazner, CEO for A&W Restaurants Inc. “We are very happy to be associated with the City of Lexington.”
The first step for this great achievement was when the Urban County Council sold three acres of the Coldstream land to A&W for $585,000. The new building will house its corporate headquarters with plans that will be finalized by Jan. 15, 2020.
“We’ve put a strong plan in place to attract new business and help local businesses grow at Coldstream,” Mayor Linda Gorton said. “It’s great that the first business is local, and that it is a global headquarters. Congratulations, A&W.”
When Mayor Gorton took office in January, she became more familiar with the Coldstream Campus and its development plan. This is including the shovel ready 50 acres on the campus and another 200 acres nearby.
In 2017, Lexington obtained the 250 acres to use for economic development. The University of Kentucky traded the land in exchange for ownership of sections of several city streets within the main UK campus. It is a win-win that addressed the economic needs of the city and pedestrian safety at the university.
“The Coldstream property gives us the opportunity to bring many new, good-paying jobs to Lexington,” Gorton said. “We need to maximize this opportunity with a strong development plan.”
“We are so pleased that A&W Restaurants has long term plans for Lexington with the announcement of their new headquarters building at the Coldstream Research Campus”, said George Ward, Coldstream’s Executive Director. “Kevin Bazner and his team have been great clients and the University of Kentucky is appreciative of our mutually beneficial engagement relationship.”
Welcome Back A&W!