Red Lobster

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This article is about the United States restaurant chain. For other uses, see Red lobster (disambiguation).
Red Lobster Hospitality, LLC
Subsidiary
Industry Restaurant
Genre Casual dining
Founded January 18, 1968; 56 years ago (1968-01-18)
Lakeland, Florida, US
Founders Bill Darden
Charley Woodsby
Headquarters Orlando, Florida, US
Number of locations
 649 (2024)
Area served
Key people
 Jonathan Tibus (CEO)
Salli Setta (president)
Products
Revenue US$2.6 billion (2018)[2]
Owner Golden Gate Capital (2014–2020)
Number of employees
 55,000[3]
Parent Darden Restaurants (1995–2014)
Thai Union Group (2020–2024)
Website RedLobster.com
Footnotes / references
[4][5]

Red Lobster Hospitality, LLC is an American casual dining restaurant chain headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company has operations across most of the United States (including Puerto Rico and Guam) and Canada, as well as in China, Ecuador, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates; as of June 23, 2020, the company had 719 locations worldwide.[6][1] Golden Gate Capital was Red Lobster's parent company after it was acquired from Darden Restaurants on July 28, 2014.[7] Seafood supplier Thai Union acquired a 25 percent stake in the company in 2016 for a reported $575 million, and in 2020 purchased the remaining portion from GGC.[8]

On August 6, 2014, Red Lobster announced its new headquarters location in CNL Center City Commons in Orlando.[9] On March 6, 2015, Red Lobster officially opened the Restaurant Support Center.[10]

History

Formation and growth

The first Red Lobster restaurant was opened on January 18, 1968, in Lakeland, Florida, by entrepreneurs Bill Darden and Charley Woodsby.[11][12] The oft-quoted date of March 27, 1968, is based on the incorporation date of Red Lobster Inns of America, Inc. (now GMRI, Inc.) in the Florida Secretary of State's Office.[13]

Originally billed as the "Harbor for Seafood Lovers", the first restaurant was followed by four others throughout the American South. In 1970, General Mills acquired Red Lobster as a five-unit company and with new backing, the chain expanded rapidly in the 1980s.

File:Red lobster lobsterfest duo (6983708417).jpg
A Lobsterfest duo meal

Red Lobster entered Canada in the 1980s, in many cases by buying Ponderosa restaurant locations. Currently, Red Lobster generally maintains between 25 and 30 locations in Canada, the bulk in larger urban centres in Ontario (across southern Ontario plus one in Sudbury, in northern Ontario) with a smaller number in larger urban centres in all three Prairie provinces. It exited the Quebec market in September 1997, due to financial losses, and never attempted to enter British Columbia.[14]

In 1992, Red Lobster introduced its now famous Cheddar Bay Biscuits, developed by culinary leader Kurt Hankins.[15]

On March 29, 1994, Bill Darden died, after an extended illness, at the age of 75.[16]

In 1995, Red Lobster (along with Olive Garden and other sister chains), became part of Darden Restaurants, Inc. During that time, General Mills decided to release Darden into an independent, publicly traded corporation.[5]

2009 prototype and sale

File:Red Lobster, Baton Rouge.jpg
The "Bar Harbor" prototype design as seen at the Baton Rouge, Louisiana location

In 2009, Red Lobster debuted its new Bar Harbor restaurant prototype modeled after coastal New England architecture.[17] The new exterior features include shingle and stone towers, signal flags, and Adirondack-style benches. The interior updates include dark wood paneling, warm-toned fabrics, soft lighting, and nautical decor and artwork.[18]

On December 19, 2013, Darden Restaurants announced plans to sell or spin off the Red Lobster brand, citing pressure from stock investors.[19] This was in direct response to Darden's going over budget on a new digital platform.[20]

On May 12, 2014, Darden announced that as part of its spinoff of Red Lobster, it was converting the co-located Red Lobster and Olive Garden locations into standalone Olive Garden locations.[21] On May 16, 2014, Darden announced it would be selling the Red Lobster seafood restaurant chain to Golden Gate Capital for US$2.1 billion.[22] Darden announced the completion of the sale of Red Lobster on July 28, 2014.[23]

On August 6, 2014, Red Lobster announced their new headquarters location in CNL Center City Commons in Orlando.[9] On March 6, 2015, Red Lobster officially opened the Restaurant Support Center.[10] Seafood supplier Thai Union acquired a 25 percent stake in the company in 2016 for a reported $575 million, and in 2020 purchased the remaining portion from GGC.[8]

Restructuring and possible bankruptcy

In March 2024, Jonathan Tibus was hired as the company's new CEO. Tibus previously was CEO during the bankruptcy of Kona Grill and the chief restructuring officer of Krystal. Officials deemed Red Lobster as a "zombie brand", and that they were exploring options to save the company, including a restructuring turnaround, fire sale, or a possible bankruptcy filing. Red Lobster also announced that it was searching for a new buyer, and if one could not be found, the company may file for bankruptcy within the coming months.[24]

On April 16, 2024, Bloomberg reported that Red Lobster was preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, blaming financial pressures and an $11 million loss in its "endless shrimp" promotion as part of the decision.[25] The company plans to exit some underperforming leases as well as address other long-term contracts and rising labor costs. The company is expected to continue operating normally during the bankruptcy procedure while it continues discussing with its creditors about a possible bankruptcy debt reduction plan.[26]

On May 13, 2024, Red Lobster abruptly closed 87 of its restaurants nationwide. This included all of its Buffalo-area locations and most of its Orlando-area locations. TAGeX Brands is currently conducting liquidation auctions for restaurant fixtures and supplies at the closed locations, and is set to conclude them by May 16.[27]

Promotions

File:Red Lobster - Biscuits (6022841688).jpg
A basket of Cheddar Bay Biscuits from Red Lobster

Red Lobster has offered an endless snow crab leg promotion twice in its history (as of September 2003). However, in 2003, the promotion resulted in its parent company, Darden Restaurants', taking a $3 million charge to third-quarter earnings, resulting in president Edna Morris's departure from the company.

The ill-timed promotion was launched amid high wholesale crab leg prices. The chain also underestimated how many times a customer would order more. Further complicating matters at the restaurant level was the amount of time customers spent table-side in the restaurant cracking crab legs. This resulted in increased waiting times in the lobby and overall diminished customer capacity per hour.[28]

In February 2016, American singer Beyoncé referenced Red Lobster in her single "Formation". After unexpectedly releasing the single and performing it during the Super Bowl 50 halftime show, Red Lobster reported a 33% sales increase due to the reference.[29]

Red Lobster introduced a new Daily Deals menu in 2020, featuring Endless Shrimp Mondays and more deals.[30]

In summer of 2023, Red Lobster reintroduced their $20 endless shrimp item to the menu as a permanent addition which resulted in a $11 million loss for its major share holder Thai Union, a Bangkok-based canned seafood company. [31]

Menu

The brand specializes in seafood, including crab, fish, lobster, mollusks, and shrimp. It also serves chicken, desserts, pasta, and steak.[32][promotional or fringe source?]

Lobster bisque controversy

In February 2016, Inside Edition reported that Red Lobster used a mix of less expensive langostino along with Maine lobster in their lobster bisque recipe.[33][34]

Locations

As of June 23, 2020, the company had 719 locations worldwide. These locations span 44 US states (including Puerto Rico, Guam), China, Canada, Ecuador, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.[6][1]

  • The Red Lobster in Kitchener, Ontario (2013). This is one of the Ponderosa remakes, as are most Red Lobsters in Canada

  • Red Lobster, London.JPG

    The Red Lobster in London, Ontario (2013). This one is also a Ponderosa remake, and also has an addition to the right, as it was added on when the Dundas location in London closed, around the late 80s.

  • 0294New York City 7th Avenue.JPG

    Red Lobster on 7th Avenue, in Times Square, New York City (2007)

  • Red Lobster Restaurant Yonkers NY October 2012.jpg

    Red Lobster in Yonkers, New York (2012)

  • HK 過海隧道巴士107線 Bus route 107 view CWB 告士打道 Gloucester Road Red Lobster Restaurant Nov 2019 SS2.jpg

    Red Lobster opening in Hong Kong (2010).

  • Red Lobster in Ann Arbor, Michigan (2010)

  • Red Lobster in Gaithersburg, Maryland, in September 2013

  • Red Lobster restaurant in Doha Qatar.jpg

    Red Lobster in Doha, Qatar, opened to the public in June 2012,[35] making it the company's second Red Lobster restaurant to be established in the Middle East.[36]

In popular culture

In 2007, writer Stewart O'Nan published the novella Last Night at the Lobster about the closing of a Red Lobster restaurant in Connecticut.

See also

References

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  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

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