It’s been a busy month for chief executive officer appointments in the restaurant industry, and BJ’s Restaurants is the latest chain to undergo such a change. The company announced Wednesday after market that Bradford Richmond will serve as interim CEO, effective immediately, after Greg Levin stepped down from his position, as well as from the board of directors.
Richmond has served on the company’s board of directors since February 2024 and will continue to serve on the board during his interim appointment. He served as chief financial officer of Darden Restaurants Inc., the world’s largest full-service owner-operated restaurant company, from 2006 to 2015, when he retired. Prior, he served as Darden’s corporate controller from 2005 to 2006, and has also held various executive-level finance and strategic planning roles at Olive Garden and Red Lobster since 1982. As a member of the board of Coast Entertainment Holdings since 2017, he helped reposition the Main Event brand to drive significant growth, leading to an acquisition by Dave & Busters in 2022.
“The BJ’s brand is beloved by our loyal guests and team members. I look forward to the opportunity to build upon the company’s commitment to our culture and brand promise during my interim service. I hope to enhance focus on and prioritization of the opportunities in front of us, as we usher in the next chapter of renewed growth and value creation. My experience as a board member has solidified my belief that we have tremendous potential to drive greater awareness of the BJ’s brand and continue its trajectory as a restaurant growth company,” Richmond said in a statement.
Levin has served as a BJ’s executive for 19 years. Prior to his appointment as CEO in 2021, he served as the chain’s CFO.
“It has been a pleasure to serve as a BJ’s executive for the last 19 years. I am proud of how we consistently focused on providing gracious hospitality and gold standard service to our guests, evolved to meet our guests’ and team members’ changing needs, and collectively helped establish BJ’s as a leader in the casual dining industry. Under the leadership of Brad, the BJ’s board, and executive leadership team, along with our thousands of incredible managers and team members in our restaurants across the country and in our Restaurant Support Center, I am confident BJ’s will continue to successfully execute on our growth initiatives and further enhance long-term shareholder value,” Levin said in a statement.
In a note, William Blair analyst Sharon Zackfia described Levin’s departure as a surprise. The company’s 8-K filing indicates he was terminated, “likely due to the lack of consistent sales and profit momentum in the business alongside probable pressure from activist investors (one of which entered into a cooperation agreement in February and the other in March). Previously, at least one of the activist investors had been critical of BJ’s operations and cost structure,” Zackfia wrote.
In late July, BJ’s reported a comp store sales decline of 0.6% in Q2, driven in part by softer sales in the beginning of the quarter. For the three months ended June 30, net income was $17.2 million compared with $11.9 million a year ago. BJ’s finished 2023 with $1.33 billion in sales, according to Technomic data, a 3.8% year-over-year increase.
Founded in 1978, BJ’s owns and operates over 200 casual dining restaurants in 31 states.
Contact Alicia Kelso at [email protected]
