Camille's Sidewalk Cafe
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | casual dining restaurant |
| Genre | Restaurant |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Founder | David and Camille Rutkauskas |
| Headquarters | Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA |
Number of locations | 107 restaurants (2008) 29 restaurants in the USA (March 22 2013) |
Area served | United States |
Key people |
David Rutkauskas, Chairman and CEO |
| Website | www.camillescafe.com |
Camille's Sidewalk Cafe is a restaurant franchise headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, specializing in healthful, "fast casual" cuisine. At one time Camille's had more than 100 locations, and as of May 2013 had 36 locations in the United States.
Overview
Camille's Sidewalk Cafe was founded in 1996 by David Rutkauskas, his wife Camille and father Otto, with the first location (a 250-square-foot (23 m2) kiosk) opening in the Woodland Hills Mall in Tulsa in October of that year. The chain's menu consists principally of wraps, sandwiches, salads, panini and gourmet pizzas, plus a range of coffees and smoothies.
In January 2008, the company reached an agreement with Wal-Mart to include Camille's restaurants in new Wal-Mart supercenters, with as many as 200 such locations opening 2018. Stand-alone Camille's locations in Puerto Rico are scheduled to open in 2008, with 21 under development in Puerto Rico.. In 2008, the company launched 3 cafes in Bahrain and 2 in Dubai.[1]
The Rutkauskas' company, Beautiful Brands, also owns other franchise concepts including FreshBerry, a frozen yogurt chain.[2]
According to a May 14, 2013 article in the Tulsa World, the chain peaked at 107 restaurants in 2009. In the years that followed, two-thirds of the chain's locations have been closed, leaving 36 locations in the United States, and the chain has faced vocal criticisms from some franchisees as well as a lawsuit over the Middle Eastern franchise rights. The original company-owned store in Woodland Hills Mall closed at the end of 2012.[3]
References
- ↑ "International Expansion: Camille's Expands in Mideast". Chain Leader. 2009-01-22. Retrieved 2009-05-31.
- ↑ Arnold, Kyle (December 15, 2009). "In the Raw goes nationwide". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2009-12-15.
- ↑ Kyle Arnold, "Camille's empire copes with setbacks", Tulsa World, May 14, 2013.