Type Public Products Luxury food service Founded May 2008 Number of employees 6,102 | Industry Restaurants Headquarters Winter Park Number of locations 160 | |
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Traded as NASDAQ: RUTH
S&P 600 Component Key people Mike O'Donnell, Chairman & CEO Revenue $398.6 million USD (2012) | ||
Ruth's Hospitality Group is the largest fine dining company in the world, with a focus on American steakhouse and seafood restaurants. They have over 160 locations worldwide. The group was formed in May 2008, shortly after Ruth's Chris Steak House acquired the Mitchell's Fish Market and Columbus Fish Market brands from Cameron Mitchell Restaurants. The company was rebranded with a new name by CEO Mike McDonnell to reflect the wider diversity of restaurants in its portfolio.
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Restaurant brands
Ruth's Hospitality Group owns five restaurant brands, which are a mixture of company-owned and franchised restaurants located both in the USA and overseas.
All the restaurant brands focus on offering high quality steak and seafood. All the steak is USDA Prime, and fresh seafood is flown in daily. They are “chain of custody” certified by the Marine Stewardship Council.
The wine list features over 200 labels, mostly from California, and has won numerous awards. The cocktail menu includes contemporary versions of classic cocktails. Most locations offer private dining, and the company also offers outside catering and a wedding service through the Ruth's Weddings brand.
Performance
The period immediately after the acquisition of the Mitchell's restaurants in February 2008 was turbulent, and resulted in the ousting of CEO Craig Miller, who was replaced by Mike O'Donnell in April 2008. In 2009, RHGI reported declining revenues at both the Ruth's Chris and the Mitchell's brands, with a drop of 22% in Q2 2009. By 2010, O'Donnell had begun to reverse the decline, and in 2011, he was able to report an increase of 9.2% in revenue for Ruth's Chris, and a decrease of just 2% for Mitchell's. Overall revenues rose by $15.9m to $353.6m. In a statement to shareholders, he attributed this to their growing success in private dining and catering facilities, as well as improved services for business customers.
In February 2013, RHGI reported a rise in revenues of 7.9% to $398.6 million in 2012 compared to $369.6 million in the prior year. They noted that 4th quarter sales at Ruth's Chris restaurants were up by 7.0% on the previous year, representing the 11th consecutive quarterly increase in sales and 20% growth over three years. The Mitchell's brands showed an increase of 5.2% over the previous year. O'Donnell attributed the improvements to the success of the fixed-price Ruth's Classics menu and the Sizzle, Swizzle, Swirl Happy Hour at Ruth's, and to the Reel Delicious lunch promotion at Mitchell's.
RHGI continues to add new restaurants to the Ruth's Chris chain, most recently in Harrah's casino in Las Vegas in January 2013, after the previous Las Vegas location on Flamingo closed in 2009. The company has announced plans for 2013 that include expanding the Ruth's Chris brand into China, a new Ruth's restaurant in Denver, CO, and four or five new franchised Ruth's locations.