Financing

How Portillo’s is handling life as a public company

A Deeper Dive: Michael Osanloo, CEO of the hot dog and Italian beef chain, joins the podcast to discuss labor, the chain’s drive-thru-only plans and keeping the focus on the long term.

How has life changed for Portillo’s since the brand went public?

This week’s episode of the Restaurant Business podcast “A Deeper Dive” features Michael Osanloo, CEO of the hot dog and Italian beef chain, to talk about life as a public company.

Portillo’s has been a fast-growing chain of massive quick-service restaurants. It went public last year in what now looks like some bad timing. Stocks have struggled due to inflation concerns and the promise of higher interest rates. And investors have been particularly hard on some of the newly public restaurant companies.

Osanloo talks about going public in this environment and how the company maintains its long-term focus now that it has to file quarterly reports.

He discusses many other issues, too, however. Pay some close attention to his comments on labor and consumer expectations. Osanloo also talks about the chain’s new drive-thru only location and the potential it has for the brand going forward.

It’s an interesting interview with the CEO of one of the hottest IPOs of 2021. Please have a listen.

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