F. Lane Cardwell, Jr., M.B.A.

Advisory Board Member

Lane Cardwell has spent almost 30 years in the restaurant industry and during this time has been associated with over 30 different restaurant concepts. He is a board member, advisor and coach to various restaurant and restaurant technology companies and individuals. He serves on the Advisory Board of Batrus Hollweg International. He is on the board of directors of P. F. Chang's China Bistro and Famous Dave's of America, both publicly traded. He also serves on the boards of three privately held companies in the restaurant industry. In addition, he is a partner in The Chain Gang which identifies and invests in restaurant companies with specific growth criteria. In support of these activities he eats in approximately 600 restaurants a year.

He was the president of Eatzi's Market and Bakery from 1996 to 1999. Eatzi's was one of the world's most studied companies in the home meal replacement industry. Prior to joining Eatzi's in 1996 Mr. Cardwell was Executive Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and a member of the board of directors of Brinker International. In this position he was responsible for all marketing, development (real estate, construction, design, and property development), purchasing, financial analysis, mergers and acquisitions, and was the company's liaison with creative consultant Phil Romano for new concept development. Mr. Romano and Brinker International were the co-owners of Eatzi's.

Prior to joining Brinker in 1988 Mr. Cardwell was Senior Vice President of Strategic Development for S & A Restaurant Corp., the owner of the Steak and Ale and Bennigan's chains. During his 10-year tenure with S & A he was responsible for determining which industry segments and concepts the company should target for its concept development and acquisition activity. In addition, he was responsible for marketing support, marketing research, and menu research and development activity for the company's concepts.

Mr. Cardwell is a past president of the North Texas Food Bank and served on its board of directors. He has a BBA in marketing from Southern Methodist University and a MBA in Finance from the University of North Texas, where he was named a distinguished alumnus in 1998.