FRESNO/TULARE COUNTY – In the wake of national fast food closure announcements, multiple Central Valley locations have been added to the tally.
Fresno-based franchise operator JEM Management has been feeling the weight of industry-wide trends, closing a handful of KFC and Wendy’s locations throughout the Valley over the last year, with multiple throughout Fresno. Most recently, Wendy’s locations in Selma and Visalia have also had to shut their doors.
According to a former employee of the Selma Wendy’s who was on site when the building was being cleared out, the restaurant’s last day of business was Jan. 22. Social media posts from Visalia residents seem to place the closure of the Wendy’s at 2125 N. Dinuba Blvd. sometime around the week of Jan. 14.
With the closure of the Selma Wendy’s, the nearest location for rural Fresno County residents is now Fresno, Hanford or Visalia.
These closures fall in line with statements made during a Wendy’s earnings call in November of last year, which established that the corporation plans to close a “mid-single-digit percentage of U.S. restaurants.” According to discussion during the earnings call, that could mean closing about 300 locations on the higher end of that range.
“These actions will strengthen the system and enable franchisees to invest more capital and resources in their remaining restaurants,” said Wendy’s Interim CEO Ken Cook during the earnings call.
While these recent Wendy’s closures may have come to a shock to some patrons, JEM Management has already been bringing the axe down on some of their KFC locations for months.
According to a report from the Fresno Bee, JEM Management closed three Fresno locations in 2025. Visalia also saw its Walnut and Akers location close in 2025. Despite these challenges, JEM Management reported a successful end to the year.
“In 2025, JEM KFC went from near the bottom of the brand to closing out the year as the top-performing franchise — a turnaround fueled by discipline, resilience, and relentless leadership across every restaurant,” JEM Management said in a Jan. 26 LinkedIn post.
While the food service industry is ever-changing, things seem to have steadied out for now. The Mid Valley Times spoke with employees from the KFC locations in Selma, Reedley, Dinuba and Visalia, and all reported hearing no word of potential closures. Similar reports were given by Wendy’s employees from Tulare and the Visalia location at 1580 E. Noble Avenue.
The Mid Valley Times reached out to JEM Management for comment, but no response was received by Feb. 2.
