Sonic Corporation

[BG918]

It is an unfortunate result of capitalism that when efficiencies can be made within a company, layoffs can happen. It irritates me a little that Inspire had said they would leave the SONIC HQ in OKC pretty much alone when they bought the firm but it is not efficient or a good use of your resources to have duplicate departments such as payroll, HR and accounting.

I think every company says that to appease the locals, very few actually follow through.

[jn1780]

I think every company says that to appease the locals, very few actually follow through.

They still need their workforce happy while they carry out their corporate plans in secret.

[Rover]

I think every company says that to appease the locals, very few actually follow through.

My friends in the business said that Inspire had done a pretty good job with their other acquisitions to keep the important unique parts of the headquarters intact. But, as pointed out, they also buy because of efficiencies they can improve in basic services... supply chain, accounting, hr, etc. The stockholders and customers will not complain as the shareholders expect companies to keep improving efficiencies and customers want prices held in check.

[Pete]

They had about 400 at the Bricktown HQ at the time of the buy-out; looks like they are now close to about 200.

That's a lot of well-paying jobs.

[mugofbeer]

My friends in the business said that Inspire had done a pretty good job with their other acquisitions to keep the important unique parts of the headquarters intact. But, as pointed out, they also buy because of efficiencies they can improve in basic services... supply chain, accounting, hr, etc. The stockholders and customers will not complain as the shareholders expect companies to keep improving efficiencies and customers want prices held in check.

^^^^^
Exactly what l have seen and heard. The restaurant concepts are complimentary and don't overlap but some HQ administrative jobs do.

[Drake]

Friend of mine that worked there for many years was given the option several months ago to move to Atlanta, so these weren't out of the blue. I believe he worked in the buying/supply side

He was pretty quickly able to find a comparable job here in OKC as he wasn't interested in moving to Atlanta

[BBatesokc]

My problem with Sonic has always been that it takes so long to get even something as simple as a coke. Doesn't seem to make a difference if I do the carhop service or the drive-thru, it just takes forever to get served. If the food was so much better than anything else, I could see waiting for it, but the food is definitely not worth it.

I think that's definitely location dependent. We won't even go to the one in downtown OKC any longer during normal lunchtimes. It can literally take 20 minutes to get an order. Each time we are told "4 people didn't show up today" or "we are really short staffed."

That said, I go to the one in Edmond at 2nd and Bryant and get served pretty fast.

I've cut down a lot of wait times by simply using the app. (plus it's always Happy Hour with the app).

What-A-Burger is Sonic alternative in a pinch.

[jn1780]

My friends in the business said that Inspire had done a pretty good job with their other acquisitions to keep the important unique parts of the headquarters intact. But, as pointed out, they also buy because of efficiencies they can improve in basic services... supply chain, accounting, hr, etc. The stockholders and customers will not complain as the shareholders expect companies to keep improving efficiencies and customers want prices held in check.

I think that's pretty much every merger or buyout isnt it? The buyer can either find efficiencies to make a bigger profit or they have a large pile of cash to carry out a bigger dream. The buyer almost always thinks a company should be ran differently though.

[Rover]

I think that's pretty much every merger or buyout isnt it? The buyer can either find efficiencies to make a bigger profit or they have a large pile of cash to carry out a bigger dream. The buyer almost always thinks a company should be ran differently though.

Increasing efficiencies doesn’t always mean changing the core of the business. Implementing purchasing programs, leveraging scale, sharing accounting, etc doesn’t mean they are now a pizza company. They also bought some core competencies they will keep in place.

[Timshel]

Friend of mine that worked there for many years was given the option several months ago to move to Atlanta, so these weren't out of the blue. I believe he worked in the buying/supply side

He was pretty quickly able to find a comparable job here in OKC as he wasn't interested in moving to Atlanta

This is consistent from what I've heard from friends that work at Sonic. I was surprised this stayed so quiet in the lead up to last week because Inspire/Sonic seemed to do a pretty good job of letting employees know this was going to happen/there was never really an expectation internally that there wouldn't be any layoffs. From what I've heard (may not be true for everyone across the board), those that got laid off or relocation offers have until this summer before it takes effect, giving them quite a bit of time to find something else. Also sounds like some groups were hit really hard and others not much at all, and its not like the OKC office was completely gutted (though some departments may be totally going away/going to Atlanta).

Not saying it was/is a great situation, but it sounds like Inspire handled this decently well/better than many other companies following an acquisition.

[Brett]

Saw this recommended video in my YouTube list. Not too bad when it comes to YouTube video production. I'm sure many people have more information and could tell you the "real" story.

Sonic Drive-In - The Rise and Fall...And Rise Again

[corwin1968]

From my perspective, Sonic continues it's steep, downward slide and may even be speeding up.

For decades, I loved their cheeseburgers and would choose them over Whataburger. Now, their burgers are just disgusting.

Yesterday, I ordered their fried chicken sandwich and it was just disgusting. This has been the case for well over a year now, but I periodically try one in the hopes that it's improved. Their fried chicken sandwiches used to be excellent. And in the current market, a good fried chicken sandwich is pretty much a "must have". I will say their "chicken slinger" is very good but it's like $2.99 for a slider size sandwich.

I do still like their chili cheese coneys, their corn dogs and their onion rings, but those are not things I order very often.

[shawnw]

Heck I don't get why people find Whataburgers so great.

[HangryHippo]

Heck I don't get why people find Whataburgers so great.

Blasphemer!

[catch22]

I use sonic as my snack stop. I only get their corn dogs or popcorn chicken. Might add a slush or soda. Agree food has declined

[corwin1968]

I use sonic as my snack stop. I only get their corn dogs or popcorn chicken. Might add a slush or soda. Agree food has declined

That's mostly how I use them, as well. Although sometimes I use them as an overflow source for ice cream when the Braums across the street has a very long line. Their Butterfinger blast is pretty good and my wife always gets a chocolate/caramel shake.

[Jeepnokc]

I get sodas from Sonic occasionally. If you aren't using the app....you are missing out. 1/2 price drinks all day and they run app only specials on blasts and other items like corn dogs and popcorn chicken, etc.

[catch22]

I get sodas from Sonic occasionally. If you aren't using the app....you are missing out. 1/2 price drinks all day and they run app only specials on blasts and other items like corn dogs and popcorn chicken, etc.

App is nice, however I don't think they actually send your order to the kitchen until you check in. Doesn't matter how far ahead I order, I am always waiting up to 10 mins to get my order when I get to the store. It's faster to just go through the drive thru.

[Plutonic Panda]

Like catch22, I too ended up just using sonic for popcorn chicken(which I’d have cravings for a few times a year) but even those have gotten to the point where they taste bad. I’ve also had a couple bad interactions with the staff during my last two experiences which led me to call corporate and convey that I’ll never eat there again. I haven’t sonic in over a year. Maybe down the road I’ll give it another shot but as of now I have no desire to do so. Sad to see an Oklahoma chain go down that road.

I am worried about the future of whataburger as the chain is launching an aggressive expansion across the country. That’s cool but I’d rather have quality over quantity. Sadly it seems many chains that expand fast lose quality control.

[SomeGuy]

Honestly new Sonic commercials are terrible. Makes me miss the two Sonic guys.

[Bunty]

Heck I don't get why people find Whataburgers so great.

Whataburger is popular in Stillwater. What isn't popular in Stillwater is Jack in the Box. It just closed and is now boarded up.

[djohn]

Honestly new Sonic commercials are terrible. Makes me miss the two Sonic guys.

Yeah, they are just AWFUL! I can't imagine this being a successful marketing campaign.

[Dob Hooligan]

Yeah, they are just AWFUL! I can't imagine this being a successful marketing campaign.

What I noticed about the new ads is how much the people in them did not look like me. Then I thought about how, since the mid-1980s with Frankie Avalon, Sonic ads have featured and been aimed to people that look like me. I figure they are aiming for a new demographic and more power to them. I've been goin to Sonic for my whole life and am a loyal customer.

[SoonerDave]

Honestly new Sonic commercials are terrible. Makes me miss the two Sonic guys.

Amen.

[corwin1968]

Honestly new Sonic commercials are terrible. Makes me miss the two Sonic guys.

Wow. Those Sonic guy commercials were pretty bad. I can't imagine commercials that make those look good!