Swisshelm franchise seeks Ch. 7 liquidation

The future of the San Francisco Oven franchise is up in the air.

The company that owned the San Francisco Oven franchise and was co-founded by restaurateur Bruce Swisshelm filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection on April 13 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Missouri.

SFO Missouri Inc., formerly known as The Swisshelm Group Inc., is the first business tied to Swisshelm to file independently for bankruptcy since he and his wife filed for bankruptcy liquidation March 14. According to the personal filing, there were 14 businesses for which Bruce Swisshelm had at least partial ownership, and nine were listed as active.

Swisshelm, president of SFO Missouri, owned and operated the San Francisco Oven franchise, area Macaroni Grill and Ebbets Field restaurants, and McAlister’s Deli sites in Florida.

The SFO Missouri filing shows that Swisshelm owned 28 percent of the business. Four others – Bruce Swisshelm Jr., Joe Swisshelm, Scott Swisshelm and Kelly Parker – each owned 18 percent of the common stock.

The company lists $123,016 in assets and $2.2 million in liabilities. Its assets include a 2012 Toyota 4-Runner valued at $43,000 and equipment and furniture worth $75,000. Its secured creditors are Liberty Bank, which is owed more than $976,000, and Toyota Financial Services, which is owed more than $42,000.

A total of 36 employees were listed as unsecured creditors with priority claims worth more than $13,668. Other unsecured priority claims were to the Internal Revenue Service and the Missouri Department of Revenue for more than $399,000.

The total value of nonpriority unsecured claims was $768,000. The list of nonpriority unsecured creditors includes Market Place Properties, $18,795; Hilton Promenade Hotel, $17,128; Buxton Kubik Dodd Creative, $6,344; and Bruce Swisshelm, $152,257.

A call to Swisshelm at his home and a call to the SFO Missouri Inc. office on South Ingram Mill Road were not returned by press time. A message on the company phone said the Swisshelm Group was permanently closed. A call to Bruce Swisshelm Jr. at his home was not returned by deadline, and attempts to reach him at Romano’s Macaroni Grill on East Battlefield Road, which he manages, were unsuccessful. Calls to Macaroni Grill went unanswered throughout the day April 19. Earlier this month, the younger Swisshelm said the business would remain open under his management.

SFO Missouri owned two San Francisco Oven locations, one on East Sunshine Street and one at Branson Landing. Hilton, the landlord for the Branson site, terminated the restaurant’s lease following the Leap Day tornado that damaged the area, according to Springfield attorney David Schroeder, who represents SFO Missouri in the bankruptcy case.

“Between the income from the two locations and the loss of the Branson location, there wasn’t enough net profit revenue to sustain the debt service and the operations of the business,” Schroeder said.

SFO Missouri also was franchisor for two Dallas area locations operated by DFW San Francisco Ovens LLC. A Euless, Texas, site recently closed on news of Swisshelm’s personal bankruptcy, according to Ken Campbell, the company’s director of operations. Campbell has said DFW San Francisco Ovens would operate a San Francisco Oven in Garland, Texas, until the lease terminates.

In Springfield, Gordon Elliott of Elliott Lodging Ltd. was the landlord for the East Sunshine Street restaurant, and he took over the restaurant’s operations March 31 through Market Place Properties Inc.

Last week, Elliott expressed an interest in buying the franchising rights for the company. According to court records, the franchise has no monetary value.

Schroeder said it is up to the bankruptcy trustee – Kevin Checkett of Checkett & Pauly PC in Carthage – to determine if the franchise rights could be sold.

“The bankruptcy trustee is vested with the debtor’s property interests, which includes franchise rights,” Schroeder said.

Swisshelm and a group of investors purchased the San Francisco Oven franchise, trademark and logos in July 2010, according to Springfield Business Journal archives. At the time, the franchisor supported five locations and Swisshelm touted plans to expand.

On Jan. 4, Swisshelm Group Vice President Joe Swisshelm petitioned the Missouri secretary of state for the name change to SFO Missouri Inc. Schroeder said he did not know why the company switched to a new name two months ahead of its bankruptcy filing. Bruce Swisshelm and his wife hired Springfield attorney Robert Plaster for their personal filing. Schroeder said it was not uncommon for a business owner to seek out a lawyer based on their personal or business specialty.