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Olive Garden, Red Lobster See Sharp Drop In Profits After Anti-Obamacare Campaig


               
2012 Dec 21, 9:42am   10,519 views  30 comments

by 121212   follow (0)  

http://americablog.com/2012/12/obamacare-critic-olive-garden-red-lobster-drop-in-profits.html

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/12/20/1365461/olive-garden-red-lobster-see-sharp-drop-in-profits-after-anti-obamacare-campaign-backfires/

Olive Garden, Red Lobster See Sharp Drop In Profits After Anti-Obamacare Campaign Backfires

Obamacare critic Olive Garden/Red Lobster reports 37% drop in profits

Whether there's a connection between Olive Garden / Red Lobster parent company, Darden Restaurants, reporting bad numbers and their flip-flopping on Obamacare is hard to say.

Customers of those restaurants are certainly middle class people, most of whom know all too well how difficult and expensive healthcare can be, so it's not unreasonable to think the earlier criticism of Obamacare had some negative impact.

Earlier this month, it was reported that Darden's CEO was concerned about the bad publicity, but that he was making efforts to provide healthcare to at least some of their employees. Darden did eventually come around.

“Although our workforce historically has been heavily part-time, we have always had a significant number of full-time employees and they are integral to our success,” said Darden chairman and CEO Clarence Otis. “The data we have collected during our test around guest satisfaction and employee engagement has only reinforced this. As we think about healthcare reform, while many of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's rules and regulations have yet to be finalized, we are pleased we know enough at this point to make firm and hopefully reassuring commitments to our full-time employees.”

Was blaming Obamacare real, or just an excuse for missing the numbers? Again, it's hard to say. Data shows that criticism of Obamacare by CEO's has hurt the image of companies, though nobody can make a direct link to poor numbers, yet. The ongoing economic crisis could just as easily be responsible for bad performance. Many families still feel financially insecure, and going to restaurants is often an expense that gets cut.

Darden seemed to eventually be doing the right thing by exploring the process of adding healthcare for at least some employees. Was it too little, too late or was the damage already done? Whatever the answer, the public does seem to be in a bad mood lately with CEOs, former CEOs, rich people and companies who are bashing Obamacare, or at least, access to healthcare for employees.

The Huffington Post is suggesting the earlier Obamacare criticism is linked to the drop in sales, but I'm less convinced. The criticism may not have helped, but to blame the unfortunate public statements about Obamacare on such a huge revenue decrease, a 37% profit drop, sounds too easy.

It's time for businesses to get on board with Obamacare, and quit causing self-inflicted wounds, or the image of self-inflicted wounds on their businesses. Maybe it means a few less dollars at the top, but is that really such a crisis to whine about?

#politics

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19   thomaswong.1986   2012 Dec 27, 6:16am  

121212 says

Can you read?

Olive Garden, Red Lobster See Sharp Drop In Profits After Anti-Obamacare Campaign Backfires

I can tell you that other restaurants are at about last years seasonly adjusted figures.

You think 40% down is wide spread?

Dumb ass.

I guess this is also a backlash....Barnes & Noble closing 150 stores nationwide .

or that Fresh Choice has also gone under... all in the past month.

Popular salad buffet Fresh Choice goes dark - San Jose Mercury ...
www.mercurynews.com/.../popular-salad-buffet-fresh-choice-...
Dec 14, 2012 – Fresh Choice, known for its salad buffets and farm-to-fork ideals, has shuttered the last of its stores after failing to appease creditors and to ... The exterior dining area of the now closed Fresh Choice restaurant in Walnut Creek,

20   Thedaytoday   2012 Dec 27, 7:09am  

thomaswong.1986 says

Fresh Choice has also gone under... all in the past month.

Owned and shuttered by Tesco's

Because it was a failure. That's the market speaking.

Barnes & Noble closing 150 stores nationwide because we moved to e-books and tablets

Capitalism speaks.

21   Econ101   2012 Dec 27, 7:49am  

The real problem is that healthcare is too EXPENSIVE. Rather than address the underlying issue of cost, the government is going to try to force universal access of a limited supply of services to everyone in the country.

Guess what is going to happen when 30 million more people are going to have access to healthcare but there are ZERO additional new doctors, nurses and hospitals.

Hint: The same thing that has happened to housing and education costs...

22   thomaswong.1986   2012 Dec 27, 7:53am  

Thedaytoday says

Owned and shuttered by Tesco's

Because it was a failure. That's the market speaking.

Barnes & Noble closing 150 stores nationwide because we moved to e-books and tablets

Capitalism speaks.

as is the case with the other restaurants.. simply lower or higher demand... but no connection to any backlash over ObamaCare.

23   Thedaytoday   2012 Dec 27, 7:54am  

thomaswong.1986 says

Thedaytoday says

Owned and shuttered by Tesco's

Because it was a failure. That's the market speaking.

Barnes & Noble closing 150 stores nationwide because we moved to e-books and tablets

Capitalism speaks.

as is the case with the other restaurants.. simply lower or higher demand... but no connection to any backlash over ObamaCare.

Provide me with some evidence!

25   noodlesphilly   2012 Dec 27, 9:05am  

I love red lobster and will still be going. Also we got a postcard in the mail the flexie account goes from 5,000 to 2,500 nice .glad my hubby retire this year .

26   zzyzzx   2012 Dec 27, 11:52am  

APOCALYPSEFUCK is Shostakovich says

these slop houses and just fucking gross. you know that the people who work there take long sloppy shits into the pots in the kitchen.

And they spit in the food too.

27   zzyzzx   2012 Dec 27, 11:55am  

I'd rather eat at Texas Roadhouse anyway.

http://www.texasroadhouse.com/

28   Homeboy   2012 Dec 28, 3:55am  

Econ101 says

The real problem is that healthcare is too EXPENSIVE. Rather than address the underlying issue of cost, the government is going to try to force universal access of a limited supply of services to everyone in the country.

Guess what is going to happen when 30 million more people are going to have access to healthcare but there are ZERO additional new doctors, nurses and hospitals.

Hint: The same thing that has happened to housing and education costs...

Um, getting more customers doesn't raise costs; it lowers them. Which would net more money - a restaurant that is full of customers, or a restaurant that is half full? Econ 101.

29   121212   2012 Dec 28, 4:02am  

zzyzzx says

I'd rather eat at Texas Roadhouse anyway.

I wouldn't , even if you paid me!

30   zzyzzx   2013 Jan 3, 11:39am  

I take it that you have never eaten at Texas Roadhouse???

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