Bloomin’ Brands Inc., the parent company of Outback Steakhouse and other restaurants, says it is closing 41 locations across its portfolio.
“Closing restaurants is never easy. This was a business decision that has no reflection on the staff or their service. Many team members will have the opportunity to transfer to open positions at another restaurant. Employees who do not will receive severance,” Bloomin’ Brands said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY.
“We periodically review our asset base and, in our latest review, we made the decision to close 41 underperforming locations,” said David Deno, CEO of Bloomin’ Brands who made the announcement about the closures during an earnings call on Friday Feb. 23, according to Nation’s Restaurant News. “The majority of these restaurants were older assets with leases from the ’90s and early 2000s.”
Deno said the decision “considered a variety of factors” including sales and traffic-trade areas, in addition to “the investment that would have to be made to improve the restaurants,” according to Nation’s Restaurant News.
“Despite this initiative, our confidence in our portfolio remains high as we plan to open 40 to 45 new restaurants across the system in 2024,” Deno said.
Of the 41 closures across the company’s portfolio, which also includes Bonefish Grill, Carrabba’s Italian Grill and Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, 33 restaurants were closed as of Friday, a Bloomin’ Brands spokesperson told Nation’s Restaurant News.
Bloomin’ Brands told USA TODAY it does not plan to release a list of restaurants it is shuttering, however CNN reports the company said the closures will hit Outback Steakhouse the hardest.
According to Nation’s Restaurant News, as of Dec. 31, Bloomin’ had 1,480 restaurants worldwide, including 688 Outback Steakhouses in the U.S., 217 Carrabba’s Italian Grills, 176 Bonefish Grills and 64 Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bars.
In May 2022, Outback Steakhouse announced plans to open 75 to 100 additional restaurants highlighting a revamped restaurant design featuring “a smaller size, new technology and a revamped interior design.”
The company said the new buildings will “elevate the in-restaurant dining experience with a modern Aussie-inspired flare and devote more space to take-away, delivery and Outback’s newly launched nationwide catering program.”
“This new restaurant design features the Aussie spirit of Outback from the moment you arrive at the restaurant with a warm and welcoming dining room while also allowing us to optimize Outback’s strong to-go and delivery channels,” said Brett Patterson, President of Outback Steakhouse, in a news release at the time.
