What is Brinker International?
Operator and franchisor of Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurants.
- Category
- Casual dining restaurants
- Headquarters
- Dallas, TX
- Founded
- 1975
- Employees
- About 68,000
- Total funding
- Public company; no current VC funding
- Status
- Public company; NYSE: EAT
What is Brinker International?
Brinker International is a casual dining restaurants company headquartered in Dallas, TX. Operator and franchisor of Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurants.
Brinker International operates at mid-market public-company scale with $4.13B FY2025 revenue, About 68,000 employees, and more than 1,600 company-operated and franchised restaurants. The company is relevant for account research because buying decisions span customer experience, operations, finance, merchandising, supply chain, data, security, real estate, and digital channels. Its public filings and investor materials provide a durable view of scale, profitability drivers, and leadership priorities.
The business is not a venture-backed startup; it is a mature public company with executive accountability to public shareholders. For sellers, that means budgets exist, but the sales motion usually needs a quantified business case and a clear operating owner. The strongest pitches connect to revenue growth, margin, productivity, compliance, customer retention, digital conversion, risk reduction, or working-capital improvement.
As of June 2026, the most current profile lens is Public company; NYSE: EAT. This page uses official investor relations pages, the latest annual filing, current leadership pages or announcements, public website signals, and observable domain data so the directory logo and competitor logos resolve from real primary domains.
What does Brinker International offer?
Brinker International offers Chili's Grill & Bar, Maggiano's Little Italy, Company-operated restaurants, Franchised restaurants, and related services or channels.
- Chili's Grill & Bar· Restaurant brand
- Maggiano's Little Italy· Restaurant brand
- Company-operated restaurants· Operations
- Franchised restaurants· Operations
- Digital ordering and loyalty· Guest experience
- Restaurant gift cards· Commerce
How does Brinker International make money?
Brinker International makes money through customer transactions, services, brand/channel economics, and operating scale rather than venture-style subscription funding.
Brinker International's model is primarily transaction-driven. Revenue comes from products, services, fees, licensed or franchised economics where applicable, memberships or loyalty economics where applicable, and channel programs tied to its category. Published pricing is therefore SKU-, menu-, account-, project-, market-, or transaction-specific rather than a single SaaS price sheet.
The main growth levers are traffic, conversion, retention, average order value, unit count or office footprint, pricing, mix, merchandising, productivity, and operating margin. In public reporting, management tracks revenue, comparable sales or volume, gross margin, operating income, cash flow, store/unit productivity, client assets, trading activity, or other category-specific metrics. Technology and services budgets usually need to map to those operating metrics.
For vendors, the practical pricing signal is that Brinker International can fund enterprise programs when ROI is clear and ownership is aligned. Procurement will typically test security, integration effort, change management, legal terms, data handling, and measurable impact before a broad rollout.
Who leads Brinker International?
Brinker International is led by Kevin Hochman, with senior executives responsible for finance, operations, technology, brand, legal, investor relations, or business-unit execution.
- Kevin HochmanChief Executive Officer and PresidentCEO since 2022Leads Brinker and the Chili's brand turnaround strategy.
- Mika WareExecutive Vice President and Chief Financial OfficerCFO since fiscal 2025Owns finance, investor relations, accounting, and capital allocation.
- Chris CaldwellSenior Vice President, Chief Information OfficerCIO since 2024Owns restaurant technology, data, infrastructure, and digital systems.
- Aaron WhiteExecutive Vice President and Chief People OfficerPeople leaderLeads talent, training, and restaurant workforce programs.
How do you contact Brinker International's leadership?
Brinker International publishes investor relations, media, customer, or corporate contact routes, but this profile does not present guessed executive emails as verified. Use the official contact page, investor relations route, or procurement/business-owner path for outreach.
Public contact route; personal executive email format not verifiedHow much funding has Brinker International raised?
Brinker International is a public company, so the relevant capital lens is Public company; NYSE: EAT, not a current venture funding total.
Brinker International does not have a current venture-round history to track like a private startup. Its major capital milestones are founding, public listing, acquisitions or divestitures, debt and credit facilities, share repurchases or dividends where applicable, and operating cash flow generated from the business. The latest annual filing is the best source for current capitalization and financial scale.
The current operating scale is $4.13B FY2025 revenue. That scale matters more than a VC funding total because budgets are allocated through annual planning, capital committees, procurement, and business-unit initiatives. Public status also means vendors can infer strategic priorities from earnings releases, annual reports, proxy materials, and investor presentations.
Seller signal: Brinker International can buy substantial systems and services, but it will expect mature proof. Strong opportunities usually attach to a named executive priority, a measurable financial lever, and a rollout path that reduces operating risk.
How did Brinker International get here?
Brinker International reached its current scale through founding, expansion, public-market access, leadership changes, and recent operating milestones.
- 1975Chili's is foundedThe original Chili's concept opens in Dallas.
- 1983Brinker International is formedNorman Brinker builds the multi-brand restaurant company.
- 1995Maggiano's joins BrinkerThe company acquires and scales the Italian dining brand.
- 2022Kevin Hochman becomes CEOBrinker brings in new leadership focused on brand, operations, and value.
- 2025FY2025 revenue reaches $4.13BThe company reports strong Chili's-led sales momentum in its annual filing.
- 2026Fiscal 2026 guidance updatedInvestor materials continue to emphasize traffic, margin, and restaurant execution.
Who are Brinker International's competitors?
Brinker International competes with category specialists, scaled public peers, and channel platforms that target similar customers, budgets, or operating workflows.
- Darden RestaurantsLarger multi-brand casual dining peer with Olive Garden and LongHorn.
- Texas RoadhouseSteakhouse-led casual dining operator with high unit volumes.
- Applebee'sFranchised bar-and-grill competitor owned by Dine Brands.
- Bloomin' BrandsOutback Steakhouse parent competing for casual dining visits.
- Cheesecake FactoryHigher-ticket experiential dining and bakery competitor.
Brinker International — frequently asked questions
