TGI Friday’s abruptly closes 36 ‘underperforming’ restaurants | CNN Business (2024)

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TGI Friday’s abruptly closes 36 ‘underperforming’ restaurants | CNN Business? ›

The chain said in a release that it closed 36 “underperforming” restaurants as part of its “ongoing growth strategy,” which also includes also a shakeup of its executive ranks and selling some restaurants back to its former CEO. TGI Fridays

TGI Fridays, as a brand, is still optimistic about their future. Despite the 36 closures in 2024, there remain 650 TGI Fridays worldwide, spread across 51 countries, 250 of which are in the United States.

SouthRock will continue to operate TGI Fridays locations normally while closing a few underperforming ones and will restructure through the bankruptcy procedure. On January 4, 2024, the chain abruptly closed 36 underperforming restaurants and sold eight more to former CEO Ray Blanchette.

In 2020 the restaurant chain ditched TGI from its name in a bid to refresh the brand but just months into Scarlett's appointment the TGI was put back into Friday's. “My initial question [when joining] why would you change a brand name after a success 50 years,” she says.

Who owns TGI Fridays? TGI Fridays is privately owned by TriArtisan Capital Advisors.

TGI Fridays abruptly closes 36 'underperforming' restaurants, sells 8 more to former CEO. Casual dining chain TGI Fridays abruptly announced that it is closing 36 “underperforming” restaurants across the US — five of which are in New York — as part on an “ongoing growth strategy.”

TGI Fridays is currently controlled by private equity firm TriArtisan Capital Advisors, which also has ownership stakes in P.F. Chang's and Hooters. After the deal is finalized, Hostmore will hold a 36% ownership stake, with shareholders holding the other 64%.

Comparatively, its lowest-performing stores averaged sales of around $1.8 million. Overall, finances have improved since 2020, when the restaurant had a net income of $47 million. Net income increased roughly 40% to $66 million in 2022 compared to 2020.

TGI Fridays has been struggling for years as consumer tastes have shifted. Now new owners are on the way to the casual restaurant chain. U.K.-based Hostmore, the chain's largest global franchisee, has entered into an agreement to buy the U.S. operations of the company.

“Endless Apps are here to stay.” Customers, for $10 per person, can get endless refills on such appetizers as mozzarella sticks, loaded potato skins, barbecue chicken flatbread, pot stickers and boneless buffalo wings. New appetizers include meatballs and fried pickles.

How many TGI Fridays locations are there in the US? ›

How many TGI Fridays locations are there in United States? There are a total of 296 tgifridays locations in United States as of April 26, 2023 The city with the most number of TGI Fridays locations in the United States is Dallas with 6 locations, which is 3% of all tgifridays locations in United States.

Declining Sales, Fewer Restaurants

Dine Brands Global, the company that owns Applebee's and IHOP, saw sales decline 4.6% during the first quarter of 2024. “We're expecting 25 to 35 net fewer domestic Applebee's restaurants,” Applebee's president Tony Moralejo said.

Thank God It's Friday, or the acronym TGIF, is a common expression used on Friday in English-speaking Western countries. It expresses gratification that the working week is nearly over, and a weekend of leisure will soon be here. In many contexts, the thanking of God is nearly devoid of its religious origins.

/ˌtiː dʒiː aɪ ˈef/ (informal) thank God it's Friday. (used to say that you are glad the working week is nearly over)

The casual dining chain has fallen on hard times in recent years and announced last year it would not open any more sites until 2025 in a scramble to save more money. It also said it was mulling a decision to close more underperforming sites and was looking at ways to improve a further 20 restaurants.

ABC revived the "TGIF" brand on September 26, 2003, with its second run lasting only two seasons, ending on September 15, 2005. On May 15, 2018, the network announced that it would revive the block, with the third incarnation, which was launched on October 5, 2018.