Brinker International owns and operates two casual dining restaurant brands: Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy. Chili's is by far the dominant business, with roughly 1,200+ company-owned domestic restaurants averaging $4.5M in annual sales, plus an international franchise network spanning 27+ countries where nearly all locations are franchised. Maggiano's is a polished Italian-American concept with around 50 locations near upscale malls, focused on special occasions and banquet events. Brinker generates revenue primarily through company-owned restaurant food and beverage sales, with franchise royalties as a secondary stream. Profitability is driven by average unit volumes (AUVs), which allow fixed costs to be leveraged over more sales. Over the past three years, Chili's has executed a turnaround centered on menu simplification, labor investment, equipment upgrades, and a sharp increase in marketing spend. Commercially, Chili's anchors its value offer around the "3 for Me" platform — a drink, appetizer, and entrée starting at $10.99 — paired with premium upsell items like Don Julio margaritas and the Triple Dipper shareable appetizer, which now accounts for roughly 15% of Chili's total sales. Chili's AUVs grew from $3.1M to $4.5M over three years, and restaurant operating margin expanded from 11.9% to 17.6%. With leverage reduced, Brinker is now shifting toward growth, including restaurant remodels, new unit development, and applying the Chili's turnaround playbook to Maggiano's.
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