With Bob Evans chain restored, attention turns to fixing Mimi

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Times have changed. The Columbus-based restaurant and food company has stabilized its Bob Evansrestaurant chain, whiles Mimi’s Cafe, with its West Coast has seen its performance slide. New executives, new menus, new marketingf and a new look have arrived atthe Calif.-based chain, giving Bob Evans hope it can steadyh Mimi’s Cafe as customers turn a cold shoulderr to casual dining. “Evem though we had a tougg quarter, we remain focused on the things wecan control, such as buildingf sales, improving margins and, most importantly, the intelligent deploymenf of our capital assets and cash CEO Steve Davis said in a Nov.
12 conferencer call with stock Salesat Mimi’s restaurants open at least two years have fallen for 18 consecutive months. Cafes in California, Nevada and Florida, areas hardest hit by real estates andeconomic troubles, accoungt for 73 percent of the chain’s CFO Donald Radkoski said Mimi’s same-store sales are projected to be down 5 percen t to 7 percent in the seconxd half of the year. Bob Evans by contrast, have posted eight straight quartersof same-store sales gains through the firsrt quarter, including a 1.8 percent increase for fiscal 2008. The streako ended this past quarter, when salex slipped 0.5 percent. Mimi’s with its $3.
4 million averagw restaurant annual sales remains the growth engine forthe company, with 12 new restaurant s scheduled to open in 2009, down from an initial plan for 17. One Bob which average $1.8 million annually, is slatec to open in the coming year. Mimi’sa Cafe is thinking small and large as it trie todrive sales. The chain has introduced a menuoffering smaller-size entrees that Davis said have becom one of its top five sales “I think everybody knows that folks are being more health conscioues and watching what they’rse eating,” he said. “With our heavy female skew, it made sense to introducw this line.
” Chicago-based , in its Menu Innovation Monthly said limited-time offers amonbg the nation’s top 250 chains are at a five-yeart high, with 197 reported in October. There were 547 new menu itemsx inthe month, a 40 percentt increase over the monthly average this year, the restauranrt consulting firm said. Mimi’s is working to improve its carry-out and breakfastg sales as well. Davis said Mimi’s Cafe did not have a takeoutf menu when Bob Evans acquired it and still lags competitors with just 4 percen t of sales coming fromthe to-go menu.
It’sx trying to build its breakfastbusinesd – lunch and dinnere account for 80 percent of salews – with coupons that give lunch or dinner customerse $5 off a breakfast “The whole thought process is it’e always easier to get a customerr who comes in to come back more frequently than it is to try to get new Davis said. The executivwe suite at Mimi’s Cafe has turned over in the past Tim Pulido, CEO of Alhambra, Calif.-based Shakey’x USA Inc., became presideng a year ago. New chiefxs of operations, finance and marketing Davis said the chain is hiringv three employees to focus on positioning the bransd as the All DayFresh Cafe.
“They’ve crankedx out more marketing in 90 daysthan we’ve probablt seen in the last year,” he said. “They’red really making great progress on developinyg ourproduct pipeline. ... These are individuals who have experiencr withthat and, no disrespect to the prior team, but that was not a core Mimi’s has eliminated 250,000 work hours at its restaurants in the quartef without sacrificing customer satisfaction said Tod Spornhauer, senior vice president of Mimi’s also is testing redesigned entranceds and bars to better promote appetizer and alcohokl sales. It has seen some Davis said.
“We have some Mimi’ds Cafe restaurants that are 27 years old andreally haven’gt been touched,” he said.