Latest news with #RedLobster
Forbes
8 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
How The BIG3 Is Faring As It Begins Its Eighth Season
Michael Beasley goes one on one against Wesley Johnson in the first game of the BIG3's season. Michael Beasley, the second overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, went mano a mano against Wesley Johnson, the fourth overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. That kind of one-on-one showdown is a signature of BIG3 play. Each team in Ice Cube's three-on-three basketball league can challenge one foul call per half, creating the 'Bring the Fire' situation, and in the first one of the year, Johnson got the better of Beasley, stripping the ball from the 2024 BIG3 MVP. Profanities and trash talk ensued. Bring the Fire is not only one of the most intense plays of BIG3 action, but it also adds revenue through its Red Lobster sponsorship. 'Sponsors are the lifeblood of sports,' entertainment industry executive/BIG3 co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz exclusively shared. Last season the BIG3 generated more than 25 million impressions for their clients, and several sponsors, including Walmart, Capital One, Merck and Simply Spiked by Coors, have returned. The Snickers candy logo is displayed on the referees' shirts, and ballboys use Swiffers (made by sponsor Proctor & Gamble) during timeouts. Fans wave foam red claws during Red Lobster's Bring the Fire. Such product placement is a positive economic sign, but leagues like the NFL and NBA have about 40 to 50 more sponsors than the BIG3. Nonetheless, Ice Cube is bullish as his league began its eighth year on Saturday. 'I definitely consider it a success,' BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube exclusively shared. Achieving financial success, though, is difficult for any upstart sports league because of the overhead. Kwatinetz noted that challenge of creating a pro league from scratch is 'not for the faint of heart.' 'We're still early,' he said. 'I mean, it took UFC 14 years to become profitable. Hopefully, it's going to take us eight.' To help with profitability, the BIG3 added local ownership for this season. It previously had been a traveling road show, going to a different city each summer weekend. Now based in eight cities, the clubs have been selling for about $10 million, according to a source close to the situation. That not only grows the financial pie, but Ice Cube and Kwatinetz are also hopeful that having localized owners will serve as a way to further engage those markets. Another positive is the ratings, which averaged 455,000 viewers on CBS across all 10 weeks and 512,000 when not coinciding with the Summer Olympics last year. 'Our ratings are great,' Kwatinetz said. The BIG3's 2024 viewership was better than the NHL's 2025 regular season, which averaged 445,000 viewers. The NHL, however, receives an uptick for its playoffs and plays a lot more regular-season games (82), resulting in a bigger cumulative number. For 2025 the BIG3's first two games each weekend are being televised on CBS, and the second two are on VICE Sports. Ratings for the Week One games on CBS were an impressive 513,000 despite airing against the U.S Open and New York Liberty-Indiana Fever game, featuring Caitlin Clark's return from injury. The latter is particularly noteworthy because the WNBA was a ratings behemoth, averaging well more than a million viewers during Clark's rookie year last season. The BIG3 will play most of its games in NBA arenas, including Houston's Toyota Center and Los Angeles' new, cutting-edge Intuit Dome. But Week One was played in Chicago's Allstate Arena, a stadium with a capacity of 18,500, and official attendance was 7,809. Although the lower bowl of the facility with two-level seating was mostly full, no one sat in the 200 level. The BIG3, however, did a good job of cultivating a basketball culture for those in attendance. Matas Buzelis, last year's lottery pick of the Chicago Bulls, sat courtside under the baseline, and so did Antoine Walker, the former Boston Celtics star, who grew up in Chicago. Beasley even flexed and screamed at Buzelis, who laughed it off. Fan interaction with players has long been a goal of the league. Before his game DMV Trilogy coach/14-year NBA veteran Stephen Jackson took selfies with fans. Dwight Howard did the same hours after he memorably ended his BIG3 debut by getting kicked out after a fight. 'It's funny,' Ice Cube said. 'He was thrown out of his first BIG3 game, but welcome to the BIG3.' Landing Howard, an eight-time All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, was a coup for the league. He is the third Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer to play in the BIG3, joining Chauncey Billups and Allen Iverson, though the latter barely played in the BIG3's inaugural season. Nearly a decade later, Ice Cube's league is still kicking. 'It's a great product,' the hip-hop star said. 'I still want to improve.'
Wall Street Journal
11 hours ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
After a Bruising Year, Casual-Dining Chains Try to Stage a Comeback
CHICAGO—Sit-down restaurants are fighting to get more Americans into their booths after one of the toughest periods for the sector in years. Brands such as Cracker Barrel Old Country Store CBRL -2.19%decrease; red down pointing triangle and Red Lobster are spending millions of dollars to update their menus and dining rooms to recruit more customers. In the process, they are grappling with how to attract new, younger customers without alienating their most loyal diners.
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Popular restaurant chain franchisee files Chapter 11 bankruptcy
The Covid pandemic forced many restaurants to adjust to a new normal based on health safety protocols meant to prevent the spread of the potentially deadly disease. In March 2020, restaurants across the nation closed their doors but soon reopened with social distancing and safety protocols. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter Fast-food restaurants were designed with take-out and drive-thru systems that allowed them to continue operating as if nothing happened, though many shut their dining rooms for many months for safety reasons. Related: Major nationwide trucking company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Casual restaurants did their best to offer take-out and curbside pick-up systems, but some restaurant concepts, such as buffets, were not designed for such systems, did not adopt them, and many went out of business. Some of the most significant restaurants to suffer the effects of the pandemic filed for bankruptcy over the last year. Seafood chain Red Lobster, which filed for bankruptcy in May 2024, closed about 187 restaurants. The dining chain emerged from Chapter 11 in September 2024 and now operates about 478 locations in 44 states. More bankruptcy: Iconic auto repair chain franchise files Chapter 11 bankruptcyPopular beer brand closes down and files Chapter 7 bankruptcyPopular vodka and gin brand files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Bar and grill chain TGI Fridays had 161 U.S. locations when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Nov. 2, 2024, to reorganize and closed 76 locations. The restaurant chain listed 85 U.S. locations on its website in April. Italian restaurant chain Buca di Beppo closed 18 locations last year before it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Aug. 4, 2024, to reorganize its business with the support of its lenders. The restaurant chain on Nov. 4 won approval to sell its 44 remaining corporate-owned restaurants to its lender Main Street Capital Corp., with a credit bid of $27 million. But it was buffet restaurants that were hit the hardest by the pandemic, with several filing for bankruptcy months after the beginning of the pandemic. National buffet chain Hometown Buffet's parent Fresh Acquisitions LLC filed for Chapter 11 in April 2021, suffering from the effects of the Covid pandemic and closed down permanently. The chain had struggled for years as the previous owner, Buffets Inc., filed for bankruptcy in 2008 and 2012 before selling the company in 2015, just before the chain's new owners filed Chapter 11 again in 2016. Other buffet restaurants also felt the harsh effects of the Covid pandemic and were forced to file for bankruptcy. Golden Corral franchisees were among the buffet restaurant owners to file for bankruptcy as the pandemic subsided. The buffet restaurant chain's largest franchisee at the time, 1069 Restaurant Group LLC, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2020, and its second-largest franchisee, Platinum Corral LLC, filed for bankruptcy in April now fast-forward to 2025, and another franchisee of Golden Corral has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize its business. South Texas Corral LLC filed its Subchapter V petition on June 17 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, listing $150,000 in assets and $1.64 million in liabilities. Related: Popular smoothie chain franchisee files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy The Brownsville, Texas, Golden Corral franchisee did not reveal a reason for filing for bankruptcy in its petition. Golden Corral, which launched in Fayetteville, N.C., in 1973, operates about 351 restaurants in 39 states and Puerto Rico, with most of them run by franchisees. The restaurant chain claims to be the nation's largest grill buffet restaurant chain. It serves all-you-can-eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner, featuring various grilled steaks, ribs, barbecue beef, brisket pot roast, meatloaf, burgers, sandwiches, chicken and wings, soups and salads, and various breakfast items. Related: Popular local Dairy Queen rival files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Red Lobster CEO Says Customer Service Bolstered Rebound
Red Lobster CEO Damola Adamolekun says customer feedback has improved significantly since the restaurant chain emerged from bankruptcy with a revamped menu and a renewed focus on hospitality. He speaks on "Bloomberg Markets." Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Reb Lobster Recovers From Bankruptcy
Red Lobster's new CEO said customer feedback has improved significantly since the restaurant chain emerged from bankruptcy with a revamped menu and a renewed focus on hospitality. Reb Lobster CEO Damola Adamolekun has more on the story. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
