American Blue Ribbon Holdings LLC has named industry veteran Ned Lidvall president of the 214-unit O’Charley’s casual-dining chain, the company said Monday.
Lidvall replaces Mickey Mills, who stepped down as president of O’Charley’s in late 2014 to become chief operating officer of Logan’s Roadhouse Inc. Since then, Hazem Ouf, president and CEO of American Blue Ribbon Holdings, or ABRH, has served as interim president of O’Charley’s.
With more than three decades of experience in the restaurant industry, Lidvall was president and chief operating officer of On The Border when the chain was acquired by Brinker International Inc., in 1994. In 2001, he was named president and CEO of Rock Bottom Restaurants. In 2008, he became CEO of Friendly’s Ice Cream Corp.
Most recently, in 2011, Lidvall was named CEO of Jackson, Miss.-based Eat Here Brands LLC, the multi-concept operator of Five Guys Burgers and Fries, and the three-unit Babalu Tacos & Tapas concept, as well as the single-unit restaurants Table 100 and Interim Restaurant & Bar. He left Eat Here Brands about eight months ago, company president Bill Latham said.
Lidvall joins O’Charley’s as the Nashville, Tenn.-based chain reports six consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth, Ouf said.
“Ned is an experienced and proven leader in our industry who will be able to harness O’Charley’s considerable momentum to take it to new, exciting heights,” Ouf said in a statement. “Ned not only knows what it takes for restaurants and team members to be successful, but he also understands the O’Charley’s brand and the guests we cater to. We are thrilled to inject his considerable talent and experience into O’Charley’s at this important time of continued emergence and revitalization.”
O’Charley’s turnaround began in April 2013, after ABRH acquired the brand in 2012, for about $221 million, the company said.
O’Charley’s is the largest of a number of chains acquired in recent years by ABRH, which began as a subsidiary of title insurance and mortgage service provider Fidelity National Financial Inc.
ABRH launched a plan to re-image all 207 company-owned O’Charley’s locations by the end of 2017. About half of the system has been remodeled, the company said.
O’Charley’s shuttered 14 underperforming locations in May 2012.
The brand was founded in Nashville in 1972, and now operates restaurants in 20 states, primarily throughout the South and Midwest.
ABRH operates or franchises 640 restaurants across 42 states, including the Ninety Nine, Max & Erma’s, Village Inn, Bakers Square and Legendary Baking brands.
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