In the midst of a sales free fall, and just days after its CEO and co-founder handed in his resignation, Kona Grill Inc. informed the government Tuesday that it would be late filing its annual earnings report because of the recent turmoil.
The struggling Asian-fusion chain has seen revenue drop 12.4% year over year and debts rise to $32 million. Same-store sales have plummeted 12.3% during the period, the company reported in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Scottsdale, Ariz.-based brand said in the filing that, following CEO Marcus Jundt’s resignation, it intends to have its new principal executive officer submit the required 10-K form within 15 days of the due date, as mandated.
The 44-unit chain, which has closed several locations this year, is already under a June 26 deadline to turn around its market valuation or face being delisted from the Nasdaq stock exchange.
Jundt’s departure marked the fourth CEO change for the casual-dining brand in under a year. Jundt had blamed an “erosion of core values” for the chain’s dismal performance and said he had plans to revamp the menu and expand the brand.
Kona Grill’s executive chairman, director and former CEO Berke Bakay also resigned late last month, along with Director Nanyan Zheng. Shawn Hassel, co-founder and managing partner of Park City, Utah-based private investment firm Bestige Holdings, joined Kona Grill’s board of directors and is in charge of the company’s strategic alternatives committee.
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