MEMPHIS Tenn. Perkins & Marie Callender’s Inc. reported that it almost halved its third-quarter net loss from a year earlier, partially on saved food costs from the increased purchasing power that resulted from the merger of the two chains’ former parent companies.
The operator or franchisor of a combined 619 restaurants under the Perkins Restaurant and Bakery and the Marie Callender’s Restaurant and Bakery brands, reported a net loss of $4.3 million for the quarter ended Oct. 7, compared with a net loss of $7.9 million in the third quarter a year ago.
Food costs, as a percentage of food sales, decreased 0.8 percentage points in the latest quarter. In addition, unspecified costs from intercompany sales and unspecified food costs from a manufacturing plant that served Marie Callender's corporate restaurants were eliminated in the third quarter, the company reported. Perkins & Marie Callender's said it was on target to save more than $10 million annually from the merged operations of its chains. The merger closed in May 2006.
Third-quarter revenue decreased 2.2 percent from a year ago to $131.3 million. Same-store sales for the third quarter increased 0.3 percent for Perkins and decreased 2.5 percent for Marie Callender's.