26 Burger King locations to shutter across Michigan: See the list

Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press
·3 min read
97
Burger King sign.
Burger King sign.

A Texas-based franchise owner of more than two dozen Burger King locations in metro Detroit is permanently ceasing operations in Michigan, with most of the restaurant closings in Detroit.

The move is resulting in more than 400 job losses, including general managers, shift managers, and team members.

EYM King of Michigan,  based in Irving, Texas, the franchisee that owns the restaurants, informed the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) on March 22 of the layoffs.

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The closings are due to “unforeseen business circumstances” and failure to reach an agreement with Burger King Corp., according to a WARN notice sent to Michigan’s labor department.

In the letter, EYM King of Michigan stated all of the company's 26 locations will close, starting March 17 and being completed by April 15.

The Burger King restaurant closings are in Dearborn Heights, Detroit, Ecorse, Ferndale, Flint, Highland Park, Livonia, Royal Oak, Southfield, Walled Lake, Warren, and Whitmore Lake.

Messages left at EYM of Michigan in Irving, Texas, were not returned. The Michigan website, eymking.com, appears to be not working.

A Burger King spokesperson responded by email writing:

"We are aware of the situation, but cannot comment at this time due to pending litigation."

Burger King Corp., in a lawsuit filed against Eduardo E. Diaz, EYM King of Michigan, LLC and EYM King, L.P. are alleging “breaches of written agreement.”

According to the lawsuit filed Feb. 14 in U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida Miami Division, Burger King Corporation(BKC) is seeking monetary damages for “failure to timely pay amounts due to BKC in relation to the operation of Burger King Restaurants in Michigan.”

The payment amounts BKC is seeking include royalties, advertising, and other fees. Court documents say that the defendants negotiated “long-term franchise agreements” with Burger King Corp. Of the 26 locations that are listed below as closing, 14 are listed in the court documents.

The locations closing and the number of employees at each location, according to the letter, are below:

  • Dearborn Heights: 20401 W. Warren (16)

  • Detroit: 2155 Gratiot Ave. (8)

  • Detroit: 9871 Livernois (13)

  • Detroit: 8201 Woodward Ave. (14)

  • Detroit: 18021 Kelly Rd. (20)

  • Detroit: 20200 Grand River Ave. (22)

  • Detroit: 13600 W. McNichols Rd. (22)

  • Detroit: 15500 W. Seven Mile (21)

  • Detroit: 20240 Plymouth Rd. (25)

  • Detroit: 12661 Mack Ave. (11)

  • Detroit: 9239 Gratiot Ave. (9)

  • Detroit: 17440 E. Warren (30)

  • Detroit: 16245 Livernois Ave. (14)

  • Ecorse: 3863 W. Jefferson Ave. (11)

  • Ferndale: 10336 W. 8 Mile Rd. (26)

  • Flint: 3625 South Dort Hwy. (25)

  • Flint: 3801 Clio Rd. (18)

  • Highland Park: 13324 Woodward Ave. (13)

  • Livonia: 28203 Plymouth Rd. (10)

  • Livonia: 34835 Plymouth Ave. (19)

  • Royal Oak: 31456 Woodward Ave. (17)

  • Southfield: 23660 Telegraph Rd. (19)

  • Southfield: 30711 Southfield Rd. (7)

  • Walled Lake: 1113 E. West Maple Rd. (8)

  • Warren: 2411 E. 8 Mile Rd. (13)

  • Whitmore Lake: 9774 E. M-36 (13)

Contact Detroit Free Press food writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news to: sselasky@freepress.com. Follow @SusanMariecooks on Twitter. Subscribe to the Free Press.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 26 Burger King locations to shutter across Michigan: See the list