Consumer >> CEO Interviews >> May 19, 2003
ALAN STILLMAN is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The
Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group, Inc. His ever-expanding
enterprise includes 15 upscale restaurants spanning nine cities
nationwide. In an industry where 85% of new restaurants fail
within the first year of service, Mr. Stillman's 30-year track
record is a recipe for success. The cosmetic salesman-turned-
unconventional entrepreneur began his restaurant career in 1965
on a shoestring when he leveraged a $5,000 loan from his mother
to launch the first T.G.I. Friday's in Manhattan. Conceived as a
singles bar and restaurant, the T.G.I. Friday's concept proved
contagious, with the subsequent expansion of the chain under Mr.
Stillman's stewardship to 13 outlets. He sold his stake in 1976,
but the business model still thrives today with more than 900 TGI
Friday's worldwide. In 1977, Mr. Stillman jump-started a luxury
line of eateries, now recognized as The Smith & Wollensky
Restaurant Group, when he founded the celebrated New York
steakhouse called Smith & Wollensky. In a chain reaction, he made
a management decision to spread the success of Smith & Wollensky
to six additional cities; the restaurant presently serves
discerning diners in Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Miami Beach,
New Orleans, Chicago, Las Vegas, Columbus and Dallas. The
original Smith & Wollensky, named after two random residents
listed in the Manhattan telephone directory, is one of the
largest grossing restaurants in the country. The New York City
location recorded $26.1 million in sales in 1999 and was ranked
number three in Restaurants and Institutions' 1999 Top 100 list,
the magazine's 16th annual ranking of independent restaurants by
total food and beverage sales. Formerly known as The New York
Restaurant Group, The Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group has
grown in its 20 years of existence to include the management of
several other of the nation's renowned restaurants. With Smith &
Wollensky at the collection's core, the group is currently
composed of New York City restaurants Maloney & Porcelli (named
after Mr Stillman's two New York State liquor license attorneys),
The Post House, The Manhattan Ocean Club, Cit, ONEc.p.s.,
(opened in the old Edwardian Room of the Plaza Hotel) and Park
Avenue Caf; and Mrs. Park's Tavern in Chicago. Profile
Wollensky over the last year or so?
Mr. Stillman: It's a tale of two countries, or an eastern country
and a western
