EATZI'S STILL A TASTY IDEA DESPITE SOUR UNIT: OFFICIALS

JENNIFER QUAIL

WESTBURY, N.Y. -- On the heels of closing its year-old EatZi's Market & Bakery unit here, officials at Brinker International, Dallas, stressed that the hybrid restaurant marketplace remains a viable overall concept.

The closing of the Westbury location "was taken as a final course of action" after it "continued to fall well below expectations." Consistent underperformance was the reason for the close, said officials.

According to Randy Hargrove, spokesman for Brinker, preliminary information regarding the Westbury location, which first opened its doors June 30, 1998, showed promise for success.

"The factors were strong going in," he said. "The location was good, the demographics were good. It really had good visibility, so we're looking at all factors now to learn what went wrong."

Local reports cited customers who complained of the store's location, and difficulties they experienced getting into and out of the parking lot.

"Sometimes demographics can be misleading," said Jim Reisenburger, managing partner at Rochester, N.Y.-based RL & Associates.

Prior to the closing, which was effective July 18, EatZi's chief executive officer, Phil Romano, told SN one of the difficulties of the Westbury location was caused by New York state regulations that prohibit food stores from also selling wine. (see EatZi's Optimistic Despite NY Troubles, SN, June 7, 1999.)

"We [had] to compromise the concept," he said, noting that the EatZi's Dallas location isselling $1 million worth of wine a year. "It just doesn't work when you have to do that. We can't sell wine in New York."

For that reason, EatZi's has no intention to open additional sites in the state, Romano said. Hargrove agreed, saying that, at present, this point remains true.

"Wine is a big seller," he said. "Other [EatZi's] locations make a very good profit in this area."

Hargrove stressed, however, that it was premature to blame any one aspect of the Westbury operation for the unit's poor performance.

"[Brinker] has other restaurants in this same area and they all do very well," Hargrove said. "It appears that the HMR concept was not accepted here and we'll be investigating to learn why that happened."

The Westbury closing comes just weeks after EatZi's president Lane Cardwell, associated with Brinker for 11 years, left the company. At the time of his departure, Brinker spokesmen would only say that Cardwell had "left the company to pursue other interests." Consequently, Romano was named to the new position of chief executive officer for EatZi's and has taken over Cardwell's responsibilities.

Hargrove said that, as CEO, Romano will be looking at the performance of the closed Westbury unit, as well as those EatZi's units still in operation, to determine what changes, if any, may benefit the concept in the future. "This is what we envisioned all along," Hargrove said. "Open a few units, and then take a step back and see what works. This way we can make adjustments to better the concept."

Areas to be examined include overall convenience and accessibility, as well as interior layout.

"This is by no means a cookie-cutter industry," said Ira Blumenthal, president of Co-Opportunities, an Atlanta-based business-development firm specializing in the food industry. "What works in Dallas, Houston or Atlanta is not guaranteed to work in New York or Los Angeles."

Testing a new venue in several different areas is common practice for Brinker, according to Hargrove. "By opening several locations, we have been able to get a broader overview of acceptance to the EatZi's concept," he said.

In contrast to Westbury's low profits, the EatZi's unit located inside Macy's in Manhattan, has recently seen a boost in sales, and no changes are planned now, he added.