New York - Allen Bernstein's days in the meat business began behind a hot dog stand at his high school football games. Today, as chairman of Morton's Restaurant Group, Bernstein is ready to open the first international Morton's of Chicago Steakhouse in Singapore.
“This may be Singapore, but when you walk in the front door, you're in a Chicago neighborhood chop house,” Bernstein told Reuters in an interview from Singapore.
The New York-based Morton's Restaurant Group already runs 39 Morton's of Chicago steakhouses and 10 Bertolini's Authentic Trattorias restaurants and posted a 29 percent increase in earnings per share versus the same period from a year ago. Bernstein said he was comfortable with First Call analysts' estimates of $0.30 for the second quarter of 1998 and $1.51 for 1998.
Bernstein, who also serves as the company's chief executive officer and president, forecast profits that would keep growing, unhindered by expansion plans.
“The move overseas will not have a dramatic effect on earnings,” Bernstein predicted. “We expect that the new restaurant here (in Singapore) will be enormously successful and profitable.”
Morton's will open its restaurant in Singapore on May 30, and plans to open another one in Toronto in September.
Bernstein said Singapore was a natural choice for international expansion despite the recent economic trouble in the region because it was a portal to Asia and had longer-term growth potential.
“We saw Singapore as the gateway to China and other parts of Asia,” he said. “It's a pro-business, stable economy where we can see the long-term potential growth in the region. It may take some time for the region to recover, but after 20 years in the restaurant business, we know you've got to be in it for the long haul.”
That “long haul” strategy was one reason Morton's shied away from following the stampede of U.S. companies expanding in Australia for the 2000 Olympics. Bernstein said his company has stayed away from focusing on a singular event.
“If you look at former Olympic cities such as Los Angeles or Atlanta, major restaurants who rushed into the region did not do that well,” Bernstein said. He did not rule out Australian expansion in the long-term however.
“Australia is a great market for us. But we believe in Vince Lombardi's 'three yards and a cloud of dust' strategy. We've grown methodically over the years in order to maintain a quality product. We're not about to franchise and expand with 50 new restaurants in one year,” Bernstein said.
The CEO said his company expects to open a total of five new Morton's by the end of the year, with new steakhouses in Portland, Oregon, North Miami Beach and Scottsdale, Az. in addition to Singapore and Toronto.
The steakhouse did not consider European expansion because European common market countries prohibit foreign restaurants from bringing in its own meat, Bernstein said. In its 20th year of serving Chicago steaks, Bernstein wasn't willing to compromise.
“We pride ourselves on the fact that you can have the same steak in Singapore or San Francisco that you'll have in Chicago,” the former hot dog vendor said. “That's what brings our customers back.”
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