Home - Fix Dine Brands

Fix Dine Brands

Time to Restore Applebee’s & IHOP

Franchisees and shareholders are paying the price for failed leadership. Guest satisfaction has slipped, costs keep rising, and the stock is down more than 70%. It’s time for a plan that puts operators and owners first.

Because when the people who run the restaurants win, everyone wins

Dine Brands was built on community, fairness, and hard work. Applebee’s and IHOP grew because franchisees believed in the promise that if they ran great restaurants, the system would take care of them. That belief has been broken.

Today, management eats first. Executives reward themselves while operators cut staff, delay repairs, and fight to stay afloat. Shareholders have watched 70% of their value disappear since 2021, while executive pay has climbed. This isn’t bad luck. It’s bad structure.

We started this campaign to restore balance — to make the people who built this company great again. Our goal is not confrontation. It is correction.
When franchisees thrive, shareholders win. When accountability returns, trust follows.

We exist for one reason: to realign Dine Brands with the people who make it work.

The Brands Are Broken — Franchisees Feel It First

These aren’t upgrades for corporate slides — they’re tools that give operators their time, margins, and dignity back

Margin Collapse

Corporate-driven promotions and rising costs have crushed store profitability while management collects fees from the top.

Broken Communication

Franchisees operate in the dark — no data, no transparency, no real voice in decisions that shape their survival.

Leadership Without Accountability

Executives reward themselves despite declining traffic, shrinking returns, and a board that answers to no one.

Our guests wait longer, our margins shrink, and corporate still wins. That’s not sustainable.

— Major Franchisee

A Clear Path to Better Restaurants and Stronger Returns

Operational Fixes

TurboChef ovens, menu simplification, and KPI dashboards to improve speed, consistency, and profitability.

Financial Discipline

Refinance $500M of high-cost debt, reduce unsustainable dividend, reinvest in stores.

Governance Reset

New leadership with turnaround experience.

This is not theory. These are proven solutions that drive faster service, happier guests, and healthier franchises.

See What We’re Building

Presentation, public letters, and press coverage — all available for review.

Presentation

Restoring Applebee’s and IHOP to greatness by realigning management, franchisees, and shareholders—because when operators win, everyone wins.

Public Letters

Read our letters to the board and shareholders

Press Mentions

Activist investor Jim Osman launches a campaign to fix Dine Brands—calling for accountability, operational reform, and a return to franchisee-first leadership.

Led by Those Who Build, Not Those Who Feed

Together we’re rebuilding Dine Brands from the ground up — with those who run the restaurants, creating the value, and owning the future.

Tom Lewison

50 years of restaurant experience. Former CEO of Bojangles and COO of CKE Restaurants. Known for turning around underperforming brands.

Chris Marshall

Financial turnaround expert. Helped transform Mr. Cooper Group into one of the best-performing financial stocks.

Jim Osman

Founder of The Edge, global authority on spinoffs and special situations, and a committed Dine Brands shareholder.

Applebee’s and IHOP Can Thrive Again — But Not with the Current Leadership

Franchisee? Share Your Experience. We’re building a stronger system — your voice matters.

These brands were built on hard work, community, and trust — not corporate privilege. We believe in what they stand for, but belief alone cannot fix broken structure. When leadership forgets who creates the value, decline follows. When alignment returns, growth follows. The time for excuses has passed. The time to rebuild what made these brands great begins now.