Chili’s parent Brinker prepares for post-vaccine worldChili’s parent Brinker prepares for post-vaccine world

Brinker International Inc., parent to the Chili’s Grill & Bar chain, is preparing itself for a post-vaccine world and restaurant consumers “fundamentally changed” by the pandemic, CEO Wyman Roberts said Wednesday.

“We don't expect a return to the old normal,” said Wyman Roberts, CEO and president of Dallas-based Brinker, adding that “2020 fundamentally changed us as consumers. We were forced to use technology to enjoy our favorite restaurants in new ways like third-party delivery, curbside takeout, QR code menus and mobile payment.”

Roberts added: “Now that we've experienced greater convenience and control over our experience, we're not likely to give it all back.”

Roberts, speaking with analysts after releasing second quarter earnings, said Brinker was taking the lessons of 2020 into this year as it prepares “to accelerate organic growth in a post vaccine environment.”

Brinker, which also owns the Maggiano’s Little Italy casual-dining brand and created the It;s Just Wings virtual brand last year, expects “a widespread vaccine will indeed release pent-up dining room demand,” he said.

The company has been testing other virtual brands besides It's Just Wings, which is available on the third-party DoorDash delivery app.

That move in mid-2020 “just accelerated our commitment to embrace consumers' gravitation toward digital interaction and meet them where they are,” Roberts said. “We believe digital sales and traffic will continue to be a strategic driver of our results in both the near and long term.”

Roberts said initiatives at its brands help it take market share in the second quarter.

Joseph Taylor, Brinker’s chief financial officer, added that while It's Just Wings helped sales, the Maggiano’s brand was deeply impacted by COVID restrictions and consumer concerns in the period.

“The second quarter is traditionally their highest performing quarter,” Taylor said. “However, this year, COVID eliminated most of their typically robust banquet and corporate catering channels, both of which tend to overdeliver to results for their second quarter.”

Same-store sales in the quarter were down 12.1% at company-owned restaurants, including a decline of 6.3% at Chili’s and drop of 47% at Maggiano’s.

For the second quarter ended Dec. 23, Brinker net income fell to $12 million, or 26 cents a share, from $27.9 million, or 73 cents a share, in the same period last year. Revenues fell 12.6% to $760.7 million from $869.3 million in the prior-year quarter.

As of Dec. 23, Brinker owned, operated or franchised 1,655 restaurants, including 1,601 Chili’s and 54 Maggiano’s

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