Così (restaurant)

Last updated • 2 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
Così
Company type Private
Nasdaq: COSI
Industry Fast casual restaurant
Founded1996;28 years ago (1996), in New York City, United States
FounderDrew Harre
Headquarters
Mountainside, New Jersey
,
United States
Number of locations
20 (November 2020)
Area served
New York
Washington D.C.
Virginia
Pennsylvania
Massachusetts
Connecticut
Illinois
Indiana
Ohio
Website www.getcosi.com
Former Cosi restaurant on South Michigan Ave, Chicago, Illinois Cosi on South Michigan Ave.jpg
Former Così restaurant on South Michigan Ave, Chicago, Illinois

Così, based in Boston, Massachusetts, is an American fast-casual restaurant chain that is known for its homemade flatbread. The name comes from the opera Così fan tutte , which was a favorite of the original owner. [1] As of November 2020, the company operated 20 locations in New York, Washington D.C., Virginia, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, down from 66 at the beginning of the year. The chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2020.

Contents

History

The original Così restaurant was opened in 1989 by Drew Harre in Paris, France. [2] In 1996, Shep and Jay Wainwright opened the first Così in the United States, in New York. [2]

In October 1999, Così merged with Xando (formerly ZuZu). [3]

The company became a public company via an initial public offering in 2002. [4] [5] A year later, Kevin Armstrong was named chief executive officer of the company. [6]

In June 2010, Così sold its District of Columbia stores to Capitol C Restaurants as franchises. [7] Capitol C is the owner of Qdoba Mexican Grill.

In March 2014, Così's largest and most successful franchisee, RJ Dourney was voted by Così's board of directors to the position of CEO and Director and Così announced it was moving its corporate headquarters from Deerfield, Illinois to Boston, Massachusetts. [8] [9] However, in August 2016, CEO RJ Dourney was fired. [10] [11] That same year, the company filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy reorganization and closed stores. [12] [13] As a result of the bankruptcy filing, the company's shares were de-listed from the NASDAQ. [14] Cosi also sought buyers for "substantially all of its assets." [15]

In May 2017, the company emerged from bankruptcy under the ownership of MILFAM II L.P., AB Value Partners, LP, AB Value Management LLC and AB Opportunity Fund LLC. [16] However, on February 25, 2020, Così once again filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after closing several locations. [17] However, the company then withdrew its filing and instead sought pandemic aid from the government. [18] Then, after surviving the pandemic, on July 1, 2022, Cosi reopened its bankruptcy. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave & Buster's</span> American restaurant and entertainment business

Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. is an American restaurant and entertainment business headquartered in Dallas. Each Dave & Buster's location has a full-service restaurant, full bar, and a video arcade; the latter of which is known as the "Million Dollar Midway". As of September 2023, the company currently has a total of 156 locations in the United States, two in Puerto Rico and two in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Papa Gino's</span> Restaurant chain based in Dedham, Massachusetts

Papa Gino's, Inc. is a restaurant chain based in Dedham, Massachusetts, specializing in traditional thin crust pizza along with pasta, subs, salads, and a variety of appetizers. As of 2023, there are 79 Papa Gino's locations in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Mountain Sports</span> Outdoor clothing and equipment retailer

Eastern Mountain Sports is an outdoor clothing and equipment retailer in the Northeastern United States headquartered in Meriden, Connecticut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Friendly's</span> U.S. East Coast restaurant chain

Friendly's is a restaurant chain on the East Coast of the United States. The first location, selling ice cream cones, was in Springfield, Massachusetts, opened in 1935. It was founded by brothers S. Prestley Blake and Curtis Blake. It has 10,000 employees. George Michel is the CEO. It offers diner-style cuisine and highlights its 22 ice cream flavors. Many locations offer an ice-cream only take-out window alongside of the table service option. Friendly's restaurants are found in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Florida, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Its ice cream is also sold in some East Coast supermarkets.

VitaNova Brands, based in San Antonio, Texas, was an operator of a number of American national buffet chain restaurants including subsidiary company Furr's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bertucci's</span> U.S. restaurant chain

Bertucci's is an American chain of restaurants offering pizza and Italian food. Bertucci's was founded by Joey Crugnale in Davis Square, Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1981. The company expanded rapidly during the 1990s. Bertucci's locations are primarily found in the Northeast US, but range as far south as Virginia. N.E. Restaurant Co. Inc. bought out Bertucci's in 1998, adopting the Bertucci's Co. name in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Movie Gallery</span> Defunct movie and game rental company

Movie Gallery, Inc. was the second largest movie and game rental company in the United States and Canada, behind Blockbuster Video. The company rented and sold Blu-ray Discs, DVDs, VHS tapes, and video games. Founded in Dothan, Alabama, the company was headquartered in Dothan, and later in Wilsonville, Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sbarro</span> American pizzeria chain

Sbarro, LLC is an American fast food restaurant that specializes in New York–style pizza sold by the slice and other Italian-American cuisine. In 2011, the company was ranked 15th in foreign sales among U.S.-based quick-serve and fast-casual companies by QSR Magazine. In 2008, Sbarro was rated the No. 1 Quick Service Restaurant in the Italian segment by Entrepreneur magazine. However, diners and critics have criticized the quality of the food, with some suggesting a link between food quality and the company's two bankruptcies. Sbarro has over 600 locations in 28 countries. Sbarro stores are located in shopping malls, airports, service areas, and college campuses, as well as in The Pentagon, American naval bases, and casinos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buca di Beppo</span> American restaurant chain

Buca di Beppo is an American restaurant chain specializing in Italian-American food. The name roughly translates as "Joe's small place" from Italian. The chain of 81 establishments has been a subsidiary of Planet Hollywood since 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sizzler</span> American restaurant chain

Sizzler USA Restaurants, Inc., doing business as Sizzler, is a United States-based restaurant chain with headquarters in Mission Viejo, California, with locations mainly in California, plus some in the nearby states of Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Idaho, Utah, and Oregon, as well as Puerto Rico. It is known for steak, seafood, and salad bar items.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mrs. Fields</span> American food company specializing in cookies

Mrs. Fields' Original Cookies Inc. is an American franchisor in the snack food industry, with Mrs. Fields and TCBY as its core brands. Through its franchisees' retail stores, it is one of the largest retailers of freshly-baked-on-premises specialty cookies and brownies in the United States and the largest retailer of soft-serve frozen yogurt in the country. In addition, it operates a gifts and branded retail business, entering into many licensing arrangements. Its franchise systems include over 300 franchised and licensed locations throughout the United States and in 22 other countries. It also offers retail grocery products and a gifting catalog under the name of Mrs. Fields Gifts. It is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jo-Ann Stores</span> US arts and crafts retail chain

Jo-Ann Stores, LLC, more commonly known as Jo-Ann, is an American fabric and crafts retail company based in Hudson, Ohio. It operates the retail chains JOANN Fabrics and Crafts and Jo-Ann Etc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ascena Retail Group</span> American corporation

Ascena Retail Group, Inc., is an American retailer of women's clothing. Ascena also owns Lane Bryant clothing store brand, and is the parent company of Ann Inc., operator of Ann Taylor and Loft stores.

Linens 'n Things was a big-box retailer specializing in home textiles, housewares, and decorative home accessories. Based in Clifton, New Jersey, the chain operated 571 stores in 47 U.S. states and six Canadian provinces, and had 7,300 employees as of December 2006. The company's business strategy was "to offer a broad selection of high quality, brand name home furnishings merchandise at exceptional everyday values, provide superior guest service, and maintain low operating costs."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upper Crust Pizzeria</span> American pizza chain restaurant

The Upper Crust Pizzeria is an American pizzeria chain with six locations in the Boston area: Beacon Hill, South End, Brookline, Lexington, Cambridge, and North Andover along with another three in California, located in: Beverly Hills, Culver City, and Los Angeles.

Clover Food Lab is a vegetarian fast food chain, founded in 2008 which operates food trucks and restaurants in Massachusetts, United States. The company serves a simple menu that changes daily and with the seasons based on what is available from local farmers and includes a large mix of organic ingredients. The company also offers meal delivery boxes and catering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DavidsTea</span> Canadian specialty tea retailer

DavidsTea is a publicly traded Canadian specialty tea and tea accessory retailer based in Montreal, Quebec. It is the largest Canadian-based specialty tea boutique in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adeptus Health</span>

Adeptus Health Inc. was a health care provider based in Irving, Texas. Adeptus Health operates free-standing emergency rooms throughout Texas and Arizona. It is the parent company of the oldest and largest freestanding emergency-room network in the United States, First Choice Emergency Room. Adeptus Health became a public company in June 2014, filed for bankruptcy in June 2017, and was acquired by hedge fund Deerfield Management later in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MOD Pizza</span> American fast-casual pizza chain

MOD Pizza is an American fast-casual pizza restaurant chain based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 2008, MOD has more than 560 locations as of December 2023 in the United States and two locations in Canada.

Toast, Inc. is an American cloud-based restaurant management software company based in Boston, Massachusetts. The company provides an all-in-one point of sale (POS) system built on the Android operating system.

References

  1. ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions". Così. Archived from the original on 2017-09-20. Retrieved 2018-12-13.
  2. 1 2 "Cosi: Where We Began".
  3. ↑ Chamis, Eleni (November 22, 1999). "Xando gets Cosi: Merger leads to new look". American City Business Journals .
  4. ↑ GELSI, STEVE (February 24, 2003). "Cosi IPO draws shareholder suits". Marketwatch .
  5. ↑ Hennessey, Raymond (November 17, 2002). "Cosi Restaurant Chain Mixes Ingredients Ahead of Its IPO". The Wall Street Journal .
  6. ↑ "Cosi, Inc. announces new CEO" (Press release). Business Wire. July 8, 2003.
  7. ↑ "Così sells 13 Washington, D.C., restaurants for $8.4M". Fastcasual.com. April 27, 2010.
  8. ↑ Lublin, Joann S. (June 24, 2014). "Rookie CEOs Face a Steep Learning Curve" . The Wall Street Journal .
  9. ↑ Wohl, Jessica (16 April 2014). "Cosi moving from Deerfield to Boston". Chicago Tribune . Archived from the original on 15 August 2017. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  10. ↑ "Cosi, Inc. Announces Leadership Changes" (Press release). Globe Newswire. August 22, 2016.
  11. ↑ Harris, David L. (August 22, 2016). "Cosi fires CEO as struggles persist at fast-casual chain". American City Business Journals .
  12. ↑ Maze, Jonathan (28 September 2016). "Così files for bankruptcy". Nation's Restaurant News.
  13. ↑ "Cosi Restaurant Chain Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy". Fortune . September 28, 2016 – via Reuters.
  14. ↑ Carlock, Catherine (October 7, 2016). "Cosi will soon be delisted from the Nasdaq Stock Market". American City Business Journals .
  15. ↑ Carlock, Catherine (October 11, 2016). "After bankruptcy and delisting, Cosi offers all assets for sale". American City Business Journals .
  16. ↑ "Cosi, Inc. Emerges From Chapter 11 Bankruptcy" (Press release). Globe Newswire. May 11, 2017.
  17. ↑ Lalley, Heather (25 February 2020). "COSI FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION, HAS CLOSED 30 UNITS". Restaurant Business.
  18. ↑ "Cosi seeks bankruptcy fast track to access COVID relief funds". 2021-05-03. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  19. ↑ "Cosi seeks to reopen bankruptcy after surviving pandemic". 2022-07-01. Retrieved 2022-12-12.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.