Così, Inc. Reports 2016 Period 1 Comparable Restaurant Sales
February 03 2016 - 6:30AM
Così, Inc. (NASDAQ:COSI), the fast casual restaurant company, today
reported that estimated system-wide comparable restaurant sales for
the 2016 Period 1, as measured for restaurants in operation for
more than 15 months, recorded an aggregate decrease of 1.7% as
compared to the 2015 Period 1. The breakdown in estimated
comparable restaurant sales between Company-owned and
Franchise-owned restaurants are as follows:
|
|
For the 4 Weeks Ended January 25, 2016 |
|
Company- Owned |
|
|
|
-0.5 |
% |
|
Franchise |
|
|
|
-4.3 |
% |
|
Total System-Wide |
|
|
|
-1.7 |
% |
|
Comparable locations are defined as restaurants in
operation for more than 15 consecutive months as either
Company-owned or Franchise-owned locations. The 13 Hearthstone
restaurants were acquired by the Company on April 1, 2015, and are
not included in the reported Company-owned estimated comparable
restaurant sales. Commencing with the 2015 Period 10, the Company
is now disclosing comparable sales for the acquired restaurants
separately. For the 2016 Period 1, the Hearthstone locations
recorded an aggregate increase in comparable restaurant sales of
3.5% compared to the 2015 Period 1.
“While I am disappointed with the sales results for
the period, I am encouraged by three things. First, we are on track
with our internal cash projections. We took a very conservative
approach in forecasting sales for the period, being mindful of
risks, and we are taking steps to mitigate those risks on a daily
basis. Second, we continue to see 20-30% of our restaurants growing
double digit sales. And third, Boston continues to drive strong
positive results month after month,” stated RJ Dourney, Così’s
President and CEO. “Period 2 is off to a strong start, and we
are pleased by sales trends we are seeing period-to-date,” Dourney
went on to say.
Dourney then addressed the franchise comparable
sales, stating, “We continue to see strong momentum and a
normalized positive trend-line in spite of the period’s
results. Our franchisees continue to be focused on driving
sales and profitability, and the trend-line reflects the ongoing
success of those efforts.”
About Così, Inc.Così
(http://www.getcosi.com) is an international fast casual restaurant
company. At the heart of every Così® restaurant is an
open-flame stone-hearth oven where the Così® signature flatbread is
made from scratch throughout the day. The flatbread is made
from a generations-old recipe and is part of many Così® favorites.
Così® was founded on the idea that good-for-you food should be
delicious. Menu items are made using fresh ingredients and
distinctive sauces and spreads to create edgy flavors. The
menu features made-to-order sandwiches, hand-tossed salads, bowls,
breakfast wraps, melts, all natural soups, signature Squagels®,
artisan flatbread pizzas, S`mores, snacks and desserts.
Guests can also enjoy handcrafted beverages and a variety of
coffee-based and specialty beverages.
Così® employees create a welcoming environment
where guests are invited to relax and enjoy great food. In
many cases, Così® is the cornerstone of the communities that they
are in and take pride in supporting community organizations and
local charities. There are currently 77 Company-owned and 31
franchise restaurants operating in fifteen states, the District of
Columbia, Costa Rica and the United Arab Emirates.
"Così," "(Sun & Moon Design)" and related marks are
registered trademarks of Così, Inc. in the U.S.A. and certain other
countries. Copyright © 2015 Così, Inc. All rights reserved.
"SAFE HARBOR" STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE
SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995. This press release
contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements
under the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements are
statements about future events and expectations and not statements
of historical fact. The words "believe," "may," "will," "should,"
"anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "objective," "seek,"
"plan," "strive," or similar words, or negatives of these words,
identify forward-looking statements. We qualify any forward-looking
statements entirely by these cautionary factors. Forward-looking
statements are based on management's beliefs, assumptions and
expectations of our future economic performance, taking into
account the information currently available to management.
Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may
cause our actual results, performance or financial condition to
differ materially from the expectations of future results,
performance or financial condition we express or imply in any
forward-looking statements. Factors that could contribute to these
differences include, but are not limited to: the results being
reported in this release are unaudited and subject to change; the
cost of our principal food products and supply and delivery
shortages and interruptions; labor shortages or increased labor
costs; changes in demographic trends and consumer tastes and
preferences, including changes resulting from concerns over
nutritional or safety aspects of beef, poultry, produce, or other
foods or the effects of food-borne illnesses, such as E. coli, "mad
cow disease" and avian influenza or "bird flu"; competition in our
markets, both in our business and in locating suitable restaurant
sites; our operation and execution in new and existing markets;
expansion into new markets including foreign markets; our ability
to attract and retain qualified franchisees and our franchisees'
ability to open restaurants on a timely basis; our ability to
locate suitable restaurant sites in new and existing markets and
negotiate acceptable lease terms; the rate of our internal growth
and our ability to generate increased revenue from our existing
restaurants; our ability to generate positive cash flow from
existing and new restaurants; fluctuations in our quarterly results
due to seasonality; increased government regulation and our ability
to secure required government approvals and permits; our ability to
create customer awareness of our restaurants in new markets; the
reliability of our customer and market studies; cost effective and
timely planning, design and build out of restaurants; our ability
to recruit, train and retain qualified corporate and restaurant
personnel and management; market saturation due to new restaurant
openings; inadequate protection of our intellectual property; our
ability to obtain additional capital and financing; adverse weather
conditions which impact customer traffic at our restaurants; and
adverse economic conditions. Further information regarding factors
that could affect our results and the statements made herein are
included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
Additional information is available on Così's
website athttp://www.getcosi.com in the investor relations
section.
CONTACT:
Miguel Rossy-Donovan
Chief Financial Officer
(857) 415-5020
InvestorRelations@getcosi.com