Who owns skyline chili

The company went to inventive lengths to promote new restaurant locations, especially those far from Cincinnati. When the first Skyline opened in in suburban Washington, D. Skyline engineered a group of "chili fanatics," who camped out for days before the restaurant opened.

When the ribbon was finally cut, more than a thousand people had shown up to indulge themselves in a hometown chili frenzy. At the time, Skyline's marketing director claimed he was afraid the chain would become too popular and grow too quickly along the East Coast. Lambert Lambrinides, son of the founder and then chairman of the company, conceded that growth had been stagnant. Kagler to the post. Kagler had been president of the large grocery chain Kroger.

Apparently Kagler's fiery personality had led to conflicts with Kroger's chairman, and Kagler had resigned from Kroger in Skyline was of course a much smaller company than Kroger, and unlikely to be able to compensate Kagler at the level to which he had been accustomed.

But the little company must have appeared a challenge to Kagler. Skyline cut back, getting out of markets such as Washington, D. The company sold off some facilities and built a new commissary and warehouse, replacing the existing plant, which was 30 years old. Kagler upped advertising and promotions in markets closest to Cincinnati, hoping to revive the chain in the Ohio region before pushing again for a bigger national presence. And Skyline still reigned over Cincinnati chili parlors.

A New York Times September 5, food reviewer called a trip to Skyline "a rite of citizenship" for people new to the city. Although rival chili chain Gold Star had as many as 70 outlets within Cincinnati compared with about 80 nationwide for Skyline , Skyline was still apparently what people thought of when they thought "Cincinnati chili. After Kagler took over, Skyline had not opened new franchises, and the number of stores held steady through the mids.

In the company began to look to expand again. Skyline hoped to put more restaurants into those markets, which also would open the way for more sales of its frozen grocery items in those cities. Research had helped hone the Skyline formula. The company found that its restaurants with table service, rather than cafeteria-style service, tended to do better.

The company decided to stay away from strip malls and mall food courts in favor of freestanding locations. Then in the three Lambrinides sons all retired, along with William Kagler. Kagler stayed on as head of franchise planning, but the chief executive position went to the former chief operating officer, Kevin McDonnell.

Sales and earnings were on the rise by , and McDonnell hoped that a cautious, less ambitious expansion plan would work this time around. The company seemed to have stabilized. Meritage was a publicly traded company that owned hotels and restaurant chains. It had recently taken on debt to buy a chain franchise of the Wendy's hamburger restaurant in western Michigan.

McDonnell announced that Thomas L. Williams bought a stake in the company. Officials say that the Williams family along with internal business partners and associates , McDonnell, and the Greater Cincinnati Foundation will be Skyline owners.

In our case, it was critical to find a buyer who has demonstrated a commitment to the local community as well as a long-term investment horizon. Tom really understands and loves Skyline and our importance to the community. Offiicials say Williams is not only a co-owner of the Reds, but he is also vice president of the team and is a lifelong Cincinnati resident.

Our family is extremely proud to make this acquisition as it keeps in line with our thesis of investing in strong local brands that also have a civic responsibility.

In this transaction, we have included some of our current local partners that share these values. Even though Williams has a partial stake in Skyline, the company will still be privately owned. Skyline, founded by Nicholas Lambrinides in , has over restaurants in the Tri-State area and five restaurants in Florida.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Click here to report it. A simple product…simply made. The quality of our secret recipe chili is no mystery. A memorable dining experience. Success begins with a good public education. A world of opportunity. Interested in joining the Skyline Family? Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form. Home Phone. Current Occupation. The ownership transitions encouraged a conservative approach to growth, as each buyer took on debt to buy out previous owners.

Failures mean less money for debt service. To weed out the failures, McDonnell has refined the site-selection process to focus investments on neighborhoods that match its best stores. Once open, Skyline takes pains to support company-owned stores and franchisees with marketing plans that are effective and easy to execute.

The point of it all, McDonnell said, is to make a daily connection with the communities it serves. I think customers have come to appreciate that simplicity in a world that just becomes increasingly complex.

Actions Facebook Tweet Email. By: Dan Monk.