Captain D's history

D's seafood concept, and in 1974 it was renamed Captain D's.

In 1975, Danner was president of the company, which announced the renaming of Mr.

In 1976, Captain D's was held by the rebranded Shoney's Inc., after Danner and Schoenbaum sold the Big Boy trademark to Marriott Corporation.

He succeeded Danner as CEO in 1981 as the company peaked.

Wachtel soon fell out with the autocratic Ray Danner, however, and left Shoney's in 1982.

Moreover, the move decreased the chain's dependence on white fish, which starting in 1986 experienced drastic price swings.

Chainwide revenues for fiscal 1989 were $400 million.

To further boost sales, the chain introduced drive-thru windows in 1990.

Captain D's was not alone in its problems, as explained in a June 1991 Restaurant Business article that summarized prevailing conditions: "Seafood restaurants, especially chains, face tremendous challenges.

In November 1992, Captain D's was involved in the $105 million settlement of the racial discrimination case against then-parent company Shoney's Inc. and Danner agreed to contribute $65 million of the company's stock toward the settlement amount.

The chain, which peaked at nearly 650 restaurants in 1994, also closed some underperforming units to improve profitability.

With sales declining and burdened by excessive debt, Shoney's initiated a major restructuring plan in early 1995.

An instrumental player was Captain D's current president and chief operating officer, Ronald E. Walker, who took over the presidency in 1996 and was well familiar with the operation after more than 15 years of service with Shoney's.

By 2000 Captain D's was the strongest division of Shoney's, which initiated a financial restructuring that provided Captain D's with a $135 million line of credit and made the chain a stand-alone subsidiary.

In late 2001 the chain opened its first restaurant at a military location, and its first West Coast outlet, at the Travis Air Force Base in northern California.

In January 2005, Sagittarius Brand, Inc. acquired Captain D's for $150 million.

After Spectrum Restaurant Group Inc. filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2006, Captain D's bought its restaurant chain Grandy's as a subsidiary.

On September 13, 2010, Phil Greifeld was appointed CEO of Captain D's.

In 2013, Sun Capital Partners Inc. sold Captain D's to its affiliate, Centre Partners Management.

Throughout 2016, Captain D's experienced a surge of franchise and corporate development, with 13 new locations opened, along with numerous development agreements signed to open additional restaurants.