Bill Palmer took a winding road to become a franchisee of Applebee’s, the world’s largest casual dining concept. In 1980, he helped open T.J. Applebee’s Rx for Edibles & Elixirs, in Atlanta. Three years later, the Palmers sold the concept to W.R. Grace and Co.
But in 1985, Palmer got in on the ground floor, again. He became an Applebee’s franchisee and started building a network of restaurants in the Atlanta area. As Applebee’s marks its 30th anniversary this year -- having grown to 2,000 locations nationwide -- Palmer surveys his 40 outlets and likes what he sees.
“We do pretty well here,” he said in an interview last week. “But it’s not a cakewalk.”
He plans more. Palmer wants to open two or three new restaurants a year, with development focused inside I-285. Most of his restaurants are now outside the perimeter.
“I’d like to be a little farther down Roswell Road in Buckhead,” he said. “I’ll probably do a Midtown location.”
One challenge: banks aren’t lending as readily. Some Applebee’s franchisees have private equity cash, or are public companies in their own right. But most franchisees have to deal with large banks. Meanwhile, franchisees such as Palmer are trying to modernize their restaurants while juggling sales that can rise 3 percent one month and fall by a similar number the next. Sales at Applebee’s restaurants open at least a year fell 4.5 percent last year in the U.S.
“It’s been like a roller coaster,” Palmer said. “These curves are just completely unpredictable.”
Competition in the casual dining sector -- populated by Applebee’s, Chili’s, Bennigan’s, Houlihan’s and others -- is intense as the category shrinks. (Applebee’s is now owned by California-based DineEquity Inc.)
“It’s been a lot of pain and lot of fun along the way,” Palmer said of his three decades involved with Applebee’s. “(The chain) is kind of like an Army brat -- it was born here in Atlanta, but it was raised throughout the world. It’s become a pretty incredible adventure.”
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