The bloom is off the onion…Proprietor shuts down 41 Outback, Carrabba’s, Bonefish Grill, and Fleming’s areas
Bloomin’ Manufacturers, the proprietor of Outback Steakhouse and several other different well-known restaurant chains, has shut the doorways on 41 areas.
The corporate, on an earnings name, shocked buyers with information of the everlasting closures of choose Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill, and Fleming’s areas. Some 33 of the 41 closings took place last Friday.
“We periodically overview our asset base and, in our newest overview, we made the choice to shut 41 underperforming areas,” CEO David Deno stated in the course of the name. “Nearly all of these eating places have been older belongings with leases from the ’90s and early 2000s.”
The shutdowns got here on account of quite a lot of components, starting from gross sales and visitors to the price of mandatory enhancements. Deno stated the transfer was not an indication of weak point for the corporate, and Bloomin’ Manufacturers plans to open between 40 and 45 new eating places earlier than the top of the yr.
The corporate didn’t give an inventory of the closed areas, however among the many closures was every Outback Steakhouse in Hawaii and Bonefish Grill areas in New Jersey and Virginia. Workers have stated they obtained no warning concerning the closures.
It was one thing of a blended quarter earnings-wise for Bloomin’. Gross sales at Outback have been down 0.3% and fell 3% at Bonefish. Carrabba’s, nevertheless, noticed same-store gross sales improve by 2.5%.
On the finish of final yr, Bloomin’ had 1,480 eating places in its portfolio. Amongst these have been 688 U.S.-based Outback Steakhouses, 217 Carrabba’s Italian Grills, 176 Bonefish Grills, and 64 Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bars. One other 330 areas of these chains have been positioned internationally.
This story was initially featured on Fortune.com
