Seafood restaurant chain Red Lobster will file for bankruptcy next and close 50 stores. According to media reports, the contents of those stores will be liquidated.
The decision was made because Red Lobster had expenses, leases, and debts it could not afford. Experts believe that most of the chain will remain intact because the bankruptcy will allow it to force landlords to offer less expensive leases.
According to The Wall Street Journal, store closures have already started. Before Red Lobster began the process, it had 650 locations. Revenue in the United States last year was pegged at $2.2 billion.
The process was brutal for some stores. According to The New York Times, about 50 stores will be completely liquidated. The paper reported that whoever wins the bid for a particular restaurant will receive everything inside it.
Red Lobster did not have many of the advantages of larger fast-food chains. McDonald’s has over 13,000 stores, $25 billion in revenue, and a net income of over $8 billion. (The fastest-growing brands in each state this year include up-and-coming restaurant chains.)
According to several experts, some of Red Lobster’s problems were related to COVID-19. People who left during the pandemic never came back. However, new leases and lower debt services mean it has another chance.
∴
Credit Card Companies Are Doing Something Nuts
Credit card companies are at war. The biggest issuers are handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers.
It’s possible to find cards paying unlimited 1.5%, 2%, and even more today. That’s free money for qualified borrowers, and the type of thing that would be crazy to pass up. Those rewards can add up to thousands of dollars every year in free money, and include other benefits as well.
We’ve assembled some of the best credit cards for users today. Don’t miss these offers because they won’t be this good forever.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.