DineEquity Inc

(NYSE: DIN)

Industry: Restaurants & bars
On the web: http://dineequity.com
Employees: 25,248

DineEquity, Inc. was incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware in 1976 with the name IHOP Corp. Effective June 2, 2008, the name of the Company was changed to DineEquity, Inc. The Company owns and operates two restaurant concepts: Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar(r), or Applebee's in the bar and grill segment of the casual dining category of the restaurant industry, and International House of Pancakes, or IHOP in the family dining category of the restaurant industry. The franchise operations segment consists of restaurants operated by Applebee's franchisees in the United States, one U.S. territory and 15 countries outside of the United States. Applebee's restaurants offer a diverse menu of moderately-priced food and beverage items consisting of traditional favorites and signature dishes. The restaurants feature a selection of entrees prepared in a number of cuisines, as well as appetizers, salads, sandwiches, specialty drinks and desserts. All Applebee's restaurants offer beer, wine, liquor and premium specialty drinks. The franchise operations segment consists of restaurants operated by IHOP franchisees and area licensees in the United States and two countries outside of the U.S.-Canada and Mexico. The IHOP menu offers a selection of high-quality, moderately priced products designed to appeal to a base of customers. These include a number of pancakes, waffles, omelets and breakfast specialties, chicken, steak, sandwiches, salads and lunch and dinner specialties. Most IHOP restaurants offer special items for children and seniors at reduced prices. As of December 31, 2008, there were a total of 1,396 IHOP restaurants of which 1,225 were subject to franchise agreements, 160 were subject to area license agreements and 11 were company-operated restaurants. IHOP restaurants are located in 49 states in the United States, and internationally in Canada and Mexico. In November 2007, the Company completed the acquisition of Applebee's International, Inc., which became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. The Company owns the rights to the ¿Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar(r)¿ service mark and certain variations thereof and to other service marks used in its Applebee's system in the United States and in various foreign countries. In addition, it owns trademarks and service marks used in the IHOP system, including ¿International House of Pancakes,¿ ¿IHOP¿ and variations of each, as well as ¿The Never Empty Coffee Pot,¿ ¿Rooty Tooty Fresh 'N Fruity,¿ ¿Harvest Grain 'N Nut,¿ and ¿Come Hungry, Leave Happy.¿ Applebee's competes in the casual dining segment against national and multi-state operators such as Chili's, T.G.I. Friday's and Ruby Tuesday, among others. IHOP competes in the family dining segment against national and multi-state operators such as Denny's, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Bob Evans Restaurants and Perkins Restaurant and Bakery. The Company is subject to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulation and a number of state laws which regulate the offer and sale of franchises. It is also subject to a number of state laws which regulate substantive aspects of the franchisor-franchisee relationship.