Fast casual seafood chain to make Sarasota debut

A pair of longtime franchise development executives, Richard Reeves and Larry Lavigne, signed an agreement to open nine Captain D's fast casual seafood restaurant locations on the west coast of Florida.

The locations, to open in the next five years, will be in the Sarasota-Bradenton market and in the Tampa-St. Petersburg region, according to a statement. Nashville-based Captain D's has 10 locations in Florida. The majority of the Florida locations are in north or central Florida, with one in Dade City, Pasco County.

Reeves has more than 40 years of industry experience, and is a multi-unit operator of World of Beer, Taco John's, Checker's and Church's, the release states. Lavigne currently manages daily operations at 15 Jet's Pizza locations and oversees 25 additional franchise locations, and will oversee operations at each of the new Captain D's restaurants, the release adds.

Captain D's, which serves a wide variety of seafood that includes freshly prepared entrees and its signature hand-battered fish, cooked to order, has grown rapidly in the past few years. That includes six straight years of same-store sales increases.

“Our ongoing success has established Captain D's as one of the strongest franchising opportunities in the industry today and contributed to our expansion nationwide,” says Michael Arrowsmith, chief development officer of Captain D's, in the statement. “We look forward to working with Richard and Larry, and have no doubt that their impressive expertise will be a valuable asset as we continue our growth in the Sunshine State.”

Captain D's has 521 restaurants in 21 states. It was founded in 1969.