Huge burger chain franchisee files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

The fast-food burger chain sector is facing an array of issues that has led to dozens of restaurant closings and several bankruptcy filings.

The fierce competition from the top four burger chains — McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, and Sonic — with their huge advertising budgets is a major obstacle for smaller chains. Aside from competing with the top burger chains, smaller chains also deal with the same industrywide issues that the big chains face, such as rising labor and food costs driven by inflation and changing attitudes of consumers toward eating out.