Dine Brands, the Glendale-based parent company of Applebee’s and IHOP, announced today it plans to expand into the Bahamas. The first of 16 IHOP restaurants will open in Nassau later this year.
Through an undisclosed financial agreement with Bahamas Limited, the new openings will take place “over the next few years,” according to a press release.
“The Caribbean is an important growth market for Dine Brands,” said William Urrego, regional vice president of franchise operations for Dine Brands, in a statement. The well-developed tourism infrastructure in the Bahamas as well as recent large-scale hotel and resort investments and shopping center developments make it attractive.
IHOP currently operates more than 1,700 locations, mostly franchised, across all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Guam as well as Canada, Mexico, and several other countries.
“We are excited to bring IHOP to the English-speaking Caribbean islands. We’ve seen success in Puerto Rico and believe guests in this new market are sure to fall in love with the brand’s world-famous pancakes and familiar comfort foods,” Urrego said in a statement.
Shares of Dine Brands Global Inc. (DIN) closed down $1.45, or nearly 2 percent, to $73.43 on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, a day when the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 0.11 percent.