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There’s an Americana about Cheesecake Factory.
We have 250 menu items made fresh from scratch every day. It’s a challenge. Most people would tell you you’re crazy, don’t even try it. That’s why we exist – to make delicious, memorable food.
Once the pandemic hit, all 204 restaurants were in an off-premise mode or closed down.
It was time to look for some additional funding.
We said, “Listen. We should talk about just broader capital needs that you might have.” Our objective was to get the best transaction for our client.
So a private equity firm made a $200 million investment.
The company has made investments in their off-premise capability.
So our exclusive relationship with DoorDash became even more important during Covid.
On average, a restaurant that was doing $2 million previously in off-premise sales was, earlier this year, doing four. Once the restaurants have reopened, we kept about 90% of that growth.
Giving more guests the opportunity to enjoy Cheesecake Factory outside of the restaurant gave us the peace of mind at a very unsure time for all of us.