by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Ted Hires has sold his four Sonny’s Bar-B-Q franchises to the Kirkpatrick family, which owns several other Sonny’s franchises around town. Hires, the founder of the Justice Coalition, said the franchises were not on the market but an offer to sell was intriguing enough to consider.
“They came to me. I had not given it any thought,” said Hires. “I had never even considered it. They asked me for a price and I came up with a number I did not think they would accept. But, they did. I didn’t have to think about the offer very long. It was a pretty short process.”
Hires owned the Sonny’s locations on Lane Avenue, Blanding Boulevard, I-95 and Dunn Avenue and a location still under construction at I-10 and Chaffee Road. After 22 years of being in the restaurant business, Hires said he’ll miss aspects of it, but won’t miss the grind of a daily, all-day industry.
“I am not in a 24-7 business anymore. It’s too demanding,” he said. “The restaurant business is a seven-days-a-week job. It’s a high-attention business. I want to do something where my phone is not ringing constantly and I do not have 250 employees.
“I don’t know what I’ll do. I will probably take a while to find out. But, I will stay involved in the community.”
Hires said the sales will allow him to devote more time to his other “job” as founder of the Justice Coalition, an organization devoted to victim’s rights and helping the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office locate criminals, drug dealers and sexual predators. The Justice Coalition was heavily involved in the Terri Schiavo case and produces a monthly newsletter.
“This will give me more free time to work for the Justice Coalition. Before, I had two full-time jobs. Now, I have one,” said Hires, who admitted it was kind of strange to be in his Sonny’s office one day recently and realize his professional life was about the be altered dramatically. “I was sitting in my office last Monday (May 2) and realized that for the first time in 40 years I wasn’t going to have to meet a payroll. It was kind of melancholy in a way. I have regrets, I am pleased with my decision and I am excited about the future.”