Leonard Dreyer isn't the subdued chief executive you'd expect to be running a chain of grandmotherly pie shops called Marie Callender's.
He hates the traditional CEO hobby of golf - complaining it takes too long - and relishes a night out with the boys. And while privately held Marie Callender's has operated out of the limelight for almost 50 years, Dreyer, 53, unabashedly says: "I love attention."He and Marie Callender's are starting to draw it.
The 152-outlet chain based in Orange with restaurants in Utah recently landed on national television shows, such as "Jenny Jones" and "Extra," when it was discovered that members of the San Diego cult Heaven's Gate apparently had their last meal at a Marie Callender's in Carlsbad before their mass suicide.
Another reason for noticing Marie Callender's: The company is embarking on its biggest expansion in nearly a decade.
The $270 million-a-year company acquired 40 East Side Mario's restaurants from Pepsico Inc. in February for an undisclosed sum. Dreyer also plans to open 10 Marie Callender's restaurants this year.
"We're strong. We're solid. We have a hell of a brand name and a hell of a lot of cash flow," says Dreyer, a former certified public accountant and a Marine Corps veteran who cut his teeth in restaurants at Denny's Inc.
Just how much cash flow he won't say. Profits? The once-troubled chain is making money, but Dreyer defers to the company's private status in not disclosing them.
He is more motivated than ever to make Marie Callender's numbers sparkle. Saunders Karp & Megrue, the New York investment firm that saved the company from financial ruin four years ago, needs an exit strategy in three to five years. A likely path: Take Marie Callender's public.
"We've got a good story and a lot of blue sky but not much growth," says Dreyer.
Which explains all of the activity. Company revenues have been growing at an average annual rate of about 5 percent over the past three years. Dreyer expects 10 percent growth this year. But he believes the chain can double that rate once it digests the East Side Mario's acquisition. Dreyer says the Little Italy-styled Midwestern chain can rapidly expand through more franchising.
"The fundamentals of a full-service restaurant are the same. We can do Italian as well as anyone else," he boasts.
The affable Dreyer wasn't so bullish when he joined Marie Callender's in 1990. Then he was chief financial officer, and one of his daily duties was to check the debt-laden company's cash to see if it could make payroll.
"It was a constant balancing act," says Dreyer.
The company had traded ownership twice in five years. Don Callender, son of company founder Marie, sold the chain to Ramada in 1986 for nearly $80 million. But the hotel operator did little to build upon the chain's homespun image and 25 varieties of fresh-baked pies.
Don Callender sued Ramada and Marie Callender's management two years later, contending that they breached a contract allowing him a say in operations. The suits were settled in 1994; Don Callender no longer has a stake in the chain.
Management bought out Ramada in 1989. But the group - led by former chief executive Roger Mercier - piled on $60 million in debt to do so. Soon, interest payments ate up profits, and the company defaulted on its loans.
Enter Saunders Karp & Megrue. The New York firm pumped $30 million into the company in 1993; management restructured the debt and got a new credit line.
Marie Callender's management laid a good foundation for growth during the lean years by inexpensively improving employee training and service.
The company sold its frozen-food business to Conagra Inc. in 1994 for $140 million, giving it more breathing room.
Dreyer, named chief executive three years ago, says proudly that he hasn't tapped the credit line to fund new stores.
Marie Callender's still has challenges.
Nearly 17 percent of the chain's sales come from pies. These days, it takes more than pies to stand out in the crowded field of so-called casual-dining restaurants. Marie Callender's menu, which includes everything from pot pies to teriyaki chicken stir fry, competes with standards such as Coco's and Carrow's and flashier restaurants such as Outback Steakhouse.
And Marie Callender's is operating under some competitive disadvantages.
Unlike other chains, the company doesn't have a cooperative advertising agreement with its 42 franchisees, making funding and approval for advertisements a nightmare. What's more, different restaurant designs make uniform menus difficult. About 25 percent of the restaurants have counter seating. Dreyer says appetizers are a tough sell at those sites, while larger and newer restaurants can offer the works.
Dreyer is unfazed. He says company surveys show 85 percent of consumers recognize Marie Callender's name. He plans to leverage the chain's reputation to build a take-out business.