Outback Steakhouse Set on Tripling Its New Restaurants This Year—What to Know
Outback Steakhouse didn't grow all that much domestically in 2023 as it only opened a handful of new locations in the United States. But in 2024, the Australian-themed steakhouse has ambitious plans to seriously ramp up the pace of new American restaurant openings.
Bloomin' Brands—the parent company of Outback, Carrabba's Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill, and more—held an earnings call on Feb. 23 where it discussed its plans for its brands in 2024. One key focus for Outback in the year ahead, according to Bloomin' CEO David Deno, is ramping up new restaurant openings.
Deno revealed that the company opened six new Outback locations in the United States throughout 2023. This year, Outback is "on track to nearly triple" the number of new openings in the country, Deno added. So if all goes to plan, Outback fans could potentially see close to 18 new locations pop up in the United States this year.
Expansion is one of several priorities for Outback as it attempts to get back on track after a sluggish period. The steakhouse chain's same-store sales in the United States dropped by 1.1% in the third quarter of 2023, while customer traffic declined by 6.1%. Domestic same-store sales also dipped by 0.3% in the fourth quarter and traffic dropped 4.3%, according to a brand-new earnings report released on Feb. 23.
"Our primary focus remains improving restaurant sales and traffic at Outback," Deno said during Friday's earnings call.
Additionally, Deno announced during the call that the company had decided to shutter 41 "underperforming" restaurants across all of its brands. Most of the closures were Outback locations, as CFO Chris Meyer revealed later in the call.
On top of accelerating new restaurant openings, Bloomin' wants to improve Outback's fortunes in 2024 by spending more on marketing, highlighting value-friendly menu items, investing in technology, and enhancing the customer experience by improving service and serving consistently good food.
Bloomin' Brands also believes that improving Outback's existing restaurants will be a major factor in driving sales and traffic this year. The company remodeled more than 100 Outback locations throughout 2023 and plans to "continue to work our way through the system in 2024," Deno said.
Overall, Bloomin' plans to spend between $270 million and $290 million this year to upgrade its assets. Those funds will support around 40 to 45 new restaurant openings across all of the company's brands in 2024, as well as support additional openings in 2025.
"Our development efforts provide a runway for future growth, offer big returns, and are a key part of our strategy," Deno said.
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