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Financing

How your restaurant sales and profits compare to competitors' and what you can do to improve financial performance

Financing

At Starbucks, reusable cups prove to be a traffic boon

 By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 13, 2025

The coffee shop chain's traffic surged following the sale of its "Bearista" cold cup, while its "Red Cup Day" promotion is generating better-than-expected results.

Financing

In Minnesota, Krispy Kreme proves it can still attract a crowd

 By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 12, 2025

The doughnut chain has had its share of challenges recently, but that didn’t matter to the customers who waited hours for the opening of the state’s first location in nearly two decades.

Financing

AI is everywhere, but how can it help restaurants?

By Jonathan Maze and Joe Guszkowski on Nov. 12, 2025

A Deeper Dive: In the first episode of a six-part series on AI in restaurants, the restaurant finance podcast delves into the big and small ways companies are using artificial intelligence.

Financing

Restaurant franchisors should put the brakes on share buybacks

By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 12, 2025

The Bottom Line: Publicly traded companies often spend their extra cash to buy back shares. But franchisors of struggling chains might be better off investing that cash in the restaurants.

Financing

Value and catering drive traffic gains for Red Robin

By Joe Guszkowski on Nov. 11, 2025

The casual-dining chain’s $9.99 Big Yummm meal continues to draw in price-conscious customers, though sales and traffic were still lower than last year.

Financing

Here come the take-private deals

By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 11, 2025

The Bottom Line: Denny’s and Potbelly have both been taken private. Noodles & Company and Pizza Hut are on the market. And rumors are constantly flying about Papa Johns.

Financing

Key takeaways from the recent round of restaurant company earnings

By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 11, 2025

The Bottom Line: Full-service restaurant chains are winning, slightly, in a weak overall market. Brands are rethinking unit count, focusing on service and pushing a lot of value.

Financing

Is the market for restaurant company IPOs making a comeback? Not necessarily

By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 11, 2025

Black Rock Coffee Bar demonstrated that there is some demand from Wall Street investors for restaurant chains. But the bar for such offerings remains high. "It's thawing. It's not thawed."

Financing

A brutal year for Sweetgreen

By Jonathan Maze on Nov. 10, 2025

The Bottom Line: In this week’s edition of the restaurant finance newsletter, we discuss the challenges at the fast-casual salad chain and its brutal stock decline over the past year.

Financing

Sardar Biglari gets some help in fight against Cracker Barrel

By Joe Guszkowski on Nov. 10, 2025

Two key shareholder advisory firms are backing the activist’s argument that change is needed at the floundering family-dining chain, including the ouster of board member Gilbert Dávila. But they recommended that CEO Julie Masino remain in place.

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