Executive Spotlight: Guillermo Perales, Founder & CEO of Sun Holdings (2027)
Guillermo Perales is the founder and CEO of Sun Holdings, a Dallas-based multi-brand restaurant and retail operator. He opened his first Golden Corral franchise in the Dallas area in 1997, grew into one of the largest franchisees in the United States, and since 2019 has also bought restaurant brands outright, including Taco Bueno, Freebirds, Uncle Julio's and, in October 2025, Bar Louie.
This page covers public professional information only, drawn from Sun Holdings' own site and published business coverage.
Current role and company
Franchise Times and FSR Magazine, reporting on the 2024 and 2025 deals, identify Perales as president and CEO of Sun Holdings, and Sun Holdings' own site calls him CEO. Sun Holdings describes itself as a restaurant and retail management-services company that grew from a single restaurant venture into a multi-brand operator, founded in 1997.
Its franchised brands include Applebee's, Arby's, Burger King, Golden Corral, IHOP, McAlister's Deli, Papa Johns and Popeyes, and the company is also a franchisee of T-Mobile. Franchise Times and FSR report that Sun also owns Taco Bueno, Freebirds and Uncle Julio's, and in October 2025 it added Bar Louie.
- CompanySun Holdings, Dallas, Texas.
- TitleFounder and CEO (president and CEO in 2024 and 2025 trade coverage).
- Company founded1997.
- Brands operated or ownedBurger King, Popeyes, Arby's, Papa Johns, Applebee's, McAlister's Deli, IHOP, Golden Corral, T-Mobile, Bar Louie, plus Taco Bueno, Freebirds and Uncle Julio's.
Career path
- Early career. Franchising.com's 2012 and 2013 profiles say his first job after moving to the United States was with the food company Gruma Corp. in the 1980s, which led him to start his own business.
- First restaurant, 1997. Those profiles say he opened his first Golden Corral in Dallas by 1997, financed partly with an SBA loan. CNBC places that first restaurant in Richardson, Texas.
- Building a franchise group. By late 2012 Franchising.com counted 398 units across Burger King, Popeyes, Arby's, CiCi's Pizza, Golden Corral, T-Mobile and Del Taco, with annual revenue above $400 million.
- Refranchising deals. Franchise Times reported in 2016 that he had bought 100 Burger Kings and 50 Arby's units when those brands sold company-owned restaurants to franchisees, bringing the company close to 400 units that year by its count.
- Owning brands. Sun bought Taco Bueno out of bankruptcy in 2019, Freebirds World Burrito in 2024 and Uncle Julio's later that year, then Bar Louie out of bankruptcy in October 2025.
What he is known for
- Scale as a franchisee. Franchise Times ranked Sun Holdings No. 2 on its Restaurant 200 in 2025, per Sun Holdings' repost of the article. CNBC described the company in 2017 as the largest Latino franchise operator in the U.S.
- Acquiring struggling brands. Taco Bueno and Bar Louie were both bought out of bankruptcy. Of Bar Louie, Perales said in a statement that the purchase marked an exciting step forward in the company's growth strategy.
- A move into Mexican concepts. Franchise Times reported Sun's interest in building a Mexican-food group around Taco Bueno, Freebirds and Uncle Julio's, with Perales saying he had had his eye on Freebirds for some time.
- Industry recognition. CNBC reported he received the American Dream Award at the Multi-Unit Franchising Conference in 2013.
Leadership style and philosophy
In his own interviews, Perales stresses scale, operations and accountability. In 2016 he told Franchise Times, "grow or die," and said it is "all about economies of scale for marketing, pricing, training." In 2013 he told Franchising.com, "I think it all boils down to focusing on operations," and that brand managers have room to innovate but "they are accountable and they must get results." On owning brands he told Franchise Times in 2024, "The beauty of owning your own brand is that you decide what you want to do with it."
Key numbers
Company figures as reported in the press, with the period shown. They describe Sun Holdings, not Perales personally, and counts differ by source and date.
- 2012398 units and revenue above $400 million, per Franchising.com (November 2012).
- 2017More than 750 franchises in eight states, nearly 17,000 employees and about $800 million in revenue, per CNBC (September 2017).
- 2023More than 1,000 locations and $2 billion in total sales, per Franchise Times (September 2024).
- 2025More than 1,200 locations per Franchise Times (March 2025); more than 1,800 restaurants per FSR Magazine (October 2025).
- New buildsAbout 40 to 50 units a year on average, likely about 35 in 2025 because of construction costs, per Perales in Franchise Times (March 2025).
What to watch next
Worth tracking: how Sun turns around the brands it has bought, especially Bar Louie's 39 restaurants and Uncle Julio's, which Perales called a good growth vehicle for the company, and whether construction costs keep new openings below the usual pace.
Questions people ask
Who is Guillermo Perales?
He is the founder and CEO of Sun Holdings, a Dallas-based multi-brand franchise and restaurant company founded in 1997.
What brands does Sun Holdings operate?
Franchised brands include Applebee's, Arby's, Burger King, Golden Corral, IHOP, McAlister's Deli, Papa Johns and Popeyes, plus T-Mobile. It also owns Taco Bueno, Freebirds, Uncle Julio's and Bar Louie.
When did Perales open his first restaurant?
Franchising.com says he opened his first Golden Corral in Dallas by 1997. CNBC says it was in Richardson, Texas.
Did Sun Holdings buy Bar Louie?
Yes. FSR Magazine reported on October 8, 2025 that Sun bought the 39-restaurant chain out of bankruptcy.
How big is Sun Holdings?
FSR Magazine reported more than 1,800 restaurants in October 2025. Franchise Times reported more than 1,200 locations in March 2025, and counts vary by source and date.
What has Perales said about growth?
He told Franchise Times in 2016 that growth was always top of mind: "grow or die."
Sources
- CNBC: Texas fast-food franchise king nears $1 billion (Sept 2017) · Founder and CEO, first restaurant, 2017 scale, award
- Franchising.com: Perpetual Grow-Motion (Nov 2012) · Early career, 2012 unit counts and revenue
- Franchising.com: All The Right Moves (Aug 2013) · Operations and accountability quotes
- Franchise Times: Market domination on Sun's mind (2016) · Refranchising deals, growth quotes
- Franchise Times: Why Sun Holdings Wanted to Buy Another Mexican Brand (Sept 2024) · Freebirds deal, brand list, 2023 sales
- Sun Holdings: Sees Big Potential in Trio of Mexican Brands (Franchise Times repost, Mar 2025) · President and CEO title, brands, unit counts, build pace
- FSR Magazine: 1,800-unit group Sun Holdings buys Bar Louie (Oct 2025) · Bar Louie deal, current brands and size
- Sun Holdings: company website · Brand portfolio, company description, CEO title
- Sun Holdings: Latino Leaders January-February 2025 · Source page of the hero photo
Facts were read from the linked pages on November 1, 2026, partly through a fetch tool that returns summaries, so confirm details on the original pages. Several sources are years old, and unit counts differ by source and date. The hero photo comes from Sun Holdings' website, where it appears as the image on its Latino Leaders January-February 2025 post; the photographer is not named there. This page covers public professional information only.
Top photo: Sun Holdings (sunholdings.net, Latino Leaders January-February 2025 post)