About Potbelly
Potbelly is a publicly listed company based in Chicago (United States) founded in 1977, and was acquired by RaceTrac in September 2025. Quick-service sandwich restaurants are owned and operated nationwide. Potbelly has raised $58 million across 4 funding rounds from investors including American Securities, Privet Fund Management and Oak Investment Partners. The company has 5,000 employees. Its chief executive, as recorded, is Alan Johnson. Its website potbelly.com draws about 750 thousand monthly visits. Its focus areas include Food and Agriculture, Food Service Chains, Restaurants and Limited Service. Its competitors include Burger King, Cracker Barrel and First Watch; 1 of its 3 listed competitors has raised funding.
Company details
Potbelly Sandwich Works was established in 1977 in Chicago, Illinois, within the quick-service restaurant sector. Sandwich-focused outlets are owned and operated across 26 U.S. states, while 12 franchised locations are maintained in the Middle East. Operations center on providing accessible dining services, with the headquarters situated in the United States.
- Headquarters Chicago, United States
- Employees 5,000
- Stage Public
- SectorsConsumer
- Website category Food and Drink · Restaurants and Delivery
- Website potbelly.com
- Social LinkedIn X
- Acquired by RaceTrac (Sep 2025)
- Legal Name Potbelly Corporation
- Annual Revenue$462.6 M (USD)-5.86as on Dec 31, 2024
- Net Profit$40.29 M (USD)687.15as on Dec 31, 2024
- EBITDA$25.54 M (USD)8.89as on Dec 31, 2024
- Total Equity Funding$58M (USD)
in 4 rounds
- InvestorsAmerican Securities
& 5 more
- Employee Count5,000
- Acquired byRaceTrac
(Sep 2025)
Funding Insights of Potbelly
Potbelly has successfully raised a total of $58M across 4 strategic funding rounds. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $58M
- Total Rounds 4
- Investors Count 5
All 4 funding rounds of Potbelly with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2017 | Post-IPO | – | – | ||
| Jun 2006 | $58M | Private Equity Round | – | – | |
| Feb 2006 | Private Equity Round | – | – | ||
| Sep 2001 | Private Equity Round | – | – |
6 investors in total: 6 institutional.
Investors in Potbelly
Potbelly has secured backing from 6 investors, including institutional and venture fund investors. Prominent investors backing the company include American Securities, Privet Fund Management and Oak Investment Partners.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Venture capital investments are made in disruptive growth companies. | oakvc.com | Greenwich, United States | ||
Early-stage tech and life-sciences firms are funded across the US. | maverickventures.com | San Francisco, United States | ||
Private equity firm | 1994 | american-securities.com | New York, United States | |
| wvlnd.com | ||||
Manages a multi-strategy hedge fund focused on diversified investments. | 2007 | privetfund.com | Atlanta, United States | |
RaceTrac is operated as a convenience store and fuel retailer. | racetrac.com | Atlanta, United States |
Investor details for Potbelly
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People of Potbelly
77 people are tracked at Potbelly (42 in leadership, 35 in team); the tracked headcount is 5,000.
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Alan Johnson | Ex-CEO & President | Leadership |
Jeffrey Douglas | SVP & Chief Information Officer | Leadership |
Adam Noyes | President | Leadership |
Luis Castellanos | Director Of Development And Real Estate Finance | Leadership |
Adiya Dixon | Chief Legal Officer & Secretary | Leadership |
Steven Cirulis | SVP, CFO, Chief Strategy Officer | Leadership |
Mohit Kishore | Franchisee - Managing Partner | Leadership |
Patrick Walsh | Chief People Officer & SVP | Leadership |
Robert D. Wright | President & CEO | Leadership |
Robyn-Ashley Taylor | Director, Assistant General Counsel | Leadership |
Joe Panozzo | Sr. Director - Quality, Safety & Risk | Leadership |
Todd L. Owen | Director Of Franchise Development | Leadership |
Kathryn Andreae | Senior Director, Assistant Controller | Leadership |
Michael Bitterman | General Manager | Leadership |
Alison Cisek | Sr. Director Of Design & Construction | Leadership |
Maureen Distefano | Director | Leadership |
David Bulger | Director Of Franchise Development | Leadership |
Amariah Stepter | General Manager | Leadership |
Marissa Hermann | Senior Director, Enterprise Fp&a | Leadership |
John Beckley | Regional Vice President Of Franchise Development | Leadership |
57 more people are available in the full profile.
Complete people profiles for Potbelly
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- Professional contacts
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IPO & Listings of Potbelly
Potbelly is a publicly listed company on the NASDAQ with ticker symbol PBPB in USA, operating in the Consumer services sector. As a publicly traded entity, the company provides investors with opportunities to participate in its growth story through equity ownership. The listing enables access to capital markets, enhances corporate visibility, and provides liquidity for shareholders while maintaining transparency through regulatory compliance and regular financial disclosures.
- IPO date04 Oct 2013
- Listed onNASDAQ: PBPB
- Listed entityPotbelly Corporation
- Exchange sectorConsumer services
- Share price$17.03 · 2025-09-29
- Market capitalisation$515.3M
- Price to earnings47.8
- EPS (diluted, trailing year)$0.36
- Volume (last session)341,144
- Analyst consensusNeutral
Financials of Potbelly
| Year | Revenue | Net income | EBITDA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $462.6M | $40.3M | $25.5M |
| 2023 | $491.4M | $5.1M | $23.4M |
| 2022 | $452.0M | $4.3M | $39.1M |
| 2021 | $380.1M | -$23.8M | $26.2M |
| 2020 | $291.3M | -$65.4M | $8.0M |
Detailed financial statements for Potbelly
Statement rows, ratios, five-year trends and downloadable financials of the group companies require an active premium plan.
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Timeline of Potbelly
5 dated milestones of Potbelly across 48 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Potbelly is founded.
- Funding First funding round.
- IPO Lists on the stock exchange (IPO).
- Funding Latest funding round, Post-IPO,.
- Exit Acquired by RaceTrac.
Competitors of Potbelly
Potbelly has 3 listed competitors in our database, 1 of them funded. They include Burger King, Cracker Barrel and First Watch.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bk.com | 1954 | Miami, United States | $100M | 40 | Burgers and fast food are served by a restaurant chain. | |
| crackerbarrel.com | 1969 | Lebanon, United States | 77,000 | A chain of limited-service restaurants is operated nationwide. | ||
| firstwatch.com | 1983 | Bradenton, United States | 12,000 | A chain of limited-service restaurants is operated nationwide. |
Detailed competitors of Potbelly
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Web traffic of Potbelly
The website of Potbelly (potbelly.com) receives about 749.6K visits a month and ranks #55,396 among all websites worldwide, #1,602 in Restaurants and Delivery.
- Monthly visits749.6K
▲ 9.6% vs previous month
- Unique visitors453.7K
per month
- Global rank#55,396
among all websites
- Category rank#1,602
Food and Drink · Restaurants and Delivery
- Bounce rate34%
- Pages per visit5.6
- Average visit2 min 47 sec
- DevicesDesktop 22% · Mobile 78%
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Potbelly. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| jimmyjohns.com | 100% | 4M | #11,883 | View details | |
| panerabread.com | 91% | 8.8M | #6,107 | View details | |
| whichwich.com | 78% | 680.7K | #397,440 | View details | |
| chipotle.com | 76% | 10.6M | #5,584 | View details | |
| quiznos.com | 75% | 100.3K | #314,375 | View details | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 40 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Potbelly
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- 40 similar websites
- Audience overlap
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- Traffic by brand
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Top companies in Food Service Chains
3 companies that operate in the same segment as Potbelly (Food Service Chains) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Salads and meal bowls are offered by restaurant chains. | 2006 | Los Angeles, California, United States | USD 479.07 M | USD 679.47 M | 2,868 | |
Doughnuts and coffee are provided by the international chain. | 1937 | Winston-salem, North Carolina, United States | USD 114.68 M | USD 1.52 B | 21,000 | |
A chain of restaurants provides meals and catering services. | 2009 | Colorado City, Colorado, United States | USD 11.45 M | 526 |
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Related news about Potbelly
Complete news archive for Potbelly
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Frequently Asked Questions about Potbelly
Potbelly was founded in 1977 and raised its 1st funding round 24 years after it was founded.
Potbelly is headquartered in Chicago, United States. It is registered at Chicago, Illinois, United States.
Alan Johnson is the CEO of Potbelly, as recorded in our data.
Potbelly is a funded company, having raised a total of $58M across 4 funding rounds to date.
Potbelly has 5,000 employees.
Annual revenue of Potbelly is $462.6M as on Dec 31, 2024.
Potbelly Sandwich Works was established in 1977 in Chicago, Illinois, within the quick-service restaurant sector. Sandwich-focused outlets are owned and operated across 26 U.S. states, while 12 franchised locations are maintained in the Middle East. Operations center on providing accessible dining services, with the headquarters situated in the United States.
Potbelly's top competitors include Burger King, Cracker Barrel and First Watch.
Yes, Potbelly is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol PBPB.
Potbelly has 6 investors. Key investors include American Securities, Privet Fund Management, Oak Investment Partners, Maverick Ventures, and Waveland Investments.
Yes. Potbelly was acquired by RaceTrac in September 2025.
The website of Potbelly receives about 750 thousand visits a month and ranks #55,396 among all websites worldwide.