Inspire Brands CEO Paul Brown reportedly taking a medical leave

Inspire Brands CEO Paul Brown reportedly taking a medical leave

Wed, September 9, 2026 at 9:34 PM GMT+3 2 min read

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Paul Brown is taking a medical leave from his job as CEO of Arby's owner Inspire Brands while he recovers from a recent injury, according to a report on Wednesday in the Wall Street Journal.

Scott Murphy, brand president of the Inspire-owned Dunkin', will take over as CEO on an interim basis, the publication said, citing internal documents.

Inspire Brands confirmed the move in an email to Nation's Restaurant News.

Yet the unexpected CEO change comes at a crucial time for the Atlanta-based Inspire, which is owned by the private-equity firm Roark Capital.

Inspire, which Brown cofounded, operates Buffalo Wild Wings, Sonic, Jimmy John's, and Baskin-Robbins in addition to Arby's and Dunkin', has been planning an initial public offering this year. The Journal has suggested the IPO could take place early next year.

Inspire had confidentially filed for an IPO earlier this year.

Brown, a former hotel company executive, was hired as CEO of Arby's in 2013 and turned that chain around, generating multiple years of strong sales. That paved the way for the creation of Inspire, which followed Arby's acquisition of Buffalo Wild Wings.

The company has gone on to make several other acquisitions. That included Dunkin', which it acquired in 2020 and which stands as one of the biggest deals in restaurant industry history at $11.3 billion.

Murphy, who has been with Dunkin' for more than two decades, came to Inspire along with that deal. He was named brand president of the coffee and doughnut chain once that acquisition was complete and has since added the title of chief brand officer for Inspire.

UPDATE: This story has been updated to include a comment from Inspire Brands.