Agenda-At-A-Glance

November 9-13, 2020

Restaurant Finance Week

The Wall Street Journal’s Jason Riley

Jason Riley is an American journalist, a member of The Wall Street Journal editorial board, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a regular pundit on Fox News, PBS, NPR and C-SPAN. He’ll join Restaurant Finance Week attendees to break down the results of the presidential election and what it means for politics, economics, immigration and race.

Jason Riley, Columnist, Wall Street Journal

Dr. Michael Osterholm, Director, Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP)

Dr. Osterholm is an internationally recognized expert in infectious disease epidemiology and is an expert on the public health impact of COVID-19. Hailed by CNN as “the infectious disease expert who has been warning us for a decade and a half that the world will face a pandemic,” Dr. Osterholm will update Restaurant Finance Week attendees with the latest health information on the pandemic and vaccine so you can make plans for your family, business and employees in the coming year.

Dr. Michael Osterholm, Director, Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP)

Dunkin’ Brands CEO David Hoffmann
Dave Hoffmann joined Dunkin’ Brands in October 2016 as president, Dunkin’ U.S., overseeing all operations, marketing and development for the brand domestically. He was appointed to CEO in July 2018, where his responsibilities expanded to include Baskin–Robbins, as well as the international businesses of both Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins. Dave spent 22 years with McDonald’s Corporation and worked for the company while in high school. Join us for an all-encompassing look at Dunkin’s operation and what this restaurant operations expert sees on tap for the industry in 2021.

Moderator: Nicole Miller Regan, Managing Director, Piper Sandler

David Hoffmann, CEO, Dunkin’ Brands

Redesigning the Restaurant of the Future

Faculty members from leading university hospitality programs have assembled four student teams to compete at this year’s Restaurant Finance Week. After months of student research and input from university faculty, the teams will present their best ideas for redesigning the restaurant of the future. Teams will present to the conference audience and questions will be asked from a panel of expert judges. The judges will pick a winner based upon a defined criteria that awards presentation, content, creativity and potential for success. Find out what the next generation wants in restaurants!

Universities

Michigan State University; University of Nevada, Las Vegas; Florida International University; The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Judges

MUFG Union Bank; Keith Foster, BKD; Anand Gala, Gala Capital Partners; Sanjiv Razdan, GLEAM Network

Front Line Report—Casual Dining

Mark Twain once wrote that the announcement of his death was premature. Likewise, the conventional wisdom says that casual, family and fine dining was put to death by the reduced dining room capacity brought about by Covid-19. However, survival instincts took over, and restaurant operators mobilized alternative channels to sell their food and beverage. The result was a future that no one could have anticipated.

Moderator: Alice Elliot, CEO, The Elliot Group

David Deno, CEO, Bloomin’ Brands

Cheryl Henry, President & CEO, Ruth’s Hospitality Group

Tim McEnery, Founder & CEO, Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants

David Birzon, CEO, Snooze, an A.M. Eatery

Around the Industry in 60 Minutes
Restaurant industry experts and analysts share their “boots on the ground” observations of the latest trends, intelligence and counsel that you can put to use in your business. 

Moderator: John Hamburger, President, Franchise Times

Larry Reinstein, CEO, LJR Hospitality Ventures

Dave Bennett, CEO, Mirus Restaurant Solutions

M&A

Attendees will learn from a panel of expert workout specialists about the signs and symptoms of a distressed restaurant situation.

Moderator: David Farkas, Columnist, Restaurant Finance Monitor
Glen Kunofsky, Exec. Managing Director, Investments, Marcus & Millichap

Bankruptcy and Distressed Investing

Everything you wanted to know about bankruptcy and distressed investing but were afraid to ask.

Moderator: Navin Nagrani, EVP, Principal-Real Estate, Hilco Global

Jonathan Tibus, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal
Jeffrey Crivello, CEO, BBQ Holdings (Famous Dave’s)
Teri Stratton, Managing Director, Piper Sandler

Restaurant CFOs Tackle the COVID-19 Challenges—What Next for 2021? 
COVID-19 threw a monkey wrench into the best laid of restaurant plans. Financial, operational, and technological challenges abound. Watch top restaurant CFOs describe the challenges they faced during Covid-19, their solutions and how they intend to manage their company’s finance function in 2021. Join BDO director Dana Zukofsky as she breaks down the restaurant business with four senior finance professionals.

Moderator: Dana Zukofsky, Director, BDO

Kate Jaspon, CFO, Dunkin’ Brands
Steve Brake, CFO, Del Taco

Matthew McGuinness, CFO, WKS Restaurant Group

David Oden, President, InfoSync

The Economics of Virtual Restaurants

Virtual kitchens have quickly become one of the primary buzzwords in the off-premises industry, with many restaurant brands and commercial property owners now seeing the possibilities of bringing additional, delivery-only concepts into underutilized restaurant kitchen spaces. Moderated by Food On Demand Editor Tom Kaiser, this panel will detail the financial implications and potential of adding virtual brands, as well as the operational challenges and synergies from streamlined operations that are providing a new source of revenue with a comparatively low barrier of entry in a historically difficult restaurant environment.

Moderator: Tom Kaiser, Editor, Food On Demand

Kristen Adamowski, Head of Operations for Virtual Restaurants, Uber

Sustaining Restaurants Through New Collaborative Relationships

The panel will show how, in this difficult business climate, restaurant operators can bolster their business by forming innovative, mutually beneficial relationships with key stake holders including: landlords; investors; employees/management and franchisors.

Moderator: Rick Gibson, Shareholder, Monroe Moxness Berg

Dennis Monroe, Chair, Monroe Moxness Berg

John Berg, Shareholder, Monroe Moxness Berg

Tim Ring, Shareholder, Monroe Moxness Berg

The Post Covid New Normal of Franchise Development
Join moderator Ryan Palmer, Partner, Lathrop GPM as he talks with three top franchise development executives on what is the new normal in franchise development. The pandemic has brought to the forefront a whole new group of franchise buyers, but what are they looking for? How do you reach them? And what can you tell them about your franchise? Is your brand really “recession resistant?” Palmer and his experts will discuss how new norms are being shaped in franchise development as the sector weaves its way through covid.

Moderator: Ryan Palmer, Partner, Lathrop GPM

Joe Sieve, VP Franchise Development, Inspire Brands
Madison Jobe, Chief Development Officer, Wingstop

Automatic Gratuities: Should You Implement Them?
Take the hassle out of tipping for your restaurant customers, and put in place an automatic gratuity. It’s a no brainer, and everyone is happy. Not so fast, says Ismail Karabas, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Marketing from Murray State University. Karabas will discuss his recent research that indicates customers just may like keeping control over the gratuity process.

Moderator: Nancy Monore, Editor, Foodservice News
Ismail Karabas, Ph.D, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Murray State University

Three Top CFO’s Discuss How They Pivoted Towards Tech Proficiency

Despite the restaurant industry having been turned upside down during COVID, the goals of restaurant CFOs across all segments remain the same–to increase sales and EBITDA. So what’s a critical differentiating factor between brands that continue to outperform and those that underperform? Data…and how it’s put to use. Join Mike Vichich, CEO, Wisely, as he grills three leading CFOs on how they overcame analysis paralysis and began using real-time data prior to (and during) COVID-19 to build responsive financial plans, make quick decisions, improve guest experience and grow EBITDA.

Moderator: Mike Vichich, CEO, Wisely

Jon Howie, CFO, Chuy’s Holdings

Paul Potvin, CFO, California Fish Grill

Robert Linder, CFO, Lazy Dog Restaurants

PPP Loan Knowns, Unknowns, and Ambiguities–An Update

Join Moss Adams national director of restaurants and hospitality, Michael Cullom,; Moss Adams restaurant practice leader and partner Justine Hunter; and International Franchise Association SVP of Government Affairs, Matt Haller. They’ll discuss the latest in government small business aid packages including an in depth discussion of Payroll Protection Loans, together with the details on loan forgiveness and accounting treatment. Plus, the panel will discuss the tax and regulatory impact of the presidential election and what it means for restaurant and franchise businesses.

Moderator: Michael Cullom, National Director of Restaurants and Hospitality, Moss Adams

Justine Hunter, Restaurant Practice Leader and Partner, Moss Adams

Matt Haller, SVP of Government Affairs, International Franchise Association

2021 Outlook for Restaurant Credit Availability and Terms
Caution is the order of the day in credit markets and just because there is plenty of capital on the sidelines and historically-low interest rates, that doesn’t mean restaurant lenders will be as aggressive as they were pre-Covid. For many restaurant borrowers there are still the issues of payment deferrals—principal, interest and rents—to deal with in 2021. In this banking and credit session, Restaurant Finance Monitor’s John Hamburger and a panel of experienced restaurant lenders will discuss restaurant industry fundamentals, the outlook for the capital markets, and their approach to restaurant lending, in what will be a very interesting year

Moderator: John Hamburger, President, Franchise Times

Craig Wolf, Managing Director, Fifth Third Bank

Derek Ladgenski, Partner, Katten Muchin Rosenman

Tim Morris, Chief Credit Officer, Pinnacle Commercial Capital

Tax Planning in an Uncertain World

Understanding how to use changing tax laws to your advantage, including the CARES Act and Trump vs Biden tax plan considerations.

Keith Foster, Director, BKD CPAs & Advisors

Mike McDevitt, Director, BKD CPAs & Advisors

DIY Delivery: What it Takes to Do Native Delivery Right

Navigating the convenience economy is no easy task, but neither is building a delivery fleet. Hear from those who have done it right and what it takes to carve out space for the growing delivery demands inside your company.

Moderator: Nicholas Upton, Restaurant Editor, Franchise Times

AND MORE.... to be announced