The former president of Papa John's held merger talks with Wendy's

The actions of Papa John's International Inc. climbed after a report by the company's founder, criticized for the use of racial insults, John Schnatter reported that he held conversations with Wendy & Co. Co., where the possibility of a business-to-business merger was discussed.

The negotiations with Wendy & # 39; s were preliminary and began before Schnatter resigned from his position as CEO in the company. However, since the incident, these negotiations have not resumed, reported Wall Street Journal.

Investors applauded the news with the hope of attracting the interest of potential buyers to save this distressed business. Shares rose 7% in New York. However, they lost about a third of their value in the last year.

Schnatter's spokesperson, like Wendy's and Papa John's, said companies will not comment on market rumors.

Schnatter, 56, has faced negative reactions since last week that Forbes has reported that Papa John's founder used a racist term during a training session with the agency. press Laundry Service.

Schnatter acknowledged using the insult and added that it was part of the context of an exercise, but that it was not racist.

Thus, he resigned from his post on [11juillet1945].

This was the last in a series of mistakes committed by the chain's founder, who has already left the CEO position because of the controversy generated by his criticism of the players' demonstrations Color of the National Football League (NFL) where they were stuck during the US national anthem in the form of a protest against racism in 2017.

However, Schatter is still a board member of the company and holds nearly 30% of the shares of Papa John.